Have you ever found that creating a new habit is so much harder than getting out of one? I can't begin to tell you how I've struggled with habits like daily exercise, something as simple as drinking enough water or even finding time to read, which used to be one of my favourite things to do. (pre-kids that is!!)
The middle of the year (whether it's summer or winter for you) is the perfect time to reassess those habits you started so well with at the beginning of the year but have let slip along the way. Make time to rethink your priorities. Reassess and get going with the things that are really important to you and ditch the things that you are doing, but that really does not align with your goals.
What habits have you struggled to stay on track with. Hit reply and let me know. I love hearing from you.
I've received a few emails from readers telling me how they admire my faith. But I wanted to share with you that my faith is not without it's ups and downs. So I thought I'd share my own journey of being in one of the many wildernesses I've been through.
My Personal Journey
I used to be great with my morning "Coffee with God". For years, I was getting up at 5:30am to have a quick exercise, then at 6am I would start my day off with God, fully alert after my workout. But then, one day, I got sick. I was in bed for a few days, and after that, my morning routine was out the window.
It felt like my whole system had done a complete reset and instead of going to bed early and getting up early, I was going to bed later, struggling to fall and stay asleep and then of course, struggling to get up early to have my quiet time with God.
Every morning I would wake up, and apologise to God for yet again missing our coffee date. I felt terrible that I was letting God down. It felt like I was going deeper into the wilderness, while feelings of despair and desperation for God's presence overwhelmed me.
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One day, I happened to hear a message about being in the wilderness and learnt that the wilderness was never meant to be a place of loneliness, barrenness or being left feeling defeated in your situation.
It was meant to be a place of intimacy with the Father, a place of worship and celebration.
This is what God tells the people to do in the wilderness:
- Exodus 3:12 - to worship
- Exodus 3:18 - to offer sacrifices
- Exodus 5:1 - to hold a festival
God wanted to meet with Israel. He wanted to fellowship with them and wanted them to come into His presence.
Hearing this changed everything for me. I started to shift my focus on the situation I found myself in, and put it back where it belonged. I put it back on the Father. I confessed my wrong thinking, my laziness (let's call it what it is) to get up in the morning, and my lack of faith and started prioritising my time with the Father again.
I can tell you now, that it's not been easy. I still struggle to get up some mornings. But creating healthy habits is one way of getting back into a good rhythm. I've made a conscious decision to deny my flesh which desperately cries out for more sleep. But I have to smile because God wakes me up at the same time (05:49am) every single morning. And it's because I've asked Him to help me. I know He wants to spend time with me and the time in His presence has been so rewarding.
It's up to us to draw near to God first. (James 4:8). It's up to us to ask Him for help and It's up to us to obey when He does.
God wants to have a relationship with us. He wants us to be in His presence and experience the fullness of joy that awaits us there. He wants us just be held.
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If you're finding yourself in a wilderness right now, I want you to bully on the devil who is trying to tell you that you're alone, unloved and convincing you that you are not meant to be happy. That was never what the wilderness was intended for.
Make time to worship God, offer sacrifice of obedience by denying your flesh and spending time with God and celebrate Him for His goodness in your life.
Write to me, using the contact form and tell me how you get on.
I've loved this book on creating healthy habits that last. It's made me a completely new perspective on how to build habits without the struggle. Get it for free on Amazon with an Audible Trial.
Photo by Joel Muniz on Unsplash
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