I don’t like a bunch of excuses. It literally annoys me and
as I feel annoyed, I also feel sorry for the person who does not yet understand
that excuses do not serve anyone. They do not make amends, they do not heal,
they did not sustain, and they do not empower.
Excuses are just excuses. They are empty reasons that fail
to convey why you did not do something that was expected of you. They do not
quicken the spirit or comfort the heart. And they are not pleasing to the ear.
At the root, they are the ultimately expression of self betrayal.
The reason why excuses (not in every instance, but in many
cases) do not go over well and sound inauthentic to the hearer, is because
excuses cannot sustain anyone. They betray your character and cannot cover the preconceived
shame or inability you have imposed on yourself to live up to what was expected
of you.
I would rather an authentic person tell me NO because I
realize they have embraced their personal power which has freed them from the
prison of YES.
Rather than giving an excuse, simply be grateful. Be loving.
And try again next time. Tell them you love them, and commit to do better. But
don’t make the commitment to them – make it to yourself.
Commit that you will embrace your YES or not be fearful of
saying NO. Walking in the truth and honor who you are: one who is growing,
evolving, becoming and forgiven. You cannot do everything that is expected of
you and sometimes you will fail to meet every expectation. Be okay with that,
or continue to give excuses.
God says that a righteous man's yea, is yea, and his no, is
no. In other words, your word, as one who is righteous, should be sufficient.
You do not need to provide more insight or context. Just commit to doing your
best and embrace the truth of who you are. Once you do that, one word is
enough.
"All you need to say is simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything
beyond this comes from the evil one." (Matthew 5:37, James 5:12)
I agree. I do not like excuses but I know I have used them in the past. I do try not to make excuses. It has been a hard habit to break. Mainly because I feel I must explain why I can't. And in reality I shouldn't have to explain it.
ReplyDeleteDianna, yes it's a very hard habit to break, thank God for His grace! :)
DeleteI know what you mean because I too hate it when people offer me excuses instead of just telling me the truth. Excuses no matter how sugar coated is always, always lame. And it is Biblical that you have to stand by what you say. A man's character can be measured through his words.
ReplyDeleteGreat post! #BloggerCare
Amen SuperLux, thanks for your reply!
DeleteI guess I like to differentiate between an excuse and a reason, although I'm not entirely sure what a good definition of the two words would be. And although excuses that merely mean the person was lazy or inconsiderate drive me crazy, sometimes I need to hear the reason to know that the person truly was not intentional about letting me down or that something more important truly came up.
ReplyDeleteHi Carrie, I've been there too, let's encourage each other :)
DeleteThis was a wonderful article! It is harder to say no but it is better to hear the truth! #Bloggercaregroup
ReplyDeletePraise God!
Deletegosh - i got millions excuses for things (not people though) and you are correct - not a single one is good enough. ;)
ReplyDeletelove what you are doing here and thanks for being part of the blogger care group!
@spreadingJOY
Marie
Marie, thanks for having me, so excited to join with other Christian bloggers - God Bless You!!
Delete