From the Pastor’s Pen

Author: Rev. Dr. Corey D. Brown
July 23, 2019

As the holidays are quickly approaching, let us be mindful of the reasons we should celebrate this season and remember what the Lord has done. First, God has brought all of us to the end of another year. Some of us thought that we would not survive all the chaotic times and tribulations that 2019 has unfolded, but to God be the glory for sustaining us through it all. Second, festivities like Thanksgiving and Christmas reflects the goodness of the Lord while allowing us to share these moments with those we love and cherish. Third, the end of one year gives us the opportunity to begin praying and preparing to embrace a new year. Whatever happened in the past is now behind us, and we have the opportunity to embrace the new blessings before us. Finally, in whatever condition we find ourselves in, God wants us to be content and satisfied with His divine plan for our lives. Our journey this year was filled with mercy and favor from the Lord. Reflect on His goodness this season, and count your many blessings to see what the Lord has done!

Additionally, this season are times in our lives when we start to lose motivation. Sometimes the holidays can be depressing for varying reasons and the ability to suffer through these times can become more difficult with each passing year. Therefore, allow us to briefly discuss motivation. What motivates you?  What pushes you to excel?  What pushes you to put forth the extra effort?  How can you motivate others? Motivation is recognizing and utilizing the inner motives (drives or needs) of a person to get an individual to want to do what needs to be done.  Someone should recognize that there is a cause (usually an identifiable one) for the way people think and act.  People act the way they do because of a cause, and we should seek to understand the cause-effect relationship behind the actions of people.  The causes for actions will be based on a person’s value system, needs, and goals.  The Christian’s value system should reflect their relationship to Christ.

Motivation comes from within a person.  Motivation is a product of the will of a person, and not the will of anyone else. Despite the challenges we face from day to day, something intrinsically must be our motivating force to move us from location (places of immobility) to destination (places of forward progress and achievement). We must have more motivation working for us than we have negative moods working against us.

As the winter season approaches, allow me to challenge you to be motivated this season. The weather has change, the temperatures have dropped, the day is getting shorter, and the holidays are rapidly approaching whether we are prepared for them or not. However, a change in the season doesn’t automatically equate a mandatory change in our motivation. Rather, we should be even more motivated and determined because we need to finish the year strong.

Many church members globally suffer low participation and attendance in church, especially Bible Study and Sunday School, because the season has changed. Others will experience absences in Sunday morning worship experiences because their motivation levels have decreased. When we succumb to the tragedies of this world and allow the media and other social outlets to dictate our purposes in life, we lose the ability and desire to be motivated and forget how far God has brought us. This is the season where all of God’s children should be especially thankful, grateful, and motivated. This is the season that we should reflect on how far God has brought us and the ability to see another year come to an end. We should be grateful for family and loved ones as we feast around dinner tables. Ultimately, we should be grateful for the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

So, let us be more motivated now than ever before! This is the season for your motivational levels to be at an all-time high. Despite the challenges we have faced this year, allow the Holy Spirit to be your comfort for those who are weary, your guide for those who are lost, and your motivation for those who may feel weak and discouraged. Surrender to the power of the Holy Spirit, and allow the peace of God to undergird your motivation this season. I pray this brief excerpt has motivated you.

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