“As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers, Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew, casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen. He said to them, ‘Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.’ At once they left their nets and followed him.”
~Matthew 4:18-20
When I hear this story, I imagine the apostles must have felt exhilaration as they began their mission following Jesus, and yet at the same time some sense of how overwhelming the task Jesus called them to was. Yet, they followed Him at once. Why? They saw who He was, and realized their true purpose and calling in life. It was this that helped them to just take that first step without worrying about how they would accomplish the rest.
While this story applies to our ultimate calling and purpose in life, it can also apply to the small little things that make up our every day lives. After all, it is the small every day things we do that make up our lives in the grand scheme of things.
Sometimes, beginning something we feel called or inspired to do can feel hard. How am I possibly going to be able to make time to pray the rosary every day? Or start eating healthier? Or exercise? Or study for a new career? Or gently discipline my kids? It may be something big or something small. There have been many times that I have felt inspired to make changes in my life or start a new habit. Yet, I can feel so overwhelmed by even the thought of trying, that I give up before I have even started.
Find Your Motivation
It is in these times, that I have realized the need to find my motivation for making the changes that I want to make, and focus on that. Even though it can be easy to slip into just getting by with life, I want to live with intentionality and purpose. A life of wholeness. A life not just surviving but thriving, and I really think that most other people do also. So, when I am struggling to take the jump and make a change, I really reflect on why I want to do it and what a difference it will make in my and other peoples lives.
Just Do It
There have been many times in my life however, that even though I wanted to make changes in my life, it still seemed all but impossible. I would be lost in my lack of knowledge of how to change the situation, or the thought of the sacrifices I would have to make, or adding another thing to my to do list seemed so overwhelming. Yet, when I have decided to creatively find one small thing I can do, and focused on making this a habit, it is then that the goal started to seem a little more manageable and the momentum helped me to continue to make more changes. Isn’t it true that when we look at the mountain we have to climb, it is overwhelming, but when we focus on just that one next step we have to take, it soon becomes manageable and over time we find we have made much progress? Like the apostles we may have times we fail and fall back, but we need to recognize that this is normal and focus on the progress that we are making. It is then that we see that despite the shortcomings, God is working in our lives so far as we choose to respond and make the efforts we are called to make.
“The hardest part of any important task is getting started on it in the first place. Once you actually begin work on a valuable task, you seem to be naturally motivated to continue.”
~Brian Tracy
What Do You Want to Change in Your Life?
When you look at your life and think of what kind of person you want to be, what changes great or small do you feel inspired to make? I encourage you to think about it and even write down your goals, motivation to make these changes and what small things you can do to make those changes. And just take that first small step!
Sacred Ordinary Life 