same old way“What do you think? There was a man who had two sons. He went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work today in the vineyard.’ “‘I will not,’ he answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Matthew 21:29 NIV

As a young teen, I had the opportunity to mow my neighbors yard while they were away on vacation. I delayed. The first weekend it either rained or was too hot, so I waited. The day before they were to come home, I went to the lawn. Someone had already mowed the lawn. It was one of their elder sons and he was mad that I had waited so long.

We all have reasons, not necessarily good ones for delaying some actions that need to be taken. Some activities involve health issues – we need to exercise, go to the doctor, control our weight, have an examination, etc. The problem does not go away being unaddressed. 

Some activities are spiritual in nature – we need to start a consistent prayer or Bible study time, we need to catch up on our giving, we need to address a particular sin issue, we want to finally share the gospel with our coworker, etc. Nothing changes until we begin.

Some activities involve life issues – we need to communicate more in marriage, change our parenting for the better, address financial planning or debt, catch up on all of the house work or chores, control outburst of negative emotions like anger or sulking, etc. Life issues are like gaining traction in a mud pit, it’s gonna be messy no matter which direction you choose and change will happen very slowly.

The greek word for the phrase – later he changed his mind – is metamelomai. Meta means change and melo means care or concerned with. Literally the word can mean I change one care or interest for another. It carries the idea of regret or remorse after thinking about the situation.

So here is the take away. Don’t spend one more second on your past failures or delays. You can change that care or concern for a new one. God is present to start walking forward with you right now. Obedience begins with the first step in the right direction. I am not expecting you or I to pick ourselves up by the bootstraps and “will” ourselves to do better. Just include God in your conversations leading to the change of heart. Admit you were wrong. Ask God to help you exchange one care for a higher care. Ask God to help you see yourself being successful following through in what He has been prompting you to address. Write your goal down and start walking in that direction.

You say, “I have already tried to do this and failed.” Tell God and be honest with Him. His grace is available for the every new step in the right direction. Hesitation is not the answer. Lean on Him as much as you need to…this may include leaning on another person as part of His body. Being stuck is not the problem, failing to continue moving forward is the greater issue.

The son had lots of reasons for not obeying, but eventually he did obey. Be encouraged. Today is your day for the beginning of obedience as you let one subpar care make room for that which is really important. You can do this, be like the obedient son and change your cares.

Blessings Love y’all