Beyond the Motions: Finding Jesus Again
Simon Sinek is a leadership expert, speaker, and author known for his concept of "Start with Why." His idea is simple but profound: the most impactful movements, the strongest leaders, and the most enduring organizations don’t begin with what they do or how they do it — they start with why they exist in the first place. According to Sinek, when people understand their why, their actions become more intentional, their decisions more aligned, and their impact more significant.
Whether he meant to or not, he tapped into something that's always been true — something that's woven into the fabric of faith itself. For a long time, I got caught up in the "what" of Christianity: what I should be doing, what I should be avoiding, what would make me look like I had it all figured out. Sometimes I got wrapped up in the "how"— how to pray, how to read the Bible, how to be the person everyone expected me to be. But somewhere along the way, I lost sight of the "why."
Simon Sinek’s Golden Circle
So why does any of this even matter? I get how easy it is to forget. Life sneaks in, distracts us, and makes it hard to stay focused. It's way easier just to go through the motions than to remember why we're doing any of it in the first place. I'm guilty of this too. For years, I convinced myself that I was following Jesus based on what I was doing: I went to church, showed up at Bible studies, and I would even pray. I even tried reading my Bible. But honestly, I wasn't doing any of it because I wanted Him; I was just doing it because I thought I was supposed to. I thought it made me feel like I was getting it right like I was ticking the right boxes. Long afterward, I confused my actions with faith. I did the right things, and that's all there was to it, so it seemed. But deep inside, I always knew something was missing; the passion, the love, the real contact — I had none of those. I was so hooked on the "what" that never once did I stop to wonder "why".
Jesus spoke to this over and over. To the Pharisees — who had the "what" down perfectly but were clueless about the "why". He said, "These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me." Matthew 15:8. That hit me hard. I know what it feels like to act like everything's okay and yet feel utterly disconnected from Him on the inside. Maybe you do too. You've spent so much time trying to do the right things, you forgot why you were doing them in the first place. The fire that used to burn in your soul has been reduced to a line item — a required obligation you fulfill. But here's the thing, Jesus isn't into our checkmarks. He is calling us to follow Him and that's all the difference. When we remember the "why"— that we were created for Him, and that nothing else will fill that void — we find the "how" and the "what" begin to make sense. Not because we're forcing it, but because we've been transformed by Him. We start wanting Him more than anything else. It is not about trying harder or being good enough; it’s about Jesus. It’s always been about Him.
But it gets real here — following Jesus is going to cost you something. It is not just about giving up your Sunday mornings or spending a bit more time in prayer. It’s going to cost your pride, your self-sufficiency, and that image you have struggled so hard to build. It would have meant letting go of the "you" that you'd be desperately trying to cling to, allowing Him to rebuild from scratch. Change doesn't come with ease; change is tough — it hurts most of the time. Sure, surrender isn't easy at any moment in life. In this, great faith finds a foothold — but not when life feels great; instead, the choices made knowing Jesus is greater than your comfort. The invitation remains exactly as it was. Jesus is calling us just like He always has. He’s not waiting for us to get everything in order or check all the boxes. He wants it all — our fears, doubts, failures, pride. He’s asking for the parts we’d rather keep hidden, the burdens we’ve carried for too long, and the identities we’ve built that weren’t meant to define us. He's calling us to surrender — not when it comes easy, but when it counts against us. Following Jesus wasn't supposed to be comfortable — it was supposed to be real.
We can continue to hesitate, hold on to that illusion of control, and run in circles trying to prove we're worthy. Or we can finally let go. And we can fall to the feet of the One who has been waiting with open arms all along. We can stop striving and start abiding, stop performing and start believing, stop holding back, and start truly following. Because He isn't just asking for the next step — He's asking for our whole lives.