How to break out of a rut!
-
No new posts
Moderators: k9car363, the bear, DerekL, alicefoeller | Reply |
2005-01-04 12:59 PM |
Veteran 166 Alabama | Subject: How to break out of a rut! I posted something that spoke to me at Christmas, the Corinthians 13 Christmas version and now that we begin a New Year I find that the below message is speaking to me. Maybe it will also speak to my fellow BT'rs out there. (warning: it's rather long) Enjoy, and may 2005 bring you abundant blessings! Kristi How To Break Out Of A Rut David Langerfeld Jan 4, 2005 "HOW TO BREAK OUT OF A RUT!" Do you want to get out of the rut you're in? Is your life predictable? Do you do the same thing, day after day? Has the excitement gone? Do you feel as though 2005 will be just as dull and monotonous as 2004? Are you just going through the motions? There's a wonderful Biblical passage that demonstrates the steps one man took to change his life. This passage gives us the basic steps we need to change our lives - 7 basic steps to get out of a rut. Jesus had been preaching and teaching in the area around the Sea of Galilee. On his way to Jerusalem, he passes through Jericho, where he encounters a blind man named Bartimaeus. Read Mark 10:45-52 Seven Steps to Change Your Life #1 Assume Responsibility For Your Own Life! (v. 47) "When He Heard it Was Jesus...He Began To Cry Out." Own up to your own responsibility. When you listen to people talk about their problems, do you notice that it's always someone else's fault? Teenagers blame their parents, Parents blame their children, Workers blame their co-workers or their boss. Things happen you can't control - but you can control your response. Let me say that again. Things happen you can't control - but you can control your response. I hear people say all the time, "He makes me so mad" or "She makes me so mad". Nobody can make you mad. You're the only person who can make you mad. People can do things that upset you, things you don't like, things that hurt you; but you decide how you're going to respond. Look back at the scripture. What did Bartimaeus do and not do. 1. He didn't blame someone else. He didn't think that God or anyone else owed him something. 2. He did go to Jesus. He humbled himself and sought help and deliverance. #2 Believe You Can Change (V. 51). "Lord, That I Might Receive My Sight." He believed he wouldn't walk away the same. He believed that he'd be DIFFERENT. So often people pray, "God, if you'll just change my employer"; "if you'll just change my husband ...or my wife ...or my children..." "if you'll just change my friend..., my co-worker..., my relative..." God never promises that he will change your situation. God does promise that he will change you.. He'll change your attitude, your perspective, your outlook. Then you can change your attitude toward your situation. #3. Clarify What You Really Need (V.51). "What Is it That I Should Do for You?" Specific prayers get specific answers. How often do we pray, "God bless the missionaries overseas." Jesus already knew what the man needed. Jesus wanted the man to say it. How often do we play communication games with each other. A wife will tell me, "He doesn't meet my needs." So I'll ask, "Well, does he know what you need"? "Sure - he loves me, he ought to know!". "He may ought to know, but that doesn't necessarily mean he really knows. You have to tell him what your needs are." Even better, a spouse will say... "I'm so mad at him". "Does he know why you're mad at him". "Of course he does. He knows what he did!" Again I'll ask, "How does he know? Did you tell him?" The usual response, "I don't have to tell him. He knows". We do the same thing with God. We assume that since God knows everything, we don't have to tell him. But that's just exactly the opposite of the way God operates. He wants us to tell him what we need - exactly what we need. Jesus will meet your needs when you tell him what your needs are. But sometimes He doesn't meet your needs because you never tell Him what you really want and how you really feel. Notice Bartimaeus' cry - "Have mercy on me". He was beggar. Yet notice, he didn't cry out for food, or clothing, or money or housing. He was given sight that day. He was healed that day - because he realized that his most basic need was for mercy and grace. He needed what only Jesus was offering. And because of that, he was healed. #4. Stop Worrying about What Other People Will Say (v. 48). "Many Charged Him That He Should Hold His Peace". What were they telling him? Shut up! Nobody wants to hear what you have to say! Be quiet. This isn't the right place.. This isn't the right time... Nobody's ever done it that way before... You can't do that. We have to quit worrying about what other people think. In this particular situation, everyone else was wrong. Everyone else told him he shouldn't do it that way. He didn't care what the protocol was. He didn't care if all the people agreed that you just don't approach Jesus that way. He knew he needed help and he wasn't going to be denied. Have you prayed for something and God hasn't answered you yet? ... Keep on calling out to God. Do you have a need and God hasn't met it yet. ... Keep on calling out to God. Are you hurting and don't have an answer? ... Keep on calling out to God. Are people telling you to give up? Are people telling you to quit. Are people telling you that God doesn't care? Are you worried about what other people think or what other people will say? Are you concerned about how it might look? Are you worried that other people will think you crazy or you're a fanatic? ... Stop worrying. ... Don't quit. ... Don't give up Perseverance - one of the greatest attributes a Christian can have is persistence, perseverance. Jesus tells a parable about the neighbor who comes at midnight and is rewarded for his persistence. Someone once said, God doesn't answer shallow prayers, he answers desperate prayer. #5. Stop Waiting for Ideal Circumstances (V. 46). "As He Went out....A Great Number of People". Remember where he was in the first of this story. He was waiting beside the road. But look at v. 46. Others were already traveling with Jesus. Others already had the opportunity. Bartimeaus almost missed his chance. This is the last time Jesus would come to Jerusalem. If he had missed Jesus, if he had waited for "more ideal circumstances", he never would have been healed. We have to quit waiting for just the right time. We have to quit waiting for the right opportunity to come along. It may not happen. We've got to seize the opportunities God gives us - when He gives them. #6 Do Something Bold and Dramatic (v. 50). "And He, Casting Away His Garment". Sometimes, we have to do something different. We can't do the same old thing. If we're going to break out of our rut; if we want life to be different, we have to do something bold and dramatic. Hebrews 12:1 says, let us lay aside every weight, every sin that so easily entangles us." Notice those words, lay aside every weight and every sin. We know the sins. But what are the weights? Whatever is keeping you from keeping Jesus first in your life. Whatever is keeping you from running to Jesus. Whatever is holding you back from surrendering your life to the LORDSHIP of Jesus so he can do a miracle in your life. Bartimaeus took off his coat. He did something bold, dramatic and different. DO IT NOW (V. 50). How many times do I hear... When I get older... When I get more time... When I get the chance... After I get past this test, or this meeting, or this problem, or this trouble. "Just do it" - James 1:22-25 Luke 10:25ff #7 Follow Jesus (v. 52) After you've followed the six steps above to break out of your rut in 2005, then do what Batimaeus did - He "followed Jesus along the way". By David Langerfeld |