Get Unstuck in Your Walk with Jesus
Do you remember the days of VCRs? I still have one in my basement… (I think even DVD players are going out of style with all the streaming services available.) If you wanted to watch something on DVD (or VHS), you had to make sure that everything in the back of the TV was plugged in correctly. The inputs and outputs had to be going to the right places. Otherwise, instead of watching “Lord of the Rings”, you’d get some soap opera or sporting event. Try as you might to change what’s on the screen, it won’t do you any good until your input cord is plugged into the right place.
Our spiritual lives can also have the same problem. We can get so frustrated trying to change certain sinful behaviors or bad habits. We try, we pray, but we just don’t see the victory and change that we’d like to. Perhaps the problem is that our inputs and outputs need to be examined.
Don’t Start with the End
When your DVD player wires aren’t plugged into the right places, it doesn’t matter how hard you try to see something different on the screen. You have to back up and see where something isn’t connected correctly.
With us, many times what we DO is fed by what we FEEL. What we FEEL is fed by what we THINK. What we THINK is fed by the things that we are putting into our lives or have been put into our lives by others. Instead of just trying to change what we’re doing, it can be helpful to back up and see what’s feeding that. Change the input in order to get a different output.
Sometimes those inputs are things that we are consuming on a daily basis - TV shows, books, social media, relationships… Other times those inputs have been placed in us from when we were growing up. Maybe our parents taught us certain ways of “doing life”, either intentionally or unintentionally. Even the most godly parents aren’t perfect. Other times, our own sinful nature simply came up with ways of coping with life that were unhealthy and unbiblical. Those things now inform how we think, how we feel, and consequently what we do.
Broken Soundtracks
“You suck at this.”
“You’re doing it all wrong.”
“I can’t believe you messed up again.”
“You have to be perfect in order to be accepted - and you’re not.”
Those are examples of “broken soundtracks”, as Jon Acuff calls them in his book, “Soundtracks”. They are the type of inputs that play under the surface in our minds (or sometimes quite loudly and obviously!) and leave us feeling defeated, frustrated, anxious, and depressed. They aren’t kind or helpful and many times they aren’t even true.
Sometimes when they’re playing, I can’t quite make out the words. Have you ever gone shopping and once you’re back in the parking lot, you realize you have a song in your head and you don’t know where it came from? It was playing in the store just loud enough to get into your head, but you weren’t consciously listening to it. Broken soundtracks can be like that. You just have this vague feeling of being defeated or a failure.
Trace the Wires
How do we figure out where there are faulty inputs are so we can replace them with correct ones? Journaling is a great way to do that. When your TV isn’t showing you what you think it should be, you have to trace the wires in the back to see what is plugged in where. That’s what journaling does. It allows you to trace the wires. When you find yourself struggling with something, reacting yet again not the way you want to, spend some time journaling about it. What were you feeling that led to that action? What were you thinking that made you feel that way? What broken soundtracks are playing? When you get that vague feeling of gloom, put words to it. What are you thinking that’s making you feel that way? Once you write it down and name it, you can then look at it more objectively. Is it true? Is it helpful? Is it kind? What does God’s Word say about it?
When you’re journaling, have a conversation with yourself and God. Ask yourself questions like:
Why did I do that or respond that way?
What was I afraid of?
What was my motivation?
Was this rooted in something I learned growing up?
Is there a lie I’m believing about myself, God or others that is contributing to this?
Can I put words to the soundtracks playing under the surface?
Resources on journaling:
I’ve written a lot about journaling because of how helpful it has been for me. So if you’d like to give it a try, check out some of these…
Spiritual Growth Journaling Guide
5 Day Email Course on Getting Started Journaling
My weekly email newsletter also includes weekly journaling prompts.
Replace the faulty inputs
Once you’ve started to figure out where you have “faulty inputs”, then you can replace them with that which is true and in line with how God designed us to live. How do we do that?
Spiritual disciplines
The term “spiritual disciplines” can sound intimidating and somewhat “monk-like”, but don’t let that scare you away. Spiritual disciplines are simply practices and habits that we work into our day. They don’t need to be long, involved, or complicated. They’re sort of like spiritual exercises that you can do in small chunks. They may not seem spectacular at the moment, but with repeated practice, they will help you grow in your relationship with Jesus. They also help you replace faulty ways of thinking with God’s ways of thinking.
Here are some examples (not an all inclusive list):
Bible reading/meditation/memorization (And another post here)
Silence
Pauses - short breaks throughout the day to step aside and pray
Gratitude
Giving
Serving
Sabbath
Most of these are self-explanatory, but I’ve included links to blog posts or resources where I’ve talked about some of them. Here’s a blog post about starting a spiritual discipline.
If you’d like a more in depth resource of spiritual disciples, Celebration of Discipline by Richard Foster is a great book.
When you uncover a lie or other type of “faulty input”, look for Bible verses that remind you of the truth. For example, if you have broken soundtracks about needing to earn love from God, memorize verses that talk about God’s love for you and how nothing can separate you from it. (Romans 8:38-39)
One of my favorite disciplines is that of a pause. I have an alarm set on my phone for 10am every day (but it can be any time). I step outside and take a deep breath, trying to release whatever tension has been building up in my shoulders. I thank Jesus for His presence with me and pray about whatever might be concerning me from the morning. It only takes a couple minutes, but it works like a reset button. There’s even an app for that!
I encourage you to check out the resources mentioned and pick a spiritual discipline to begin to incorporate into your life. Start small and remember that it’s a practice - it doesn’t have to be perfect. Let me know in the comments which spiritual disciplines you enjoy and how they’ve helped you!