Created for Work ~ Chapter 12 "Maintenance"

"I wish to preach, not the doctrine of ignoble ease, but the doctrine of the strenuous life."

~ Theodore Roosevelt

Ok, I'm sure we've all struggled with this at one time or another: we get something and forget to take care of it. We forget to maintain. We make excuses about why we can't maintain. We even blatantly refuse to maintain. 

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Maintaining something is hard work; it takes consistency, motivation, a strong will, and a recognition of inadequacy. Ever make a New Years resolution, then try to keep it for even a month? It's difficult to do, isn't it? Bob Schultz says, "Like resolutions, it's easier to build a new house than to maintain an old one... Houses need repainting, reroofing, recaulking, retiling, and replacing of everything from windows to vinyl floors... Building isn't the hard part, maintaining is." 

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I have a guinea pig named Beethoven. He must be fed and watered regularly. He must have his cage changed of bedding regularly. He must be groomed and cleaned as well. Sometimes taking care of Beethoven isn't always what I'd like most to be doing; however, it's something I have an obligation to do as his owner, whether I always feel like doing it or not.

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I mentioned that maintenance takes consistency, motivation, a strong will, and a recognition of our own inadequacy :

• One problem that usually gets in the way of consistency is our feelings. Ever hear somebody say, "I just don't feel like it"? That's the attitude I'm talking about. It's letting your fickle whims determine what you will or will not do. It the opposite of letting Christ control your actions and submitting to His authority in your life. A person who goes through life leaning on his feelings will never get anything worthwhile done - and all because he didn't "feel like it".
• Ingratitude is a key enemy of motivation. We often lack the drive to do because we are ungrateful for what has already been done. Instead of thanking God that he has provided a car for our needs, we gripe and grumble about maintenance: washing the car, vacuuming it, changing the oil, replacing the tires, etc. That's poor stewardship. That's ingratitude. That's sin.
• The only way to have a truly strong will is to submit to God's will. If we stubbornly resist God's instruction, correction, and guidance, and insist on choosing our own path, we show not a strong will, but a weak, stubborn, misguided will.
• Finally, we must recognize that we can do nothing worthwhile leaning on our own strength. We are completely inadequate, and therefore must do all we do in Christ. He is  the only one completely adequate. Left to ourselves, we wouldn't accomplish anything of worth.

Schultz points out that "People go through life acquiring things. They think that if they can just get a house or car, they'll be set. Ben Franklin said it's easier to build two fireplaces than to provide wood for one. A man who cannot see life as an exercise in maintenance collects until he's overrun with things. Then, unless he gets rid of most of it, he spends the rest of his life as a slave, attempting to maintain his collections or simply watching them decay around him... If you plan to own things, plan to maintain them."

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Schultz also reminds us that God "created the world and currently maintains it (Colossians 1:15,16)." He is our supreme example! "Imagine what it takes to maintain a water system that feeds every living plant and animal on the planet. Think of the challenges to provide continual oxygen, heating, and cooling for a whole world."

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Furthermore, God "created us in His image. Those who accept this role prosper in His kingdom. Those who won't adopt a maintenance mentality, suffer consequences." 

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In conclusion, Schultz says, "Acquiring is easy. Maintaining is the challenge. May God place within you the vision and drive to take care of what He has given you, before you long for something new."

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"Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life." ~ Proverbs 4:23

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Persevero,

Scribe