No More Excuses Series

“No More Excuses”

Philippians 3:13-14

Introduction

Philippians 3:13-14

13 Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before,

14 I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.

KJV

If you’ve competed in sports at all, you probably know what I’m talking about when I refer to what’s called ‘loser’s limp’. In ‘loser’s limp’, a wide receiver will go out to catch a ball and drops the pass. But when he gets up, he gets up limping. There’s nothing wrong with him at all. He’s trying to camouflage is failure. He’s trying to make it appear that the reason he dropped the ball was because he had a pulled muscle or a cramp or something like that. His limp becomes his excuse for his failure. There are lot of people walking around in life who have what I call, ‘loser’s limp’. There isn’t a thing in the world wrong with them. But they are going around limping through life. They are making excuses for their failures---making excuses for the things they know they should do but for some reason do not get done.

Well, that’s exactly what I am calling us today to get rid of---to get rid of that ‘loser’s limp’---to get rid of those excuses.

In today’s message call me, “The Excuse Terminator” because I am here today to terminate all of those excuses which you have blamed that kept you from rising to the heights that God wants you to rise to---that kept you from being everything that God would have you to be.

I believe there’s greatness in every single person sitting here today. God does not create junk. God has no respect of persons and you can be successful. I’m here to tell you that you can’t do it making excuses.

At the beginning of each year we make those resolutions. Some people say they aren’t going to make any because people don’t keep them.

I think that’s the wrong attitude to take. You should at least try to improve yourself. Even if you don’t keep it, at least realize that you need to improve and try.

But a lot of people don’t. They make their New Year’s resolution and by mid-February they have forgotten both their resolutions and why they even made it.

Recently, a psychologist was being interviewed on television discussing a theory she was working on. In that interview she was asked why people don’t keep New Year’s resolutions.

She made an interesting statement. She said, “The chief reason people don’t keep their resolutions is because they make the resolutions but then they don’t make any changes to support the resolution.”

You see, you resolve to do something but then if you continue in the same activity you persisted in prior to the resolution, then there is absolutely no difference.

But when you make a resolution then you also have to make some changes that support the resolution which you made.

And you know what? That made a lot of sense to me. So then I started thinking about some Keys to Making a Change in your life. I think it begins with:

1) Dissatisfaction with the Status Quo. If you’re going to change it starts with being dissatisfied with where you are. When a team is tired of losing, they are ready to make a change. When you look at yourself and you’re dissatisfied with something about yourself, then you are ready to make a change. (Dissatisfied with your attitude, then make a change. Dissatisfied with your marriage, then make a change. Dissatisfied with your service to God, then make a change.)

2) There Must be an Awareness of a Better Condition. You know you can do something better. You know you don’t have to stay right here. Perhaps it’s your marriage. It begins with being dissatisfied with the state of that marriage but then you are aware that it can be better. You are aware that it can rise to a new level.

3) Knowledge of How to Improve. You need knowledge of how to get it done. It’s one thing to know you need to be better but if you don’t know how to get better then you won’t get anywhere.

4) Make a Declaration to Change. This is it. Say to yourself, ‘I’ve literally decided, I am going to change. Here is what I am going to do.’

5) Continual Strength and Reinforcement. You have to get up everyday and make a decision that you really are going to be better---that you really are going to do things differently.

The definition of insanity is doing the same things over and over expecting a different outcome.