Intentions

(I honestly could not come up with a more creative title…)

Below is my current list of “good intentions”:

I intend to clean my room. But my room is still a mess.
I intend to sort through my picture files and distribute them accordingly. But they are still un-distributed.
I intend to finish a letter to a friend, and send it. But it is still in my notebook.
I intend to start a better bedtime regime so I am not constantly functioning at 43%. But I’m still going to bed late.
I intend to implement these intentions. But currently they are still pending.

Pending and intending do not equal “completed”. This is something I’ve been learning… For example, though I did just finish sorting through clothes pile A of the ABC-mess, my room is still not complete. So while good intentions seem to be commendable, it will inevitably be the actions that speak louder than the words.

I know this sounds really cliché, and I apologize, but the point I am trying to make is that until we do something, we haven’t done it. It’s like people who try to avoid establishing their relationship with God. “Oh, I’ll get to that some time.” They say it as if their “intention” is what will save them. Or as Christians, we intend to set good examples, so that other people will be intrigued by what they see in us (Jesus) and desire to know about Him. But if I am not setting a good example, and continue living the way “everybody else” lives, my example is not good! I think that sometimes I settle into my good intentions and get too comfortable there. Sure, I’ve taken the first step, but I haven’t actually left the dock yet. I can’t jump if I don’t move my feet.

“It is better not to vow than to make a vow and not fulfill it.”
Ecclesiastes 5:7

So now, back to my room.