Some people today wake up and wish they had a job. For some reason they didn't get properly trained, hadn't the motivation to prepare themselves or the job market isn't ripe. If they did what they wanted to do they would go to work! Others stay at home today and have little motivation to do anything. Either they're frustrated with life or are just plain lazy. They may be the ones who were never motivated or are living drug induced lifestyles so they don't have to face reality. Those people are parasites. Given too many with entitlements that we have today, an overabundance of parasites will destroy the foundation of our economy! That's why we're at where we are today. Although there are multitudes of jobs in any city newspaper, still people sit at home. Americans have been spoiled by having had choices resulting from a great economy.
Why do people fail to do what they are obligated to do this day? There are numerous excuses. The sincere people offer one excuse, but those who are sluggards offer numerous! It's as if one excuse isn't enough to satisfy themselves, so they think of many! When I have invited people over sometimes they cancel the engagement. I seldom hear one reason, but may hear numerous excuses. They know inside that they can come if they want to, but one excuse doesn't provide the protection they need for their guilt. Therefore, people think of multiple excuses to rationalize their actions. My contention is "people do what they want to do!"
Yes, there are obligations, but people obligate themselves! By making obligations people are choosing by evaluating. "Would I rather have this new car or more leisure time?" Most people choose the new car. In effect they are doing what they want to do!
There is more to life than the decision to work or not to work. This example applies to all aspects of life! Why do I dress the way I do? Because I'm doing what I want to do! I may not have the money to buy better clothes, but again, choices are made. A person is satisfied with what they have and how they live. They are living how they want to live!
In effect we are all doing what we want to do, barring unfortunate circumstances. People in desert Africa are enduring what they have to endure. People who work hard for sustenance because of their chances in life, desire to do things differently. However, most Americans are doing what they want to do. There is poverty, but much of the poverty in America is because dreams of better were never dreamed at the right time or people trapped in a cycle never had a dream!
It's the same with our spiritual life! Some people never taste of spiritual desire because of their place in life. I was blessed! My parents were Christians and I knew before I was a Christian the satisfaction in having hope. My parents were poor, but hardworking, but they had hope of a better life. With hard work, they did have it somewhat better, but still struggled, but they did what they wanted to do! They worked hard because they enjoyed survival and at the time they struggled there were few entitlements. The lack of entitlements actually propelled their work ethic. They enjoyed a full belly and a place to live. No one was there to give it to them, so they worked hard. They made a choice. They chose meeting needs over just existing!
You see those who do the right thing because they know it's right have assistance whether they realize it or not. My dad did well with hard work because he had work ethic. That means that dad did what he wanted to do although the alternatives were more pleasurable! He could have let others worry about his family while he did drugs, drank alcohol and ran around. Those things are, to the world, more fun than working, but dad did what he wanted to do! What was that? Dad had a desire to take care of his family, himself and to do what is right; what is commanded and encouraged by God!
Today I sit at home. I'm retired and did retire young. I did things to make that happen although pleasure would have been the easy way, but I did what I wanted to do! I planned, not only for my family, but also for my retirement and future gratification! Immediate gratification on the other hand steals from future rewards. By satisfying now the "self" most people inflict future punishment on themselves! They do what they want to do, but there are consequences for doing things you want to do. Excuses are rationalizing and multiple excuses are denial. People do what they want to do!
When I was a teenager I had a choice to make. I did what I wanted to do! My parents, although Christians, never seemed to find a church which satisfied them. At fourteen I went out and found the church which satisfied me! I did what I wanted to do! After a time my parents settled in to my church because it met their needs and doctrine as it did mine. They did what they wanted to do under the influence of a fourteen year-old boy. Dad and Mom were faithful to God and their denomination until parted by death. They did what they wanted to do!
For myself, I made a decision. I chose wisely, but in the end I did what I wanted to do! I was happy in church, with Christian friends and with the promise of eternity in Paradise. Just as those who delay immediate gratification for later rewards, that's what I did. Sin is more pleasurable than righteousness, but there is more joy in security. I delayed pleasure now for eternal joy! I did what I wanted to do and never looked back!
I prayed (how boring!) and God had the grace to hear me and heal me. With that I went to church faithfully most of my life even all three weekly services (again, how boring!). I did what I wanted to do! It was boring to others, but fulfilling for me. Although I still sinned my goal was, and still is, to please God! I want to please God because I'm doing what I want to do! With that commitment I admit that I'm missing out much in life. I could be promiscuous, a drunk, a partier, have my priorities on leisure or whatever, but with discernment and a desire to please God, I'm doing what I want to do! When I do wrong, I again am "doing what I want to do!"
The devil never makes any person do anything! We do things because that's what we want to do! When I chose Christianity I did what I wanted to do. What was that? I wanted to stay out of hell and go to heaven, which at fourteen by the way didn't seem too awfully exciting! I had faith that heaven is perfect and did what I wanted to do. I chose to protect myself from eternal hell and I will soon enjoy that long-term decision. That's my lifetime hope. "Hope" is the comfort of the Holy Spirit. Hope is what encourages me to make right spiritual decisions. Hope changes what I would do, and allows me to do what is right for me. With "hope" I do what I want to do!
Some chose sin. They are doing what they want to do. Even some Christians neglect worship, skip church and fail to pray. They are doing what they want to do in spite of God encouraging them to do what is right. In their hearts the Spirit has not been allowed to work and they haven't a changed heart. The things they do are what they have always done. With a changed heart people change and the things they want to do are righteous things. Sure, they're tempted, but when they choose sin over righteousness, they're doing what they want to do regardless of what's in their own best interests. People do what they want to do!
Proverbs 21:2 "Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the Lord pondereth the hearts."Let's rephrase this a little to amplify: "Every person does what that person wants to do, but the Lord looks at the hearts of men." That statement offers two alternatives: 1) People choose wrongly and God sees an unrighteous heart, or 2) people choose righteousness and God sees a heart after him. With David it was the latter. David was a man after God's own heart! Yes, he did wrong and did what he wanted to do, but he repented (Psalm 51). By repenting David did what he wanted to do! Most people too do what they want to do and there is much written on that:
Jeremiah 18:12 "And they said, There is no hope: but we will walk after our own devices, and we will every one do the imagination of his evil heart."With "hope" there is a reason to do what's right! We still are doing what we ant to do, but it is what God wants us to do. We are in harmony with God. He doesn't force us to do it his way, but we do it out of love and respect for God. We are doing what we want to do because we have a right heart. On the other hand most people "walk after our own devices" (i.e., they do what they want to do without regard for what God would have for them). Man is predisposed to behave a wrong way. I guess that is "wrongeousness". They "do the imagination of his evil heart". They are doing what they want to do, but the devil deceives them! He puts an imbalance in the scales of what's right.
People do what they want to do, but they are merely pawns in the hands of a liar. They believe they are only doing what they want to do, but they are doing exactly what the devil wants them to do! Satan puts a carrot, so to speak, out there. Those who fall for the trick only see the carrot. They close their eyes when they look beyond the carrot because they want to believe they are doing what they want to do, not what they are being deceived into doing!
So here we have it! Yes, people do what they want to do. However, there is a cause/effect scenario. Beyond our five senses there is a war going on. It's a war between evil and God. The author of evil tempts everyone, even Jesus. God,. because he gave us free will, allows the principalities to tempt so that we can show our love for him, or on the other hand, reveal our true desires. We go ahead and do what we want to do. People like Job and Abraham chose righteousness. They did what they wanted to do and that was to please God!
Adam, Judas, Herod and the other villains of the Bible chose another road. It's the road most traveled! They did what they wanted to do! They chose to sin and chose unwisely because with their death there was long-term consequences. With sin we don;t even have to wait! With Herod his body was eaten up by some type of disease while he was still alive! Modern medicine has examined the evidence and gave a cause:
“Herod the Great expired from chronic kidney disease probably complicated by Fournier’s gangrene,” according to the medical investigative work of Jan Hirschmann, M.D., staff physician at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System and professor of medicine at the University of Washington’s School of Medicine."In short, he suffered a terminal disease because of wrong decisions. He was plagued because he did wrong. He did what he wanted to do and there were consequences!
How about you! I know that overall you are doing what you want to do, but are you doing what's right or are you merely a pawn in the hand of an evil being whose greatest desire is to see you do what you want to do; to do his will! There is another road which few take. It's the road with a narrow gate. If we delay pleasure and wait for joy this road leads to eternal prosperity! Why do people choose the road most taken? They are doing what they want to do!
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