Would you say that your efforts always translate to the result you get?
Let’s say you have a bunch of tests coming up, three over the next three weeks. For the first week, you read for 5hours before the test and get a B.
So, you think if you spent 7-8hours each on the next two that should net you an A, right?
Not really.
When we think of our effort linearly – making a direct correlation or more accurately, causation- we may be missing a few other pieces, some more radical and more unexpected than others.
For instance, it could be that whoever marked your script was in a good/bad mood (which happens), it could be that the questions in the test where those you were comfortable with.
It could also be that the marking guidelines for that test were more lenient than others.
Then there are a host of other things that could go wrong for the other tests – you log on to the test late because you had some internet issues and end up frazzled. Or perhaps, when you saw the questions your mind went blank.
I have shared this example to show that some of the things we ascribe or define may not always reflect the full picture. This same illustration can be applied in different areas of our lives – starting a business, getting a job, meeting your future spouse etc.
The Single Woman’s dilemma
Here’s another one: maybe you’re single, in your 30’s, you’re a great cook, gorgeous, ambitious, loving, a prayer warrior, kind and a host of many other things, if you must say so yourself. But then there is this other lady who cannot match up to you in these areas – she is awkward, has a bit of a ‘smell’ with hair all over the place. You try not to judge but a part of you cannot help but wonder why her and not you. Why is she the one with family, the one with the wonderful husband and not you?
Perhaps, you are rolling your eyes at me.
But I know many women, myself included, who have had these nonsensical thoughts. We look at efforts put in and imagine what the output must be.
We attend the best schools but still work trying and draining jobs with a barely commensurable pay.
Does it mean we should not prepare, that we should not put in the effort since the result is out of our control?
Absolutely not!
“Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe.”
Abraham Lincoln
Effort matters.
Our effort vs. our result
The juxtaposition between our effort and results is more about realising and respecting what is within our control and what is not.
It’s about understanding how complex, yet simple life is. It’s in recognising how interconnected our existence is, and the fact that there are so many facets we do not yet know and will never know.
But perhaps the biggest thing for me is recognising the power of grace.
Grace is often defined as ‘unmerited favour’.
It’s something we get or experience knowing fully well that we didn’t deserve it! I like to call this phenomenon the theory of grace.
Common! Take a moment to think about your life, I can bet that you can recall at least one thing that happened to you not because you were smart enough, tall enough, short enough, beautiful enough, young or old enough and all the other ‘enough’s we can think off.
Something that happened that you cannot in any sense of the word, take credit for.
You probably know people who put in more effort than you did at things but somehow you were the one that got the promotion, the job, the raise, the distinction…
Grace is the realisation that we can’t really take credit for our success.
We can recognise how some things we did helped – may be the books we read, how well we treated people or even how we manage our finances and health. But if we looked deep, there is no doubt that those seemingly nice things were not the force behind our progress in life.
Those things were not what moved the needle of life in our favour.
There was something else. Someone making a way. And this is not just about the ‘good’ things. Even how we overcame pain and hard experiences is often a testament of grace.
The problem with outcome dependence
I came across this idea of outcome dependence recently.
A productivity Youtuber, I often watch, had been talking about how he had been feeling listless about work and after some self-diagnosis (he’s a doctor so that’s okay ? ), he realised that he had been more focused on the outcome, which was out of his control rather than his effort, which he could control.
And I realised that I was also guilty of this.
I had spent a lot of time focused on the outcomes of the things I was doing and moaning about how they were not what I expected. I did this with my blog. I had honestly thought it would have grown past this stage by now. Even though I don’t receive any revenue from it and it’s not even a full-time gig, I still had expectations.
I had made it about the destination and forgotten about the beauty in the journey. The incredible privilege of writing, of sharing life tips and encouragement with others. I had also diminished the need for diligence.
You may be wondering –
“I thought she said it was about grace not effort?”
Lol.
You would be right.
It is about grace.
About God’s incredible, boundless and immeasurable grace.
And here’s the paradigm shift, it’s also about effort, His way.
Effort: God’s way
You probably don’t need me to share all the many Bible verses about diligence, laziness and hard work but I will still share some.
“A slack hand causes poverty but the hand of the diligent makes rich.”
Proverbs 10$
“Go to the ant you sluggard; consider her ways and be wise. Without any chief, officer or ruler, she prepares her bread in summer and gathers her food in harvest.”
Proverbs 6:6-8
“How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest – and poverty will come upon you like a thief and scarcity like an armed man.”
Proverbs 6:9-12
Whoosh! Those are some hard words. That last scripture has been known to get me out of bed on a lazy day.
But what about this:
“For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”
Philippians 2:13
I believe we truly succeed when we have His perspective on how we do life.
Remember when Jesus told us to come to him with our heavy weights and burdens? His call for us to take on his yoke, which is easy and light?
He was not saying we shouldn’t work, even though that scripture could sometimes be misconstrued (I recently found out that a yoke is a wooden frame used to draft two animals to work across a farmland). Did you know that? You’re welcome.
God continues to call us to work and life His way.
Work and life that does not focus on outcomes that are out of our control but calls us to do our part and truly leave the rest to him (all the unimaginable probabilities and possibilities).
I pray you take on the master’s yoke and you learn to do life His way. Amen
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