You Gotta Want it!

The other day while at the mall, I was watching a little toddler take what appeared to be first steps. His dad was watching with such pride in his eyes. The toddler was very excited for his newfound freedom and began to take a step. He was a little shaky at first but was determined to keep going. After a few steps he fell on his bottom. We were all gasping and thinking ‘poor baby!’ But his dad called out his name and before long he stood up and got back to the business of walking!

That little toddler ministered to my spirit. So many times, we shakily venture outside of our comfort zone. We do things we never thought we could do, but because it’s hard and because it’s full of challenges and because we fall down, we stay down. We’re embarrassed. We feel defeated. And that little voice inside of us says, Girl, what were you thinking?!!

So, our friends and mentors try to encourage us to get back up. They help to brush off the embarrassment and ease the sting. They tell us we can make it. They tell us slips and falls are perfectly normal. They remind us that God still intends for us to complete the assignment and that the slips and falls never take Him by surprise. They want us to get back up and try again.

But no matter how many times they give us a pep talk and no matter how many times they tell us how gifted and how ah-mazing we are, until we want to get back up, we’ll keep sitting there in self-pity, wallowing in defeat. No one can want it more for you than you want it for yourself!

Jesus asked the impotent man, ‘Wilt thou be made whole?’ I love this God-encounter. The angel would come at a certain season and trouble the water and whoever stepped into the water was healed from their disease. This man suffered from his infirmity for thirty-eight long years. Up until this moment, no one paid attention to him or tried to assist him, but Jesus saw him and knew how long he had been in this predicament, and so He asked five little words that would change his life forever…Wilt thou be made whole?

You know the story. Initially the man offered excuses. He didn’t have anyone to help him, someone always beat him to the pool, blah, blah, blah! But Jesus said unto him, ‘Rise, take up thy bed and walk.’ And guess what? He received the Word. He was healed immediately, picked up his bed, and walked!

So, what am I saying? You gotta want it. You gotta want to get back up. You gotta believe that you can get back up! You have to want it bad enough that you will do whatever it takes to get back up and achieve your goals. You’ve got to want it more than the pain, more than the agony, more than the embarrassment, more than the sacrifice! Come on! Your future is waiting. Now ask yourself, how bad do I want it?