The problem with difficulty is that it is…well…DIFFICULT! And we, as humans, don’t like hard. We avoid it at all costs. We are constantly coming up with new ways to do things so we can work less. Our brain is, in fact, wired to create the most efficient pathways of doing things for the sake of survival, but it usually leads to laziness. As a society we are masters of our own demise, and rather effortlessly (literally). We see it in everything from robot vacuums and robot lawn mowers to grocery delivery and telemedicine. (All of which are great, but each requires less and less effort on our part.
The problem is that in our desire for an easier life we are digressing into more apathy and complacency rather than enhancing life expectancy. We no longer challenge ourselves and therefore cannot rise to a challenge. The reality is however, we were born to be overcomers NOT succumb-ers! The enemy knows this and wants to deceive and defeat us!
4 Ways to Extinguish the Flaming Arrows of Difficulty
Intentionally do something hard EVERY week. This puts your mental state in a constant position to accept the hard things. It also weakens our aversion to them because we have been rehearsing them regularly. If we always AVOID the challenging, the uncomfortable, the inconvenient, the difficult, then when it shows up (AND IT WILL SHOW UP), unexpectedly, we won’t know how to handle it. Try these:
Shower in cold water.
Fast from food for an extended period of time (2 meals, sundown-sundown, 3 days, etc).
Workout ‘x’ number of times/week.
Get up earlier – breathe, pray, meditate, etc.
Commit to a time of reading daily.
Do things different/opposite how you normally do them (brush teeth with other hand, drive home another way, etc).
Focus on the outcome NOT the actual thing. For the JOY set before Him, [Christ] endured the cross, scorning its shame. (Hebrews 12:2) Jesus found a way to go through being publicly humiliated, brutally beaten, and heinously crucified by thinking about something else. We can do the same. With a different focal point, maybe our work day or bad traffic or waiting in line or loss of electricity (or a real struggle) won’t seem unbearable. “Set your mind on things above, not on earthly things.” Colossians 3:2.
Remind yourself it’s ONLY temporary. Maybe you’re heard the phrase, this too shall pass. And it is NOT wrong. Nothing is FOREVER, not even this life. So, even if you’re stuck in an endless state of suffering, be encouraged that this life is but a “mist” or “vapor” (according to James 4:14) in light of eternity. And 2 Corinthians reminds us that “what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is forever.”
Pray for Strength. God NEVER said we wouldn’t be given more than we can handle. In fact, I think it is complete nonsense to say that. God allows us to go through difficult things in order that we might continue to have a need for God. If we could handle everything on our own, we wouldn’t have a need for God. “In this world YOU WILL HAVE TROUBLE, but take courage, I have OVERCOME the WORLD!” John 16:33. And when we’re weak, then we’re strong, as Paul identified, once we put our hope in Jesus. (2 Corinthians 12:10)
So, what are you facing? Let this remind you to press on and push through. And don’t try to do it alone. We’re better when we rely on each other!!! Let me know if there’s anything we can do to carry your burden.
#OvercomeNotSuccomb
#GetDownWithDifficulty
#StairwayToHeaven
#RestoringWholenessOfLife
Brett
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