When Trying Stops, Doing Starts

When Trying Stops Doing Starts

Scripture: James 1:3; John 10:10; Mark 8:22-26; 11:22-24

The title of my message this morning is “When Trying Stops, Doing Starts.”

I am trying! I am trying to do better! I am trying harder! I am trying to stop! I am trying to start! I am trying, I am trying, I am trying!!! We have all made these statements and we all know others who have made these statements. These statements are so common in our daily communication that they have become default statements when we are pressed to do something that, in reality, we are not fully ready or committed to doing. These statements have proven through the years to release the pressure being applied to us to do something that others think we should be doing but we are not fully brought in on. Even though we know what is being suggested might be better for us, actually doing it is hard so we “try” to do it – we make attempts to do it with the sole purpose of being able to say without lying, “I am trying.” Before I go further I want to make clear that I am not knocking or putting down anyone who is trying for we are all there. Whenever we do something new, we start off trying. What I am talking about this morning is the attitude of permanent trying and never reaching the point of doing, especially as it relates to our Christian walk. As a child of God, as we grow in Him we should be shifting from trying to doing and if this is not happening we have to wonder if we are truly growing in Christ.

In my message last week I asked you if you believed God’s word as He does. Most of us believe that we do, but when it comes to “trying” that might not be the case. I want you to pay close attention to what I am about to share with you. The Encarta dictionary defines the word try as “to make an attempt or effort to do something.” The second definition says “to test, sample, or experiment with something in order to assess its usefulness, worth, or quality.” The first definition is what most people think about when they make the decision to make a change in their life. They tell themselves “I will try this or that.” Now once they have attempted it, they transition from try to trying and here is where it gets interesting. Webster’s dictionary defines the word “trying” as “severely straining the powers of endurance; hard to bear or put up with.” The Encarta dictionary defines it as “stressful: placing great strain on somebody's patience, composure, or good nature, and often physically exhausting as a result.” So when we examine the meaning of this word, we find that it means to struggle – a straining of our endurance. So when a person says that they are “trying” to do this or that, the message being delivered is that they are in a struggle and are under a severe strain to accomplish what they initially said they would like to do. Oftentimes the outcome of this struggle is the person deciding to give up and stop which sometimes leads to their developing a lifestyle of continuous trying. They are forever trying but doing seems to escape them. As long as they are trying people will accept this and they can continue as they are. But I want you to know that as a child of God we have been empowered by God’s grace to move beyond just trying to actually doing, to succeeding.

When you read your Bible, you might find it interesting that the word “trying” only appears in Scripture once and it does not pertain to someone trying to do something and failing at it. It actually pertains to our faith, and the second definition of the word try, which means to “test something in order to assess its usefulness, worth, or quality.”

The one time that the word trying appears in Scripture is found in James 1:3 which say, “Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.” In Scripture, the one time the word is used is in reference to our faith being tested through trials and tribulations. Trials test faith and those who stand true in them will prove their faith to be either genuine or false. One more point before I move on, the word “try” appears 17 times in the Bible. Not one time does it mean to try to do something! In every verse, the word is translated as “test” with the purpose of proving something to be what it is. I am pointing this out because I have come to believe that because we have been empowered with power from on high, anything that we set our minds to do we should be able to accomplish it and I am going to tell you why I believe this. I will tell you up front that my toes are swollen spiritually because this message has been crushing all over them, but I needed it. Only you can decide if this will apply to you.