RUN OUT OF EXCUSES!

 

It’s time to RUN OUT OF EXCUSES!        

          

This morning I watched a video clip from one of those massive weight loss television programs.  The guy who won and set a new record for the amount of weight he lost in one year started at nearly 700 pounds and had lost about half of that in just one year.  He said, “the time had come for him to RUN OUT OF EXCUSES.”

 

Wow….  Those four words stuck with me and wouldn’t let me move forward without first sitting down and writing this article.  Look at those 4 words: RUN OUT OF EXCUSES.  What would happen in your life if you were to run out of excuses?  Ponder that for a moment.  But Kat—I don’t use excuses!  Oh really….

 

Let me flip it around to help you think about this.  What excuse do you use for:

· Not inviting your neighbor to church?

· Not starting some sort of exercise program for your health?

· Not going and visiting your relatives who are too old to travel to see you?

· Not starting that new business that you’d love to do?

· Not taking your kids to the ballpark or swimming?

· Not changing your lifestyle?

· Not cleaning out the garage?

· Not getting more involved at church?

· Not helping someone you see struggling to carry packages?

· Not saying your sorry and meaning it?

· And the list is endless….

 

We can make excuses all day long and not even realize it!  It’s almost become a cultural thing—a polite way to JUSTIFY not doing something we know we should do. 

 

Mankind has been justifying its actions since Adam and Eve were in the Garden of Eden.  When God confronted Adam about the change in his heart and how he was now suddenly afraid of Him, Adam justified eating the fruit from the forbidden tree because Eve had given it to him.  Then God confronted Eve about it and she justified her actions because she had been deceived into believing it was okay to eat it.  And so the story rolls on and on throughout our lives today.

 

I want to challenge you today to begin to discover the things in your life that you have been making excuses around.  Making excuses, justifying our actions or lack of action, is not God’s way of dealing with whatever the issue(s) may be.  Look at what the issue is, make a decision, and begin to take a positive action to resolve the matter.  Make the right decision!  Don’t let yourself continue to justify your failure in whatever area of life you’re dealing with.  It may take some time—or even a lot of time—to totally resolve some issues, but it will be worth it.

 

Remember, God’s Word says, “I am able to do all things through Him who strengthens me.”  Philippians 4:13  Notice it says ALL things—not some things—not most things—but ALL things.  That’s a pretty specific statement.  Therefore, you can lose weight, you can exercise, you can go visit elderly relatives, you can invite your neighbor to church, you can take the time to help someone with packages, you can clean out the garage, you can start that new business, you can take the kids to go swimming, you can say you’re sorry and truly mean it, you can—you can—you can!  You can do ALL THINGS!  You just have to RUN OUT OF EXCUSES!

 

I love the clip art above—the runner has the number 8 on his jersey.  8 is the number for new beginnings, and when we stop making excuses, we can start to have a new beginning.  Seriously take a moment and consider how different your life IS GOING TO BE when you choose to RUN OUT OF EXCUSES.  All those things you’ve been making excuses about are a form of a burden, a burden that you no longer need to carry.  RUN OUT OF EXCUSES today—and begin to make a difference in your life. 

 

I promise you, once you get started, you’re going to feel a tremendous sense of relief as you begin to turn things around.  Oh, and don't forget!  Do it through Him and He’ll strengthen you all the way to the finish line.  Doing it through Him simply means “doing all things as unto the Lord.”  (Colossians 3:23)  Do it for Him!  Do it for you!  Do it for all the others you’ve been putting off!  Just do it!  You too can RUN OUT OF EXCUSES!

 

Now that’s GOOD NEWS!