I’m a creature of habit. Like clockwork, when I get up, I exercise and then go on my daily pilgrimage to Starbucks. My order doesn’t change much as I get Emperor Clouds and Midst Green Tea.

I also have a habit of preparing for Sunday messages. Typically, I prepare sermon series topics several months in advance through prayer and asking God to guide me in the message that the congregation and I need to hear.  After I preach on Sunday and take a nap, I look at the scripture for the next Sunday. I work on the message on Monday, allowing the scripture “to speak to me” as I go about my day.

Sometimes, the Spirit uses everyday experiences to clarify what I need to hear from the scripture. I will submit my message notes to the tech team by Tuesday or Wednesday at the latest, and our communications director will create the discussion guide. Of course, I allow room for God to change my direction for the message, and this happens often!

We’re all creatures of habit because we tend to fall into repetitive patterns of behavior and established routines. As creatures of habit, it is a daily task to manage our lives by cultivating healthy habits and letting go of destructive ones.

But what happens when you try to form healthy habits and fail? Yes, I know that adage that it takes 21 days to form a habit and 90 days to make it permanent, but what happens when unhealthy habits like worry, jealousy, envy, and gossip are so ingrained in you that no matter how hard you try, eventually, you find yourself back where you started, but with more guilt because you were not able to maintain the healthy habit.

Feeling as defeated as Sisyphus, the guy who continuously rolls an enormous boulder up a hill, only to have it roll back down again once it neared the top, we need something to change us on the inside and not just the outside. I believe God wants to change us from the inside out to experience the abundant life that Jesus promised. Changing from the inside always begins with letting go.

Jesus calls us to “let go” of our anxieties, burdens, and attachments to worldly things, surrendering our lives to God’s will and allowing Him to take control; essentially, this means trusting in God’s plan and releasing our need to hold onto things that may hinder our spiritual growth and relationship with Him.

During our January sermon series called Creatures of Habits, we will focus on ways to help you let go of unhealthy habits by inviting God to change you from the inside out. Changing from the inside out requires letting go of the need to be in control, and to focus on, trust in, and obey God. I want you to experience the abundant life that Jesus promised by living a Life with God, a Life in Community, a Life of Impact, and a Life of Generosity.

At the Intersection,
Dr. Quincy D. Brown
Senior Pastor