Creatures of Habit

Jesus had a lot to do and a short time to do it, but habit had prepared Him for this moment. He had formed a habit over the first 30 years of His life of respecting the Sabbath and finding sanctuary in the synagogue, and He did not break that habit as Calvary began to loom bigger and bigger in His future. His habit kept Him focused, fearless and never fretting for an instant. From His earliest years until now he had developed a habit of · Praying persistently · Trusting God implicitly · Caring for others passionately · Submitting to the will of God completely · Loving God intimately and intensely and · Facing death, even the death on the cross, courageously. It might be good for us to remember that if we forge good habits in our younger years that they will not forsake us in our older years. They are like a cable that we weave day after day in our lives until at last they are difficult if not impossible to break. That is true of bad habits as well as the good ones. Bad habits are like chiggers and cockleburs. They are easy to acquire but difficult to shake off. You may question the theological accuracy of my interpretation of a verse or two in Romans 7, but I must admit that they describe the power of a bad habit as well as a bad taskmaster, Satan. Verses 16-21 declares, “If the power of sin deeps sabotaging my best intentions, I obviously need help. I realize that I don’t have what it takes….I decide not to do bad, but then I do it anyway….something has gone wrong deep within me and gets the better of me every time.” (The Message) Habits are much easier to make than break, and surely all would agree that a bad habit is a ruthless taskmaster. With that being an arguable fact, I would conclude that the best way to break a habit is not to start it in the first place. I understand the frustration of what Paul had to say in the last 2 verses of Romans 7. It reads like this in The Message. “Is there no one who can do anything for me…the answer, thank God, is that Jesus Christ can and does…” He is a BAD HABIT BREAKER! First of all, He can and does break the bad habit of fault finding. Fault finding is both contagious and conspicuous. It spreads on contact and can no more be hidden than a giraffe’s long neck at a petting zoo. One little girl took one look at a giraffe and decided she needed to pray about what it looked like, and this is what she said, “Dear God, did you mean for the giraffe to look like that or was it an accident?” Fault finding is no accident. It is a developed habit, and the longer it hangs around the more difficult it is to break. You need the BAD HABIT BREAKER Secondly, He can and does break the bad habit of fabricating falsehoods. I find it ironic that we teach our children to read, say the alphabet and do math, but no child has to attend a special training class on fabricating falsehoods. They learn that on their own and many graduate cum laude. It may look cute in a 3 year old, but it’s sure not laudable and cute in adults. It corrodes character and tarnishes trust. It over crowds prisons and punctures marriages with permanent pain if not divorce. We need the BAD HABIT BREAKER to break the falsehood habit. In most instances, it is the only way out….but there is a way out. Thank God! Number 3, He can and does break the bad habit of fretting over fragile feelings. Getting your feelings hurt and fretting over it is a bad habit that you cater to. Somehow feeling bad is your way of feeling good. Don’t wear your feelings on your sleeves. Stick them under the soles of your feet where few people see them and must go to great pains to reach them. The word is patience. Patience strengthens the spirit, sweetens the temper, stifles anger, subdues pride and bridles the tongue. We need to be tough enough to avoid getting easily upset, but tender enough to be sensitive to others. One man put it like this. “Those who deserve love least need it most.” There’s nothing like a good dose of love to heal hurt feelings. And finally, He can and does break the bad habit of failing to forgive. It is impossible to be mentally and socially healthy when eaten up with an unforgiving spirit, and this toxic habit that must be broken. THE BAD HABIT BREAKER will give you the key of forgiveness that unlocks the door of resentment and the handcuffs of hate. It is a power that breaks the chains of bitterness and the shackles of self-centeredness. Break the habit today in the name of Jesus. Amen! In The Journey Together, Pastor Jimmy & Bob