let go of lazy & resolve to rebound

PART A— LET GO OF LAZY

Ephesians 5:14 “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”

I hope that reality hits you as hard as it hits me. The first step to maximizing our witness in 2021 is this: WAKE UP! Sometimes we avoid God’s Word because we’re too lazy/selfish to alter our lifestyle. Rest cannot be confused with or replaced by sloth. We desperately need the Holy Spirit’s help to wake up. It’s not a personal suggestion, this is a biblical command! We have been explicitly charged with intentionality, so our primary focus should be maximizing our witness despite the cost.

Isaiah 30:1 “Ah, stubborn children,” declares the Lord, “who carry out a plan, but not mine, and who make an alliance, but not of my Spirit, that they may add sin to sin; who set out to go down to Egypt, without asking for my direction, to take refuge in the protection of Pharaoh and to seek shelter in the shadow of Egypt!”

What this verse says about me: I’m stubborn. I’m constantly driven by something, even if it’s not His will. Often times, I pursue what’s tangible instead of resting confidently in what the Lord has promised. Notice that this man’s demise begins with a plan. When things are going well, it’s easy to acknowledge the Lord’s incomparable strength and protection. However, when our plans are complicated by the uncertainty of life, we quickly turn to help from other sources. We can start 2021 by committing to patience and surrendering every plan to the Lord.

In a DesiringGod article, Paul Maxwell suggests that “Laziness is not the passivity it pretends to be. It is active obedience to something other than Jesus Christ.” That caused me to think “What voice am I most obedient to?” It’s my prayer that our ears would be inclined to discern the voice of the Spirit and that our feet are eager to follow in His footsteps. As I’ve mentioned before, it can be hard for me to give the Lord 100% control of my life. Something I’ve learned recently is that trusting the Lord doesn’t mean sitting back and being lazy/letting the wind toss you ‘where you’re meant to be.’ Trusting the Lord does not give us permission to kick back. In fact, it requires hard work and endurance. The Lord is the giver of our every aspiration and desire. However, when we fixate on achieving our goals rather than submitting to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, this is where we grow weary and reap disappointment.

Have you ever wondered why the Proverbs 31 woman can “laugh without fear of the future” (vs 25)? Although she is confident in herself, she is MORE confident in the Lord. The laughter described here continues even when circumstances change and life feels like it’s falling apart. This woman willingly loosens her grip on anxiety and takes the hand of her loving and sovereign Father. Proverbs 12:20 explains that when we plan according to the Spirit’s guidance we can experience joy. The abundant life described in John 10:10 begins with aligning my wants with the Lord’s. From surrender to fruition, let Christ be the singular source of light illuminating your path. (Psalm 119:105).

PART B— RESOLVE TO REBOUND

Once we’ve given up laziness, we can take action!

In high school, I played a lot of tennis. I practiced consistently and played competitively. If you’ve ever participated in sports, you understand that when the game isn’t gonna come out in your favor, you start to compromise. “I can win this match” becomes “If I can just get my last few serves in…” and sometimes we go so far as “I’ll make up for it in next week’s match.”

Perhaps you have a similar mindset coming into the New Year. We’re coming off an admittedly difficult year. It’s easy to pat ourselves on the back for surviving 2020 and even more tempting to set low expectations for 2021. I strongly believe that a lot of us need fresh motivation. We need to rekindle our relationship with the Lord, renew our mind, and restore hope. Our God is a God of excellence, not mediocrity. I want my goals for the upcoming year to reflect absolute confidence in a God who desires to accomplish exceedingly more than I can fathom. This is our chance to look different from the world! Instead of lowering our standards, let’s walk into the New Year with the highest expectations!

Hebrews 6:11-12 “And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance of hope until the end, so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”