Beware of the “If Only’s”

We had a leadership meeting after church today to discuss some of the latest issues and needs of the church. There were a lot of valid concerns and ideas brought up during this meeting. Later in the afternoon a thought occurred to me about it though.

Each time a concern was raised, multiple ideas were voiced on how to address that concern. “We need this type of person on staff.” “We need an increased commitment to giving.” “We need this type of program.”

It occurred to me that it was a lot like our personal lives. We often get a case of the “if only’s”. “If only I made a little more money.” “If only I had this car.” “If only my kids would do this.”

This is not meant to disparage anyone in the meeting. Everyone there are well intentioned and committed people. We all struggle with this disease though. We need to avoid the “if only’s”. We have in our possession everything we need to accomplish the tasks at hand.

When we are faced with a situation where we are tempted to say “if only I…”, we need to take a step back and see if we’re really just making an excuse. Maybe we’re trying to avoid a little extra hard work. Maybe we’re looking too far down the road and just need to focus on the next step we can take right now. Whatever it is, just make sure the “if only’s” aren’t holding you back.