Transforming Habits Through Belief and Community
Summary
Today, we explored the profound impact of belief on habit formation and change. We often find ourselves trapped by what Ezra Sullivan calls "limiting beliefs," which are convictions that our habits and dispositions are unchangeable because they feel natural to us. These beliefs can lead us to mistakenly equate our habits with our identity, labeling ourselves as lazy, anxious, or any number of traits that we think define us. However, these are not our true nature. Our true nature is our human essence, which includes our conscience, our search for meaning, and our relationship with God—elements that are unchangeable. Habits, on the other hand, are like a second nature, and they can be changed, especially when they are infiltrated by sin.
The key to changing these habits lies in our belief that change is possible with God's help. Without this belief, we remain limited by our habits. Charles Duhigg's research on habit replacement therapy shows that while replacing habits can be effective, it often fails under stress unless accompanied by belief—specifically, faith in a higher power. This is where community plays a crucial role. In groups like Alcoholics Anonymous, belief is fostered through shared experiences and mutual support, which is also the essence of the church community.
Being part of a faith community strengthens our belief that God can change us and remake us. It encourages us to trust that God is actively working to transform us by changing our habits. We are reminded that the main thing God gets out of our lives is the person we become. Therefore, we should strive to cultivate habits that align with God's vision for us, seeking to love, serve, and encourage others. As we do this, we become part of God's project of shalom in the world, and our habits begin to change.
Key Takeaways:
1. Limiting Beliefs and Identity: We often mistake our habits for our identity, labeling ourselves with traits that feel natural but are not our true nature. Our true nature is unchangeable and rooted in our relationship with God. Recognizing this distinction is the first step toward change. [02:05]
2. The Role of Belief in Change: Belief is crucial in habit change. Without the belief that change is possible with God's help, we remain trapped by our habits. This belief requires effort, self-knowledge, and openness to God's grace. [04:07]
3. Community and Shared Belief: Being part of a community strengthens our belief in the possibility of change. Shared experiences and mutual support help us suspend disbelief and trust in God's transformative power. [07:25]
4. Faith and Habit Replacement: Habit replacement is effective when accompanied by faith. Believing in a higher power helps us cope with stress and maintain new habits, as seen in groups like Alcoholics Anonymous. [06:26]
5. Becoming Part of God's Project: Our ultimate goal is to become the person God wants us to be. By cultivating habits that align with God's vision, we participate in His project of shalom in the world, transforming ourselves and our communities. [10:52]
Youtube Chapters:
- [00:00] - Welcome
- [00:40] - Go Get Him
- [01:05] - Habits and Belief
- [01:20] - Limiting Beliefs
- [02:05] - Nature vs. Habits
- [03:39] - Responsibility and Change
- [04:21] - Habit Replacement Therapy
- [05:16] - The Role of God in Change
- [06:09] - Faith and Stress
- [07:25] - Community and Belief
- [08:10] - Strengthening Faith
- [09:06] - Cultivating New Habits
- [10:21] - God's Project of Shalom
- [11:08] - Community Support
- [11:42] - Closing Remarks
Study Guide
Bible Study Discussion Guide
Bible Reading:
- Acts 16:5 - "So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers."
Observation Questions:
1. What does the sermon suggest is the difference between our true nature and our habits? How does this distinction affect our self-perception? [02:05]
2. According to the sermon, what role does belief play in the process of changing habits? [04:07]
3. How does the sermon describe the impact of community on an individual's belief in their ability to change? [07:25]
4. What example from the sermon illustrates the concept of habit replacement therapy, and how is faith involved in this process? [06:26]
Interpretation Questions:
1. How might the concept of "limiting beliefs" affect a person's spiritual growth and relationship with God? [03:39]
2. In what ways does the sermon suggest that faith and community can help overcome the stresses that challenge habit change? [06:26]
3. How does the sermon interpret the strengthening of faith mentioned in Acts 16:5 in the context of habit change and personal transformation? [08:10]
4. What does the sermon imply about the relationship between personal transformation and participating in God's project of shalom? [10:52]
Application Questions:
1. Reflect on a habit you have that you might mistakenly identify as part of your identity. How can you begin to separate this habit from your true nature? [02:05]
2. Consider a time when you felt trapped by a habit. How did your belief in the possibility of change, or lack thereof, influence your actions? [04:07]
3. Identify a community or group that has supported you in making positive changes. How can you further engage with this community to strengthen your belief in your ability to change? [07:25]
4. Think about a stressful situation where you reverted to an old habit. How might faith in a higher power help you respond differently next time? [06:26]
5. What specific habit would you like to change to align more closely with God's vision for you? What steps can you take this week to begin this transformation? [10:52]
6. Who in your life helps you believe that change is possible? How can you express gratitude to them or seek their support more intentionally? [09:06]
7. Reflect on the idea that the main thing God gets out of your life is the person you become. How does this perspective influence your daily choices and habits? [10:08]
Devotional
Day 1: Distinguishing Habits from True Identity
Our habits often feel like an intrinsic part of who we are, leading us to label ourselves with traits that seem unchangeable. However, these habits are not our true nature. Our true essence is rooted in our relationship with God, which remains constant and unchangeable. Recognizing this distinction is crucial for personal transformation. By understanding that habits are a second nature, we open ourselves to the possibility of change, especially when we seek God's guidance to overcome limiting beliefs. [02:05]
"For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory." (Colossians 3:3-4, ESV)
Reflection: What habit have you mistaken for your identity, and how can you begin to see it as separate from your true self in Christ today?
Day 2: The Power of Belief in Transformation
Belief is a powerful catalyst for change, especially when it comes to altering our habits. Without the belief that change is possible with God's help, we remain trapped by our habits. This belief requires effort, self-awareness, and an openness to God's grace. By nurturing this belief, we can break free from the chains of our habits and embrace the transformation that God offers. [04:07]
"And Jesus said to him, ‘If you can! All things are possible for one who believes.’ Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, ‘I believe; help my unbelief!’" (Mark 9:23-24, ESV)
Reflection: Identify a habit you wish to change. How can you actively cultivate belief in God's power to help you transform this habit today?
Day 3: Community as a Source of Strength
Being part of a community strengthens our belief in the possibility of change. Shared experiences and mutual support help us suspend disbelief and trust in God's transformative power. In a community, we find encouragement and accountability, which are essential for sustaining change. By engaging with others who share our faith, we reinforce our belief that God is actively working to transform us. [07:25]
"And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near." (Hebrews 10:24-25, ESV)
Reflection: How can you engage more deeply with your faith community this week to support your journey of transformation?
Day 4: Faith as the Foundation for Habit Replacement
Replacing habits is more effective when accompanied by faith. Believing in a higher power helps us cope with stress and maintain new habits, as seen in groups like Alcoholics Anonymous. Faith provides the strength and resilience needed to persevere through challenges and setbacks. By anchoring our habit change efforts in faith, we align ourselves with God's transformative work in our lives. [06:26]
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths." (Proverbs 3:5-6, ESV)
Reflection: What is one habit you are trying to replace? How can you incorporate faith into your strategy for maintaining this new habit?
Day 5: Aligning with God's Vision
Our ultimate goal is to become the person God wants us to be. By cultivating habits that align with God's vision, we participate in His project of shalom in the world, transforming ourselves and our communities. As we strive to love, serve, and encourage others, we become part of God's work in the world, and our habits begin to change in alignment with His purpose. [10:52]
"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." (Ephesians 2:10, ESV)
Reflection: What is one habit you can cultivate this week that aligns with God's vision for your life and contributes to His project of shalom in the world?
Quotes
Ezra Sullivan has written a book called habits and holiness, and writes about the idea of what Ezra calls a limiting belief that is terribly important. A limiting belief that stems from habits and dispositions is the conviction that these traits cannot change because they are natural to the individual. [00:01:20]
We then erroneously equate what is secondary with what is primary in ourselves. We conclude that these traits are identical with our very nature. We come to identify ourselves with them, and we label ourselves by them. "I'm lazy," one person says, or "I'm just attracted to that sort of person, that's the way that I am," another might insist. [00:02:00]
If I actually take responsibility, if I come to believe that it's possible for me to change, I will have to do the hard work of self-knowledge and look at things in me that I would rather not look at. And I will have to be open to the possibility that change might happen. [00:03:46]
Charles Duhigg's book, The Power of Habit, fascinating section here, he's talking about habit replacement therapy. We've discussed this where the golden rule of habit transformation, habit formation is not that you try to break an old habit. You have that old cue and you have the old reward, but you can replace it with a new behavior. [00:04:21]
Researchers began finding habit replacement works pretty well for many people until the stresses of life, finding out your mom has cancer or your marriage is coming apart, get too high, at which point alcoholics often fell off the wagon. Researchers ask why if habit replacement is so effective, it seemed to fail at such critical moments. [00:04:55]
The replacement habits only become durable new behaviors when they are accompanied by something else. One group of researchers at the alcohol research group in California noticed a pattern in interviews. Over and over, alcoholics said the same thing: identifying cues, choosing new routines is important, but without another ingredient, the new habits never fully took hold. [00:05:17]
The secret, the alcoholics said, was God. Researchers hated that explanation. God and spirituality are not testable hypotheses, or so they thought. Churches are filled with drunks who continued drinking despite a quiet faith, and that's true. In conversations with addicts, though, spirituality kept coming up again and again. [00:05:44]
Even if you give people better habits, it doesn't repair why they stop drinking in the first place. Eventually, they'll have a bad day, and no new routine is going to make everything seem okay. What can make a difference is believing. Now the word for that is faith, believing that they can cope with that stress without alcohol. [00:06:09]
AAA trains people in how to believe in something until they believe in the program and themselves. It lets people practice believing that things will eventually get better until things actually do. At some point, people in AAA look around the room and think, if it worked for that guy, it can work for me. [00:06:29]
What happens is when we become part of a community of faith, I believe that when the text talks about people being strengthened in their faith, it is that they believe they have faith. They actually trust God can change me, God can remake me, God is in the process of doing that partly by changing my habits. [00:08:38]
The main thing God gets out of my life is the person I become. That's what I'm after. So in the face of that same cue, I can substitute a different response, a different behavior. I can move toward, I can seek to love, I can try to be honest, I can try to bring encouragement, I can try to serve. [00:10:16]
We can be part of that community for each other as we interact with each other, as we talk, as we comment, as we text. You got somebody in your life, you have somebody there, that's what the church is about. Who, when you're with them, like people getting together in an AAA room, like a team when it begins to come together, who help you believe that change is possible. [00:11:06]
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