Chapter 11; Behavior 8 - The Habit of Being Responsible

Five Steps to Stop Making Excuses

Have I told ya lately that I love this study and I am so thankful to be a part of it with such a great group.    I am excited.  I see God working and He keeps speaking to me by tying together the things I read here with my other studies and even with the sermons at church.    God is amazing & He desires us to have amazing, full lives.   He has brought us together for that very reason. 

Now, I will 100% agree with LeAnn that there has been some serious toe stopping going on and some of it has been hard, but then again, no one said it would be easy.  I think I’d be really leary of any bible study that claimed it was going to be easy.  :)

Excuses, excuses, excuses…….we go to stop making them.   Joyce gives us 5 steps to stop making excuses which Kara mentioned today. 

1    1.Face the Truth – Admit you have a problem.  She tells us to say it out loud.  Tell it to God, admit it to yourself or maybe tell a friend.

Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.  James 5:16

2. Don’t have unrealistic expectations.  Your habits, your waist-line, your bank account, etc did not happen overnight and change is not going happen overnight.  Be realistic when setting your goals.  “We are responsible to follow God’s expectations of us, not everyone else’s.”

3.    Stop Complaining.  Complaning drains your energy (and the energy of everyone around you.)  Complaining keeps us from making progress.

4.    Be Aggressive.  Don’t procrastinate.   Just do it and do it now!

5.    Find a solution to obstacles.  “We can find a solution to most problems if we truly want to.”   (EEwww, toe stomper, maybe in step 1, we need to decide if we truly want to make a change or if we are ok with the things as they are.)

 Now I am going give you some steps Tracie Miles gave last week in Chapter 11 of Stressed – Less Living because even if you are not doing that study, you can relate to stress.  I know stress has played a big part in the decisions I’ve made (and not all of them were the most responsible choices).   When I chose to learn how to make good habits & break bad habits, I was looking for a way to reset.  I wanted to get rid of the old and put on the new.   I want to be the woman God intended.

The Reset Button

1    1. Realign your life.  Is your life aligned with the Word of God?  Ask God to show you where changes need to be made.  Read Psalm 119:105

2.    Recognize your need.  God never meant for us to be self-sufficient.  Dependable – Yes, Responsible – Yes, Confident – Yes but Self Sufficeint – No.  Allow God to be your strength & deliverer.  When I am Weak, He is Strong!  Read Psalm 79:8b

3.    Adjust your focus.  We have discussed focus here before.  Where our mind is, is where our heart is.  When we focus on our circumstances instead of trusting on God, we become overwhelmed with worry & fear.  We must allow God to fill our hearts with his peace.  Read Isaiah 40:28

4.    Be filled with the Spirit.  I love this – If you have asked God to fill you with the Holy Spirit and you have given him dominion over your life, you can be confident in knowing that he has filled you according to his purpose.  Read Galatians 5:16

5.    Be Faithful in your prayer life.  God answers prayers, in his way and in his timing.  But, if we fail to pray, he has nothing to act upon!!  Read Hebrews 4:16

6.    Believe God is who he says he is.  Here is another good quote – Unbelief puts our circumstances between us & and God; faith puts God between us and our circumstances.  If you are serious about “resetting” your life, then let God be God in your life.  Read Matthew 16:13-16

I believe in order to develop the habit of Responsibility, we need to be in God’s Word daily and we need to ask ourselves-“what would Jesus do?”  How would today have been different if EVERY decision you made today was made after asking “What Would Jesus Do?”

 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you.  James 1:5

Father God, you have given us lots of responsibilities but we know that we don't have to carry these responsibilities alone.  You are with us.  Help us stop & ask ourselves "what would you do?"  Thank you for bringing us together to learn from, to share our experiences and to pray for each other.  Thank you for loving us so.  In Jesus name, Amen.

Now with regards to Exercise, let’s stop these common excuses.   (I got these from Lauren Conrad.  laurenconrad.com/blog/post/shape-up-how-to-stop-making-excuses-fit-tip-exercise-gym-allison-norton-june-2013 

Excuse #1: I don’t have time.
For all the ladies out there who have packed their schedules to the brim, I’m sure you’ve found yourself saying the excuse that you just don’t have enough time for exercise. The truth of the matter is that if something is a priority, you will make time for it. You don’t have to set aside a three-hour window just to break a sweat. A 30-minute run is a great way to get cardio in when you don’t have much time to spare. If you have an extra busy day, try doing some yoga poses in your bedroom before getting ready for work or taking a walk during your lunch break. It can even be as simple as doing 50 jumping jacks in place, then doing 50 crunches. Every little bit counts, and making the time for exercise will get your mind back in gear.

Excuse #2: My gym is too far.

While the gym you belong to may not be right down the street, there is no reason to let that get in the way of you getting in shape. On those days that you can’t squeeze in driving to the gym, try following a workout DVD instead. Also, since it’s finally summertime and the weather is nice (nicer than snowy winters at least!), take advantage of working out outdoors. Lace up and go for a run, a hike, or even a nice long walk in your neighborhood. Then, the next time you do have time to go to the gym, make sure you put in the effort to get there so you don’t get in the habit of being lazy.

Excuse #3: I don’t know how to begin.
For some people, working out may seem overwhelming: “running is hard, yoga is painful, spinning is intimidating!” If these thoughts creep up whenever you think about exercising, now might be the time to face your fears. Exercising and eating healthy will prolong your life, prevent disease, and boost your mood (not to mention give you a fabulous figure). So there is no reason to avoid your gym shoes any longer. If you feel uncomfortable with certain workouts, ease into them and let yourself get familiar with which ones you like best. If you have never been a runner but you want to tone your legs, start going on run-walks where you alternate between one minute of walking and three minutes of jogging. Grabbing a friend and heading to a yoga class, a spinning sesh, or taking a hike is also a great way to boost your cardio confidence. No matter how you choose to get past this barrier, I promise you will be happier once you do!

Love you ladies!!  

Until next week,
Melanie