There Is Power in Excuses

Have you ever thought about where excuses come from? Let's go back to the beginning. I encourage you to read Genesis chapters 1-3.

In Genesis chapter 3 we see how crafty the serpent was when he was able to convince Eve to eat from the tree of knowledge of good and evil (Gen 3:1-5) and then how she was able to convince Adam to do the same (Gen 3:6).

Eve's actions remind us of how we too can lead others astray and the importance of being mindful of our own words and actions at all times (James 3).

Proverbs 15:4 NIV

"The tongue that brings healing is a tree of life, but a deceitful tongue crushes the spirit."

A great question to ask ourselves continuously is: "Will my decision please God or myself?" Friends when we take a moment to pause and ask ourselves this question think about how quickly we actually know the right answer. Ouch, right?! Trust me when I say this speaks volumes to myself as I know I can give excuses for my poor behavior or bad habits, how about you?

When God questioned Adam and Eve, they both gave excuses for their actions (Gen 3:7-13). Instead of following God's command (Gen 2:16-17) their doubt and lack of trust in God led them to sin. That action led to us living in a fallen and sinful world, in fact, we are still seeing the ripple effects of how one decision changed the world we live in today. That's pretty powerful...

All Satan had to do was create doubt in Eve's mind about who she was and what she already had. He was able to tempt her (Gen 3:4) with the thought of knowing she could be like God and have the knowledge of good and evil and yet what she failed to remember is that she already had all the knowledge she needed. She was created in God's image (Gen 1:26-27), and she had even experienced God's goodness on an intimate level, by what He had provided for her and Adam in the Garden of Eden.

Have you ever doubted God's word when it says he will provide for you?

Philippians 4:19 NIV

"And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus."

Have you faced a difficult situation and failed to believe that God could turn it around for you whether physically, financially, spiritually etc.?

Joshua 1:9 NIV

"Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go."

Have you ever doubted that you can overcome a difficult situation and thought you didn't have the strength to keep going?

Isaiah 41:10 NIV

"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

There have been countless times when I have thrown my arms in the air and said, "I'm done, I don't have any fight left in me to keep going" and in those moments God has reminded me that once again I was trying to deal with difficult situations in my own strength and I was failing to trust that He will give me the strength to keep going. Isaiah 41:10 has become my life verse because God has been faithful to throw me this lifeline verse when I have needed it most.

What is your life verse?

If you don't have one, I encourage you to pray about this and ask God to reveal what yours is because it will become your lifeline!

Friends, the Holy Spirit is in the business of convicting and transforming lives. When you feel the Holy Spirit's prompting or Him convicting you, I encourage you to take those to heart. Allow Him to transform you from the inside out. Remember, we are all a work in progress, but we should never allow our excuses to keep us from following God's commands.

Our excuses have the power to cease God's goodness and favor in our lives, the Israelites are a perfect example of this. Adam and Eve's decision caused them to miss out on God's greatest blessing of living in the Garden with him.

Here's a few excuses that I have heard and even used myself:

• "Scripture is too difficult to memorize" - yet we memorize new songs, so we know we are capable of memorizing something new.

  
  

• "That Bible study is too early" - yet we will get up even earlier to go to a craft show or hiking or whatever our favorite hobby is to do.

  
  

• "I'm too tired to work out today" - yet if you asked me to go shopping, I would walk and shop for hours.

  
  

• "Cooking healthy food takes too much time and effort" - and yet if we have a craving for our favorite dessert, we find the energy to bake it.

Perhaps you could add a few excuses to this list as well, but today I want to focus on how to overcome our excuses.

• First, we must take responsibility for our words and actions instead of trying to justify them.

• We need to always shift our perspective from what we want to what God wants.

• We need to uncover what our limiting beliefs are, for example:

  • Do we believe we can be successful? If not, why?

  • Do we believe God will help us? If not, why?

  • Do we need to change our negative self-talk?

• Instead of saying woe is me, we need to look for the life lessons God is teaching us (this view broadens our perspective of the situation).

• Define what your current vision and goals are and see if they align with God's word. If not, I encourage you to create new ones!

• Note: a life coach can help you gain answers to these questions

  
  

I feel it is important to give a disclaimer that I myself have not mastered my own excuses and know the power they hold over us because I have certainly been impacted negatively by them.

Friends, my hope is that you will gain a fresh perspective and new insight on how to break free and overcome your own excuses, which have the power to withhold God's greatest blessings and even change the trajectory of your life.

I want you to experience God's best, will you take this challenge with me and seek to take every thought captive by pausing and asking God to reveal His plan for your life?

2 Corinthians 10:4-5 NIV

"The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."

Written by: Jill Theriault

Crossroads Coaching - @crossroadscoachingongodstime