There are many things in life we have to do that we simply don’t like doing. I don’t like taking out the trash. I don’t like staining my deck. I don’t like having difficult conversations. I don’t like doing administrative work. But these are activities I still have to do, whether I want to do them or not.
What are some things you must do that you don’t like doing? I bet you have a laundry list of items, which might even include laundry at the top of the list!
I remember when my kids were in high school, they would complain about having to learn things they would never use later in life. I would tell them that the art of learning is not just the content, but the discipline of learning... especially when you don’t want to.
My son, Luke, serves as a police officer, and his patrol unit works the night shift. One of the mottos his department uses is, “I leave a spot empty in my bed at night so that you can sleep soundly in yours.” Does he like pulling over drunk drivers at three a.m.? Does he like doing hours of paperwork for one arrest? No. But he does the things he doesn’t like doing, because there’s a greater purpose.
If you know your “why,” you can determine the “how” to accomplish your “what.” Let’s say Luke has two hours of paperwork to complete. That’s his “what.” He can go about it, his “how,” either with grumbling or grace. If he loses his “why”—why he is filling out his paperwork—his heart and mind shift to grumbling over grace every time.
Even if we know our “why,” we still have to fight through a negative mindset. We choose a mindset of grace, even when our desire is to fill our cup with complaints. Grace is not a wistful panacea. Grace requires G.R.I.T:
Growth – embracing learning opportunities and striving to improve over time.
Resilience – bouncing back from setbacks and adapting to challenges.
Integrity – staying true to your values and principles, especially under pressure.
Tenacity – persisting without giving up, no matter how difficult the situation.
The writer of Hebrews reminds us to look to Jesus, “the Founder and Perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Hebrews 12:2, ESV). Jesus did what He didn’t want to do in His humanness. He even prayed that He would not have to drink from the cup of suffering (Luke 22:42). But He did what He didn’t want to do, because He knew His “why,” and He faced it with joy, with gracious GRIT, and He accomplished His purpose.
Doing what you don’t want to do, but you know it needs to be done anyway, necessitates graceful GRIT. What is something you need to do today that you don’t want to do? It may be as lackluster as taking out the trash, or it may be as burdensome as going through your next round of chemotherapy. I pray you will hold on to your “why,” that in all things you find your peace and hope in Jesus Christ. Then and only then will you be strong enough to face your “what” with gracious GRIT and grow “to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13, ESV). Amen.
