EXCUSES: FORMULA FOR FAILURE
We use excuses to help us avoid doing what is uncomfortable to us. They satisfy our fears. But did you know that they also keep us from growing? What’s worse is that they are a sure formula for failure. So, How can we get out of the habit of making excuses?
We are continuing our look at the love God has for us and his plan (his mission) to bridge the gap between us and him. His mission is to bring us back into a relationship with him. In bridging the gap between us and Him, He calls for us to become His disciples and members of his family. But it does not end with his call; a call without action from the one being called has no value. In this series, using Jonah, a character in the Bible who ran away to avoid his mission, we look at the different excuses people use not to take action and what God expects us to do when He calls. (Split)
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Let Us Inviting God’s Presence:
Holy Father, help us get out of the habit of making excuses, but instead, put our fears aside and trust in you so that we can move forward. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
God’s Mission, My Mission
(Lesson 5)
Excuses to Avoid Mission
Part 3 of 6
Excuses to Avoid Mission
Recall that in our previous video, Jonah had many excuses for not answering God’s call to go to Nineveh. But, when the storm came, who did Jonah Blame in Jonah 1:1–12.
Jonah 1:1-12
1 Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah the son of Amittai, saying,
2 “Arise, go to Nineveh, that great city, and cry out against it; for their wickedness has come up before Me.”
3 But Jonah arose to flee to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord. He went down to Joppa, and found a ship going to Tarshish; so he paid the fare, and went down into it, to go with them to Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.
4 But the Lord sent out a great wind on the sea, and there was a mighty tempest on the sea, so that the ship was about to be broken up.
5 Then the mariners were afraid; and every man cried out to his god, and threw the cargo that was in the ship into the sea, to lighten the load. But Jonah had gone down into the lowest parts of the ship, had lain down, and was fast asleep.
6 So the captain came to him, and said to him, “What do you mean, sleeper? Arise, call on your God; perhaps your God will consider us, so that we may not perish.”
7 And they said to one another, “Come, let us cast lots, that we may know for whose cause this trouble has come upon us.” So they cast lots, and the lot fell on Jonah.
8 Then they said to him, “Please tell us! For whose cause is this trouble upon us? What is your occupation? And where do you come from? What is your country? And of what people are you?” (Split)
9 So he said to them, “I am a Hebrew; and I fear the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the dry land.”
10 Then the men were exceedingly afraid, and said to him, “Why have you done this?” For the men knew that he fled from the presence of the Lord, because he had told them.
11 Then they said to him, “What shall we do to you that the sea may be calm for us?”—for the sea was growing more tempestuous.
12 And he said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea; then the sea will become calm for you.
For I know that this great tempest is because of me.” (Jonah 1:1-12) (Split)
Jonah shifts the blame to himself for the great storm.
It’s important to know that Jonah’s thinking regarding the storm shows us what many people believed about God or the “gods” back then.
They believed that different gods ruled their countries and their lands. However, they also believed that the gods did not control the sea. They instead believed the sea was the chaotic realm of demons. Hence, they maintained the idea that the seas were possessed and controlled by demons.
Jonah, however, was a Hebrew, and although the Hebrews typically did not maintain this false idea about who was in command of the land and sea.
Jonah had adopted the traditional belief. Thus, it is assumed that this is the reason he blamed himself for the storm. He believes he made the sea demons angry.
Recall that instead of running to the territory where the people claim the Most High as their God, Jonah ran away from Israel and was headed to Tarshish.
Jonah had to learn what Psalms 24:1 expresses the hard way. God is in control of the land, the sea, and all that is in them, including the fish. It says,
1 The earth is the Lord’s, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell therein. (Psalm 24:1).
But when we read Jonah 2:1–3, 7–10, it shows us that Jonah was beginning to understand God’s leading and concern for his life.
Jonah 2:1-3 says:
1 Then Jonah prayed to the Lord his God from the fish’s belly.
2 And he said: “I cried out to the Lord because of my affliction, And He answered me. “Out of the belly of Sheol I cried, And You heard my voice.
3 For You cast me into the deep, Into the heart of the seas, And the floods surrounded me; All Your billows and Your waves passed over me. (Jonah 2:1–3)
Jonah 2:7-10 says:
7 “When my soul fainted within me, I remembered the Lord; And my prayer went up to You, Into Your holy temple.
8 “Those who regard worthless idols Forsake their own Mercy.
9 But I will sacrifice to You With the voice of thanksgiving; I will pay what I have vowed. Salvation is of the Lord.”
10 So the Lord spoke to the fish, and it vomited Jonah onto dry land. (Jonah 2:7-10)
You see, after being tossed into the sea, Jonah gave his heart to the God of the land and sea. So, God saved him out of the belly of the fish.
Just like Jonah, we, too, can have misconceptions about God and what He expects from us.
A common misconception is that God’s desire is for us to focus on our own salvation at the expense of removing ourselves from the world and those around us.
It is true that James 1:27 warns us to keep ourselves “unspotted from the world” (James 1:27).
However, at the same time, God does not expect us to hide ourselves away from people.
Though He does not want us to partake of the evil practices of those around us, He does expect us to do everything we can to share God’s blessings and hope with those needing it.
Another misconception is the idea that success depends on us. This was Jonah’s misconception. This idea is one that can cause us to make excuses for not doing God’s work.
We must remember that we are no different than Jonah: we can’t save anyone. Jonah couldn’t save Nineveh; his job was to do what God called him to do. He was to warn Nineveh, not save Nineveh!
Sometimes, we behave as if we are the “savior.” But God doesn’t ask us to do His work. He asks us to work with Him. Saving people is God’s job, not ours.
Yes, we can tell people about what God has done to transform us, but only God can bring about a transformation in others. It is our job to plant “seeds” of Bible truth in people’s hearts. Only God can make the seeds grow.
Here is where we get confused: we often confuse our work with God’s work. Because we are confused, our misconception can, like Jonah, lead us to excuse ourselves from doing what God has called us to do.
So, yes, God used Jonah. But God, not Jonah, turned the once wicked city of Nineveh around.
Helping others turn their lives around is hard. It is far too hard for us humans to do on our own. We must instead leave the results of the turnaround up to God and allow our transformed lives to be a witness to others so that God can turn them around.
But what if I am uncomfortable being around certain types of people, especially difficult people? Then what? Read Jonah 2, then Continue to Part 4 of this video: Our Excuses: Inconvenience; Working with Stubborn People.
God’s Mission, My Mission
(Lesson 5)
Excuses to Avoid Mission
Part 4 of 6
Our Excuses: Inconvenience
Jonah’s experience in Jonah 2 when he was in the belly of the fish is a powerful display of God’s love and mercy. Jonah’s prayer helps us see that Jonah now better understands God’s message about His love for all humanity.
Sadly, his incredible encounter with God in saving him from the belly of the fish didn’t mean that all of Jonah’s old habits, thoughts, and feelings had changed.
No, Jonah went to Nineveh.
But on his journey, he still held bad thoughts and feelings about the Ninevites. Even with his bad feelings, Jonah still preached to the Ninevites.
What did the Ninevites do when they heard Jonah preach? Read Jonah 3 to find out.
Interestingly enough, though Jonah had some issues with the Ninevites, he gave them the message God had instructed him to give. What happened next was amazing.
The horrible and wicked Ninevites confessed their evil deeds and asked God for forgiveness.
You see, when Jonah finally did what God asked him to do, God was honored among the Ninevites.
The same can be true for us. God’s work becomes a success when we cast our fears aside, stop making excuses, and do what God has called us to do, even if we do it reluctantly.
The point is we must be willing to give up what we want and put God’s work first. Just as Jonah did, we may dislike people; we may even have prejudices against them. Changing our feelings about others requires much humility. But nevertheless, God asks us to help them.
Our bad feelings may keep us from serving a person or a group who needs our help. It’s not easy to recognize the prejudices in our own hearts. But God requires that we be emptied of all pride and selfishness.
Moreover, God’s work takes time and energy. Helping other people and caring for them can make us tired and worn out. Just living our lives from day to day is stressful. So, the last thing we may want to do is help someone solve their problems when we are dealing with a multitude of problems ourselves. But is that a good excuse?
Furthermore, doing what God has called us to do also requires that we change how we feel about the use of our money. Our money is really God’s money. He blesses us so we may support His work and help others. Perhaps we may need to use a portion of the money He has given us to provide a special need, pay for a specific service, purchase literature, or fund an outreach.
In other words, doing God’s work costs money. Thus, it requires that we stop thinking always about ourselves and do what God has called us to do: help others.
The good news is that just as God worked with Jonah, He will work with us. What is causing you discomfort? Could it be that you are uncomfortable with confrontation? Is discomfort with confrontation a good excuse? If not, then how should we manage our feelings related to confrontation? Find out in the next video: Part 5: Our Excuses: Uncomfortable Confrontations
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