We all have habits. We typically want to keep and build the good ones and trash the bad ones. As a Christ-follower, I try to be more like Jesus everyday but it doesn’t always work out…frankly, I have never had a perfect day. James says in James 1:21, “Get rid of all filth and evil in your lives and humbly accept God…” I dare say all of us long to do that.
So why is it difficult to stop a bad habit and start new, better ones? Well, good habits are challenging because the payoff is in the future. For example, you want to get in shape so you start running. Right away, you give up sleeping in to get out and run. You pay money for some good shoes. It will be a couple of weeks before you see any real result but two weeks later you feel better, you look better and people are noticing your weight loss.
Bad habits however make you feel better right away and the negative thing is in the future. So, you need to take the edge off, curb an appetite, look cool…you start smoking. Right away, your wishes are granted. But ten years later, the doctor informs you of respiratory issues or even lung cancer.
So we want to make bad habits difficult to do. For any habit, there is always a trigger which leads to an action and then a reward. So we want to remove the trigger in order to begin avoiding the bad habit. There are typically 5 triggers.
Time and place go together. There typically is a place where your habits happen. You don’t overeat at the gym and don’t smoke pot at church. But go to the Super Bowl party, you probably overeat and do some recreational stuff. The party is the place.
There’s also time. You don’t watch porn while at your church small group but you may late at night when your spouse goes to bed. There’s a time when things happen you wish would not.
There are moods when you are vulnerable. So, don’t make decisions when you are hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. Moods can create moments when bad habits kick in.
You’ve got moments that trigger bad habits. You have a huge fight with your husband which prompts you to call your closest 3 girlfriends to have a husband-bashing party. The moment is the fight.
Finally, there are people who trigger poor decisions. The people we hang with often shape the habits we have. Show me your friends and I’ll show you your future.
Some practical application about making habits difficult. You love hitting the snooze button on the alarm. You want to stop. So you move the alarm clock across the room so you have to get out of bed to turn it off. You find yourself looking at lustful images on your phone. Give your phone to a friend to set parental guides on your phone. Only they have the password. You’re making it difficult to act on habits you want to kick.
And maybe you feel overwhelmed…that you can’t do it. Just take one small step toward making a better decision. God says in Zechariah 4, “He rejoices on the small things” that bring you closer to him… With the power of Jesus in your life, you can overcome. Blessings on your journey.