Let’s say we really want to change a bad habit. It could be we want to lose weight, or stop spending so much time on social media, or rein in our spending.
So, what’s our most common go-to plan? We try to rely on willpower, right? Drawing on all the inner strength we can muster, we start a new diet. We set rules for ourselves. We try to hold our breath whenever temptation threatens to overtake us. We pump up our willpower again and again so we won’t give in. And sometimes we can hang on for a little while.
But eventually, the same thing always happens: we crash and burn. That thing we promised ourselves we weren’t going to do—we end up doing it all over again. We almost can’t seem to help ourselves. No matter how hard we try, our willpower won’t hold out long enough for us to change our unhealthy behaviors and patterns.
And it leaves us feel so weak and helpless. Like we’ll never be able to control those parts of our lives that feel so out of control.
Recently, I heard a social media executive mourn this very cycle on the Netflix documentary, Social Dilemma. After explaining that his entire job was to design an algorithm that would keep people scrolling, he then confessed that, at night, he fell victim to those very same patterns. He just couldn’t stay off his phone. He admitted that he tried to draw on willpower to stop himself, but it wasn’t enough. He just kept doing the very behavior he promised himself he was going to give up.
It really is a maddening cycle, isn’t it? And yet, we keep going back to it again and again. We want to change, so we muster up more willpower. But our valiant efforts never last for very long. It’s a vicious circle that keeps us trapped in feelings of weakness, failure, and perhaps even a nagging sense of hopelessness.
And yet, have we ever stopped to ask ourselves,
Is willpower really God’s plan for change?
Is that the gospel plan He’s outlined in His word to help us improve? Where did the idea of willpower even come from? Could it be possible that there’s a better way?
I absolutely believe that there is.
In fact, if we’ll take a deeper look into the scriptures, we’ll find that there’s a way to break out of that maddening cycle once and for all. That there’s a way to not just lose weight, but find lasting change without having to rely on white-knuckle willpower. And it will transform our lives forever…if only we’ll just open our eyes to see it.
Join me on my YouTube channel as we talk more about God’s plan for lasting and permanent change.
