One of the things that often intrigues me is the question of motivation. Part of this comes from my faith as a Christian, in which my love and care for my God and my neighbor inspire me in many of the things that I do. I have also seen that frequently Christians can seek to impart their particular values and morals upon others, expecting them to follow suit without question. And that's where I see a big difference between being internally motivated or externally motivated.
When you are internally motivated, you tend to make changes based upon your ow thinking, or the need that you recognize. It is incumbent upon you to be the agent which directs and guides the change. When you need motivation for achieving the change, it comes from within, and that makes it a little more powerful. You see the need, and you recognize the need, and therefore, you are the agent which guides and influences the change.
It's a completely different thing when you are externally motivated. When this happens, the change is being enforced upon you by another. In our human nature, that's something that we are naturally opposed to. We don't like it when others tell us how we are supposed to be, what we are supposed to do, and how we are supposed to act. We may go along with it for a while, but when the external pressure is removed, it shouldn't be a surprise that we go back to that which we find comfortable and natural.
When God works upon us by His Spirit, He works to create a new heart within us. God knows that, if He were to outwardly enforce His will, law, and design upon us, we would naturally rebel against Him. Shoot, we already do that, even when it's just knowing what He says in His will, law, and design. Imagine if God were to actively stop us from any kind of breaking of His law. We would end up going along with it simply because it would be less painful to do that, rather than out of any kind of internal motivation.
But God is really about changing our hearts to where we become internally motivated to follow what He says and to do what He has commanded. As God removes our heart of stone and replaces it with a heart of flesh, He changes us to become a people who are inwardly motivated by our love for God and our care for our neighbor. We do it, not because someone else is forcing it on us, but because we see how it benefits others, and we do it from that internal motivation. That is, by far, a more powerful motivation. Inward motivation will often go much farther than any form of external motivation.
At its heart, the Gospel is about us become internally motivated to do that which God desires, wills, and commands. Doing it, because we are loved by God, and therefore, we love others.
When you are internally motivated, you tend to make changes based upon your ow thinking, or the need that you recognize. It is incumbent upon you to be the agent which directs and guides the change. When you need motivation for achieving the change, it comes from within, and that makes it a little more powerful. You see the need, and you recognize the need, and therefore, you are the agent which guides and influences the change.
It's a completely different thing when you are externally motivated. When this happens, the change is being enforced upon you by another. In our human nature, that's something that we are naturally opposed to. We don't like it when others tell us how we are supposed to be, what we are supposed to do, and how we are supposed to act. We may go along with it for a while, but when the external pressure is removed, it shouldn't be a surprise that we go back to that which we find comfortable and natural.
When God works upon us by His Spirit, He works to create a new heart within us. God knows that, if He were to outwardly enforce His will, law, and design upon us, we would naturally rebel against Him. Shoot, we already do that, even when it's just knowing what He says in His will, law, and design. Imagine if God were to actively stop us from any kind of breaking of His law. We would end up going along with it simply because it would be less painful to do that, rather than out of any kind of internal motivation.
But God is really about changing our hearts to where we become internally motivated to follow what He says and to do what He has commanded. As God removes our heart of stone and replaces it with a heart of flesh, He changes us to become a people who are inwardly motivated by our love for God and our care for our neighbor. We do it, not because someone else is forcing it on us, but because we see how it benefits others, and we do it from that internal motivation. That is, by far, a more powerful motivation. Inward motivation will often go much farther than any form of external motivation.
At its heart, the Gospel is about us become internally motivated to do that which God desires, wills, and commands. Doing it, because we are loved by God, and therefore, we love others.
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