The hardest thing to do that cannot be avoided

I wonder if you’ve ever thought about what the hardest thing in life is to do. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately. And I think the hardest thing to do, particularly in a continual sense, is to do the right thing.

Think about it for a moment.  Not only does doing the right thing rely on a good heart and good intentions (motivation)—and we must admit we don’t always have the best intentions or heart on matters—but it also requires great discernment, because we don’t always know what the right thing is to do.  And a third matter is having the courage to do the right thing, which involves a balance of honouring the truth, but doing the truth in love, that is with grace, gentleness, patience, and kindness.

Let us tackle these three matters, the right heart, the right discernment, the right courage, in turn:

1. THE RIGHT HEART

The right heart, in other words, the right intentions, relies on humility enough to acknowledge our unconscious biases.  Paradoxically, it is knowing that our heart can be deceptive that puts us in a more powerful position of awareness, and if only we can be honest, we can assess the state of our own hearts in terms of what is right and wrong.

The only problem we have is we can control only our own motives, for we have little or no control over others’ motives, and whether they choose to become aware of them or not.

2. DISCERNMENT BETWEEN RIGHT & WRONG PATHS

Discernment in this day, or in any day for that matter, with the nuances involved in many “wicked problems,” involves incredible wisdom.  This kind of discernment is only available to us when we have sorted our hearts out—that first step.  And still not everybody has this kind of discernment, to be able to detect the complexity of their motives, then to understand the complexity of others’ motives, then to correctly assess the nuances of the situation.  Discernment seems the most valuable of spiritual gifts when it comes to doing what is right.

3. COURAGE TO DO RIGHT

And if being honest about our intentions and motives, and discerning the way, weren’t hard enough, now we come to the third step which involves courage to do what is right.

I say courage because invariably and inevitably doing what is right will be hard, it will be costly, it will create conflict, and it will bring stress.

It can feel as if in doing the right thing we’re doing the wrong thing.  There are many, many situations where the majority will turn on us for doing the right thing.  Perhaps this is the case most of the time when the stakes and emotions are high—when there are many different views.  Courage can be a lonely place.  Recall Jesus teaching in John chapter 6, and many “disciples” leaving after he delivered what is termed a “hard teaching.”  (Verse 60)

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Truth is often hard.  It can’t be avoided.  When we do avoid it, things go awry.  But when the truth outweighs love all sorts of abuses are possible.

Doing what is right always involves a good mix of truth and love in appropriate portions.

Doing what is right always involves a good mix of humility and courage which is wisdom.

Doing what is right is the key to life itself.

BUT.  Doing what is right is the hardest thing in life to do.