When we look at a dictionary, we find this meaning for the word Motive;’something that causes a person to act in a particular way.

Psalm 26 verse 2; “Test me, Lord, and try me; examine my heart and mind”.

The Psalm is asking The Lord to test out, and see if our motives are genuine.

Only God understands our real motives. God makes it clear why we sin, it is a matter of the heart> Our heart has been so inclined toward sin from the time we were born. It is easy to fall into the routine of forgetting and forsaking God. But we can still choose whether  or not to continue in sin. We can yield to a specific temptation, or we can ask Our Lord and Our Friend to help us resist temptation, when it comes.

Proverbs 21 verse 2: {Message Bible} “we justify our actions by appearances: god examines our motives”.

Proverbs 21 verse 8: {Message Bible} “Mixed motives twist life into tangles; pure motives take you straight down the road”.

Luke 6 verses 44 and 45: {Message Bible}: “The health of the apple tells the health of the tree. You must begin with your own life-giving lives. It’s who you are, not what you say and do, that counts. Your true being brims over into true words and deeds”.

When we talk with Our Lord and Our Friend, what do we talk to Him about? Do we ask only to satisfy our desires/ Do we seek Our Lord and Our Friend’s approval for what we already plan to do? Our Prayers will become powerful when we allow Our Lord and Our Friend to change our desires so that they perfectly correspond to His will for us all individually.

Matthew 10 verse 39: {Message Bible}: “Jesus said, ‘If your first concern is to look after yourself, you’ll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you’ll find both yourself and Me’.”

Our motives should never be about us, but should always be to bring Glory to Him.

God Bless.

O F J.