Is Striving Godly?

Is striving godly? In Christian circles I’ve never really heard it used in a positive way… “don’t strive, let God do it” or “are you striving” So I guess striving isn’t godly? Yet, Paul said we strive together, (Rom. 13:30) Luke encouraged us to strive for what isn’t easy, ( Luke 13:24) and Timothy explained why we strive, (1 Timothy 4:10) So in light of all that… is striving so bad? I mean it appears biblical… and I even hear non-Christians speak about it “strive for success” or “strive for perfection” both with an encouraging tone. So it must be okay… right?

STRIVE: |strīv|verb: make great efforts to achieve or obtain something: [with infinitive ] we must strive to secure steady growth.• struggle, fight vigorously.

I don’t really think striving is the problem, really, it’s what we are striving for or against that becomes the issue. For example, am I striving in accordance to what God has called me to do; therefore I am working alongside Him; or am I striving to achieve my own goals and desires, and so working apart from Him; or am I striving against God or myself, and I’m in constant conflict with His desires and plans for my life.

I remember a meeting I was attending at the children’s school where I was trying to get services for my daughter that she was entitled to. It seemed like every move I made I was fighting something. Over the course of weeks and weeks of meetings, I literally felt like I was standing in the middle of a river, trying to change the flow of the current. I could see me just standing in this large body of water,  arms spread out as far as I could, attempting to stop the flow of water, and cause it to flow in the opposite direction. The process seemed to make sense, but in the end I was striving against God’s plan. In the long run, He did amazing things when I ventured to go with the flow of things…

How about those days when you know what you should be doing, but you can’t push yourself to do it. The minutes, hours, and days pass by and nothing seems to get done. Literally the body becomes exhausted with doing nothing. Where to begin evades you and you just feel hopeless all because you are striving against yourself. Yet, attempting to make an effort in the direction of doing some of it, whether big or small, releases that heavy weight sitting on your chest.

Then there are those moments when you intend to sit still before God, listen to what He is saying, or just be before Him, and there is a constant pull from where you are and where you want to go. Half of your mind full of good intentions, the other half full of things you need to do. The struggle for serenity, if only for a moment, is an intense endeavor, but the battle doesn’t linger, because you are striving with God.

I guess striving isn’t necessarily a bad thing… as long as we understand what we are striving for. Are we striving for excellence, or are we striving for perfection? Are we striving for the heart of God, or are we striving for the approval of man? Are we striving for the needs of the lost and broken, or are we striving for self-promotion and worldly gain? Go ahead and strive; after all it means to try hard, attempt, endeavor, aim, venture, make an effort, do one’s best, do all one can, labor, work, go all out, give it the best shot, and pull out all the stops… but it is also to struggle, fight, and battle… just be careful not to mixup where the true success comes from!

I can do everything through Him who gives me strength. Phil 4:13