We took no notice of your good intentions

I hear a lot of people say, “oh that was not my intention” or “I didn’t mean to do that”. Sometimes when we hurt those close to us or we do something wrong, it is easy for us to explain what our intention was not. It is the best excuse for committing blunders. Afterall, the other person cannot see through our minds. They will have to believe us and take our word for it. Unfortunately, we are not judged by people based on our intentions or the state of our minds – only God can do that. When people relate with us, they only hear our words and see our actions. No one knows what you are thinking. They only see what you do. In that case, what you do and what you say are more important to people than what you think. In fact, how would you prove that what you do is not what you think?

Let us face the fact. We do what we think, and we say what we think. The content of our actions and the outputs of our lives reflect our thoughts and intentions. How can someone rob a bank and say that they didn’t mean to? Most of the things we do ensue from our premeditations and thoughts, whether we admit it or not. Nothing just happens, and nobody just does anything. When we err, instead of saying that we didn’t mean to, we can just admit the error and make necessary adjustments, whatever that means. Anyone that would change their actions and words must first change what is on the inside. We are products of our thoughts. Our intentions need to be right for our actions to be right. Yes, we make mistakes, but we can learn from them and become better at thinking better.
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Here is the truth. Our good intentions are not good enough until we show them through good actions. The only thing that others see are the outputs – what we produce. What we produce depends on what we possess inside of us. As you journey on in life, remember that we will take no notice of your good intentions, but we will always relate to your good actions; your good deeds and good words that left a good warmth in us.

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Actions for the week

1. Reflect on occasions when you did something wrong. Could you have avoided the wrongdoing by being intentional? Analyze the situation.
2. Decide to always be intentional in your actions and your words. Be prepared to do only what you thought to do and avoid those you don’t want.
3. Do something specific and thoughtful for someone this week; something they will always remember for good.

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A quote to remember
A good person produces good things from the treasury of a good heart, and an evil person produces evil things from the treasury of an evil heart. – The Bible in NLT

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Until another time,
Dele Ola, Award-Winning Author of Be A Change Agent
​Click HERE to learn about and get copies of Dele’s Books