One Degree: The Importance of Motivation

If a plane leaves New York City bound for Los Angeles and drifts just one degree off course, no one notices it at first. But carry that path across the country—and you don't end up in L.A. You end up in the desert. Miles from where you meant to be.

That’s how our motivations work.

A small shift in the heart—a little pride, a little fear, a little ego—may not look different from the outside. You might still do the same thing. Make the same decision. Say the same words. But that one-degree difference in posture can lead you to an entirely different destination.

What if the most dangerous thing isn’t doing the wrong thing? But doing the right thing for all the wrong reasons?

We live in a world obsessed with outcomes. Did you win? Did you close the deal? Did you get what you wanted? Success is often measured in results, not in integrity. And if the outcome looks good, few people stop to ask how you got there.

But God does.

Scripture reminds us: God doesn’t just see what we do—He sees why we do it. Jesus didn’t just teach us what to do. He taught us how to do it. In the Sermon on the Mount, He shifts everything inward. Not just the command not to murder, but the anger behind it. Not just adultery, but lust. Not just giving, but giving to be seen. Not just praying, but praying to perform.

The Kingdom isn’t about performance. It’s about posture. It’s not outcome-obsessed. It’s heart-obsessed. Because in the end, who you’re becoming matters more than what you achieve.

Recently, I found myself facing a situation where this truth hit home.

I wanted to acquire a domain name—something that would become the foundation for my creative house. I wanted to build something meaningful under it. And I knew, deep down, I could play it smart. Buy the surrounding domains. Leverage pressure. Offer money. Maybe even manipulate the situation to get what I wanted. That’s the world’s wisdom: get the outcome. Whatever it takes.

But in the quiet, I felt the question rise: Why do you want this? And who are you willing to become to get it?

That’s when the one-degree image came to mind.

What starts as a clever plan can slowly become a compromise. And what starts as ambition can become pride if it’s not surrendered. The outcome might be the same—but the cost to the soul is entirely different.

So I stopped. I prayed. And I began to wonder—not just how to get the domain—but how to bless the person who owned it. Could I offer help? Could I elevate his voice while building mine? Could this become something that honored both of us?

It wasn’t about strategy anymore. It was about stewardship.

This isn’t just about business. It’s about the way we live.

• In work: Are we climbing to serve—or climbing to be seen?
• In love: Are we giving to control—or giving to bless?
• In faith: Are we praying to impress—or praying to connect?

The motives we carry shape everything we do.

And sometimes the shift doesn’t look like a dramatic course correction. It looks like showing up to a meeting—not to be impressive, but to be present. It looks like walking into a room not thinking, what can this person do for me?, but how can I love them today?

Sometimes, before we even say a word, the Holy Spirit whispers: This isn’t about you. And we remember—this person, this moment, this opportunity—it’s sacred. Not a transaction to win. But a relationship to steward.

That shift—from ego to empathy, from control to care—transforms not just the moment, but the meaning. The email still gets sent. The conversation still happens. The project still launches. But it becomes a witness, not a weapon.

Proverbs 21:2 says, “All a man’s ways seem right to him, but the Lord weighs the heart.”

That means we need to pause and ask hard questions:

• Why am I doing this?
• Who am I trying to impress?
• Would I still do it if no one knew?
• Is this from love or from fear?

Because a life of integrity isn’t about perfect outcomes—it’s about right orientation. A pure heart doesn’t just lead to better results. It leads to peace. To presence. To alignment with the heart of God.

And the beautiful thing is, it only takes one degree to shift back.

One act of humility. One decision to serve. One moment of surrender. One prayer.

God, purify my motivations. Let me not just do good—but desire good. Let me not just look holy—but be whole.

May we be people who choose the right path, not just the right outcome. And may we find, as we walk it, that we are not in the desert...but on the road home.

Hand Kraffted, always.