One secret to being successful in the world is to learn how to motivate yourself as well as others. A tough old cowboy counseled his grandson that if he wanted to live a long life, the secret was to sprinkle a little gunpowder on his oatmeal every morning. The grandson did this and lived to be 93. When he died, he left 14 children, 28 grandchildren, 35 great-grandchildren, and a 15-foot hole in the ceiling of the funeral home. (1)

So, I'm not going to suggest that you sprinkle a little gunpowder on your oatmeal, but don't we all need a little extra push from time to time to help motivate us to do the things we know we ought to do?

Jesus had that difficulty with his disciples. There are books on Jesus' leadership principles because he was a master leader and motivator. In our lesson from …