Don't Make Excuses...

I have this poster in my office that I bought years ago when I was doing a lot of tutoring with my daughter. It says "Don't Make Excuses, Make Improvements."


There will always be excuses we can pile up a mile high why we did this or didn't do that. The bottom line is, no excuse matters. Results matter. Sometimes you really can't reach the goal you were trying to reach for truly valid reasons. But if you miss the mark, don't excuse it away. Just learn what didn't work and make improvements for your next move forward.

When I survey my home, for instance, I see a lot of things that are not as I wanted them to be. They didn't shape up with my plans because of obstacles that got in the way. Some are a result of things we could and should have done differently. Others were just simply out of our hands and it's just the way things turned out. I can give you lots of excuses why, but that doesn't change where I'm at right now, which is staring at some things that have been bugging me for years.

Well, I've taken all the time I'm going to, wallowing in my excuses. If I can't have things the way I wanted, at least I will make improvements with what I have to work with. I am not going to keep looking at the things that re-open those wounds day after day. It's time to tear down some walls and build in some changes. New colors, new textures, new purposefully selected items to bring new life to an old space that carries lots of baggage.

Renovation is being resurrected in this place. I am confident that with each new brush of paint that goes on the walls, a new brush of healing balm will go on my heart. I've wrestled with hard feelings in the trial we've been through, but I know that if I'm willing to let God do it, he will renovate my heart and it will be a brand new place He will enjoy calling "home."

If you've suffered wrongs done to you (who hasn't?), don't spend your days looking at the same old scene and making excuses for what went wrong. If you want it to be different, pull your own self by the bootstraps and get to work making changes. Determine that no past failure will own the keys to your future. It's entirely up to you how you will choose to live the rest of your days. You have the power within your hands to make improvements in the landscape of your life. People can try to stand in your way, but ultimately it's up to you to have the resolve within yourself to get back up and determine to enjoy your life, in spite of them.