Good Intentions

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We’ve all heard the phrase, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1091–1153) is credited with the original phrase, “Hell is full of good intentions, or desires.” In 1650 John Ray recited it as a proverb. “Hell is paved with good intentions.”

St. Paul writes in Romans 7:19, “For the good which I will, I do not; but the evil which I will not, that I do.”

Sounds like good intentions to me.

We are human. We try. We fail.

God understands our failings, so won’t he also understand our good intentions? There is no shame in trying and failing, only in not trying at all. Our effort counts.

There's the difference  

Good intentions never acted upon pave the way to hell. Whereas good intentions to put into action, even if unsuccessful, lead us toward heaven. 

As Joseph T. Sullivan wrote in my morning devotion in, Good Morning, Lord, “Let me be a doer of little things, the small actions that make someone else’s day a little better, putting someone before myself.”

Those good intentions are not hard to put into actions, requiring only a few minutes of my time, and yet can mean so much more to the recipient. With practice, I might even become the doer of bigger things.

Thank you, St. Paul for your honesty. It encourages the rest of us to keep running the race with our hearts and minds focused on God and eternity rather than on our failings.

Oh Discipline, Where Art Thou?

It’s 5:44 in the morning. It’s still night outside. The stars are bright. The moon has gone to bed. My husband and Scout are still sleeping. The fireplace is lit. The coffee brewed and my devotions read. I'm now making plans for the day, once again vowing to be more disciplined in my diet, exercise, and other personal choices.

Will it be like yesterday, a day filled with good intentions partially fulfilled? My plan of using diet "money" has helped, some. I managed to stay within my calorie count until several hours after dinner. Then a gnawing, empty feeling struck, demanding I eat something before bed.

Where did that come from? I never used to snack after dinner.

The experts say it takes thirty days to implement a life change. So far, I haven’t made three days. However, I did better yesterday than the day before, so maybe today will be better than yesterday. It won't get any better if I give up, so I must renew my resolve every single day, or every hour if I must. 

I am not alone in my struggles. My devotions today quoted St. Paul. “For the good which I will, I do not; but the evil which I will not, that I do.” Romans 7:19.

Perhaps today I will do more good than evil, to both my body and my soul. After all, miracles do happen.

The Merry Go Round

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Regardless of my good intentions I seem to stay on the merry go round of the same routine, the same issues and the same responses. The rude driver still elicits irritation and a sense of self righteous affliction. How dare he/she insinuate I am a slow, incompetent driver. And let’s not forget the Slow Sally going ten miles or more under the speed limit. I am ashamed to admit I become the rude driver and barrel around them, just to prove my point. Why?

Add an issue at work and the merry go round gains speed and I find myself locked in place by centrifugal force.

I tried using mediation CD's during my commute, soothing music or nature sounds. It sort of worked. What would work is a change of attitude, a change in my thought patterns. Nothing new there, yet why is it so hard to implement and then stick to it? I found the answer in my devotions. No surprise there.