Intrinsic Motivation – Lasting Drive

You can be a good Christian by simply obeying commandments. But you can be an excellent Christian if you develop personal, intrinsic reasons for obeying the commands. This is called “Intrinsic motivation“.

To develop intrinsic motivation, you must have your own drive generated from within.

You cannot have it forced upon you from an outside source – which is called “extrinsic motivation“.

We all start out by being intrinsically motivated. When we were kids, we had the authority of our parents over us. And if we wanted to stay in their good graces and avoid punishment, we would do what they say. Hopefully, as we got older, we began to see some of the truth and logic in what they were telling us. Not that everything they did had good reason, but much of their guidance was rational and intelligent.

As we start to make sense of the reasons why we were told to do certain things, we can begin to be intrinsically motivated by them. We started to see the value in the action itself, rather than just a tool for avoiding pain.

This transformation sometimes takes years and is certainly not completed all at once. But if we are wise, we begin to look for the internal reasons why we should act a specific way.

The best motivation you will ever have is the motivation that comes from within.

Now I cannot dismiss the intense motivation you feel after listening to a motivational speech or watching motivational videos. But that motivation often does not last long enough to make a huge difference in our lives. Perhaps it will keep us motivated for one workout, but where do we go for motivation once the workout is over?

As powerful as every mentor is, you have to develop your own source of internal motivation that you can tap into at any time. This comes from internalizing those motivational speeches and images until they are a part of your thinking.

The most powerful motivation for work, life, or Christianity is that motivation that comes from within.

Just like you begin to see the wisdom of your parents only after several years, you also begin to see the wisdom of the Bible only after years of study. You begin to see the truths in the Bible and understand how they can benefit you in a very practical way. There is nothing fluffy or mystical about the commandments, they are all designed to protect us and to better our lives.

Every time you observe people in the world violating the commands of God, you inevitably see the consequences of those actions shortly after. Many times the commands act as a guardrail, keeping people away from the brutal, negative consequences of their own actions.

Recognizing this allows you to be more likely to keep the commandments. We see the built-in benefits and wisdom, so we stay on the path of discipline. This understanding of the benefits also leads to intrinsic motivation.

This type of motivation will be very unlikely to run out as often as extrinsic motivation. While you will certainly have days where your focus and energy wavers, if you have the motivation that is developed internally, you will have more lasting reservoirs of power, concentration, and discipline.

To build intrinsic motivation, look at and study the benefits of the commandments. Try to understand their practicality. Remember back to all the times in your life where you avoided consequences because of good decision-making. Think of all the times you made your life better by behaving properly.

By thinking this way, you begin to build evidence in your mind for the Christian lifestyle. The way you live begins to make more sense. You understand the roots of your own actions. This understanding allows you to put some positive behaviors on autopilot. This automation of good behavior is the holy grail. If you can behave properly without even thinking about it, you can win. That is what intrinsic motivation and the development of good habits can do for you.