Think a minute…A school teacher was complaining about a little boy in her class who was not showing any interest in learning. She said, “David will not do his school work. He’s not even motivated to try!” But that same boy David will jump out of bed early in the morning to go fishing or play with his friends. He just needs the right motivation.
Everyone can be motivated. Just watch people leaving work every Friday. Even at the end of a long week of labor, they still have plenty of motivation and energy for parties and pleasure that evening and throughout the weekend.
Maybe you had a school teacher who motivated you by making a certain subject interesting and exciting. He or she inspired and gave you the desire to learn. They explained things so you could clearly understand—and as a result you did much better in that teacher’s class than you did in other classes.
We parents are our children’s most important teachers. We are the main ones responsible to motivate our children, so they want to learn to succeed and become their best in life. But to do that we cannot just tell our kids with words alone; we must also show them that we believe in them. We must spend time watching and listening to our children, so we can help them know what their natural talents are. Then we need to encourage them in that area so they can fully develop their own special abilities—whether it’s academics in school, business, social skills and relating to people, working with their hands, music, sports, or whatever they naturally excel at and enjoy.
You and I can motivate our children by always loving and accepting them without conditions, no matter what they do. We must understand the difference between approval and acceptance. Even when we do not approve of everything they do, our kids need to know that we still always accept and love them. Then when our children do something well and right, we need to encourage and motivate them to become more confident.
Maybe you yourself never had someone who motivated you to become your best. But today, if you’ll ask Jesus to take charge of your heart with His real love and power, He can start changing your life. He wants to show you the special abilities He gave you. He will also help you fully develop them. As you become your best, you can share His love by encouraging and motivating others to become their best. Just think a minute…