Why Don't You Go to Church Anymore (part 1)?

It is a question I have asked a few people and there are a myriad of answers; which, if we were really being honest, a bunch of excuses for not doing what you know is good for you.

Even that doesn't make sense because we do everything else (practically) that's supposes to be good for us having retained the understanding for that. We know and have learned to eat food that is nutritious. It doesn't necessarily have to taste good but when we understand that it is good for the health of our physical bodies, we develop the taste for it and eat it anyway. Every once in awhile we'll taste a fast food item but we have also learned the more we stay away from those things that aren't good the less we crave the taste for them.

This would also be true with getting regular dental check ups and physicals. The dentist/doctor tells us what we have been doing wrong and if this or that doesn't change then there will be some harsh repercussions. What happens? Eventually, change occurs. It start with making the decision to do so. Once the decision is made everything else follows that decision.

That decision, if a good one, influences other matters in our lives. if the decision is to lie in bed and sleep rather than getting up and extra hour early to exercise then you cannot be upset with the results. If the decision is to lounge/bar hop until the wee hours knowing you have a presentation in the morning, whose fault is that? If the decision is to keep clutter at a minimum by giving clothes or household items away that you haven't used in years then the result is having an orderly home that is easy to manage and maintain.

Decisions are easy to make once we have the knowledge and understanding so what is decided can be of quality rather than made from pressure. There are no regrets when understanding and knowledge are in place. When we know that it is good, we simply do it. (Hosea 4:6 NIV), (Proverbs 18:21 AMP), (Deuteronomy 30:19 NIV)

Walking Requires Effort

People try to sort confused lives because they decide that they can get something for nothing. It just doesn't work.

Even when you think you can cheat the process by speeding up steps to gain the desired goal, it is never the joyfilled event you expect it to be.

I have many family members who are college graduates (including me). There is not one of us who had the privelege of obtaining that education without hard work. I have witnessed those whose parents, planned  and saved for their children. It is good; however, those that I witnessed that didn't have to toil and struggle financially for their degree, found much to complain about once achieved. From not having a large enough salary to the environment from which they were employed. The ones who labored to obtain knowledge were grateful to get a job. The ones who were given the tuition had higher expectations.

I suppose we can pull pros and cons from both; however, it doesn't take the perspective away from planning and prioritizing.

If you don't make the effort to work out a detailed 6 month, 1 year, 5 year, and 10 year plan with goals in place, you have no one to blame when the "golden years" are only a couple of decades away and you have nothing to show for the life that has been given you (Proverbs 24:27 AMP).