“It’s not wise to violate rules until you know how to observe them.” – T.S. Eliot

The human heart is rebellious and defiant.  Don’t believe that?  Then ask someone if they are obedient or what they think of the concept of obedience.  They go nuts!  We even took it out of the marriage vows.  No longer do you commit to “Love, honor and obey.”  Some may tell you that it is our desire to be free.  That is not so.  We do not want freedom we want to do what we want when we want to and not have to answer for it.  That is very different than freedom.  It also comes from a real misunderstanding of just what it is to obey.

FOLLOWING THE RULES

Success-Minded People know that obedience is just following the rules.  It is not giving up your identity or freedom to someone and blindly following.  To obey is to be responsible and to do your part.  There are rules in life that we all follow, like it or not.  Break those rules and you face the consequences, follow them and you reap the benefits.  Arnold Schwarzenegger once said: “If you work hard and play by the rules this country is truly open to you.  You can achieve anything.” 

THINKING PERSONS GUIDE

Success-Minded People know that there are rules or principles to success and to life.  Things that we must do to achieve and things that we must avoid or suffer the consequences for them.  Rules are only restrictive to those who are self-center and unwilling to grow.  Karl Von Clausewitz said “Principles and rules are intended to provide a thinking man with a frame of reference.”  We all need guidelines so we know the direction we need to go in order to achieve our goals.

 RULES TO ACHIEVE

Success-Minded People obey the laws of the land, the rules of the workplace and the principles of success.  They do not find them restrictive not do they try to change them just for the sake of changing them.  Too many people think that if there is a rule it was meant to be broken.  That is not so.  Many rules have been formed through the experience of those who achieved before us.

CHANGING THE RULES

Now this does not mean that we must blindly go along with every rule.  Some rules are restrictive and inefficient.  But when a rule needs to be changed there is a proper way to go about it.  You can and should be thinking of ways to make things better.  That means working hard to be in a position where you can make a change if needed.  Success-Minded People know there are rules to changing rules.  Which means is there is a right way to do things.

THE PERFECT RULE

The only time the rules are not open to change is when those are the commandments we get from the Lord.  His word, the Bible, is not to be changed or corrected.  No correction is needed because it is perfect and without error.  Jerry Bridges said “God is worthy of my loving obedience because of who He is, not because of what He does.”  In the laws of God there is complete freedom and liberty.  Only by living for Him and following His ways can we find the greatest of all freedoms.

 © 2011 John Patrick Hickey