Getting Out of Complacency and Finding Joy

This is a follow-up to the two previous posts on complacency inspired by this week’s In Other Words quote. The first two posts are Complacency Should Not be a Permanet Address and Complacency – The Danger and the Hope.

com-pla-cen-cy – a feeling of quiet pleasure or security, often while unaware of some potential danger, defect, or the like; self-satisfaction or smug satisfaction with an existing situation, condition, etc. (Webster’s @ dictionary.com)

We often see complacency as being similar to treading water: we’re not sinking or swimming, we’re just not moving forward.

The problem with complacency, especially in a Christian’s walk with Christ, is that, as the definition states, you are “often unaware of some potential danger.”

The danger may not be harm to you or a loved one physically or emotionally. You may not lose your house or your car and your marriage may not dissolve, but you are in danger of a setback in your relationship with Christ.

Unlike treading water, if you are complacent in your walk with Christ, you are not only not moving forward, you are drowning.

If there is no growth in your walk with Christ, you are actually losing ground in your relationship with Christ.

But wait, I said this post would be about finding hope again. Yes, it is, but the danger must be emphasized first because it is so important to understand that God will not turn his back on us, but we can ruin our relationship with Christ by turning our back on him.

As in the earlier post Complacency – The Danger and the Hope, there are warning signs and causes to a Christian becoming complacent:

There are warning signs: less time communing with God, more time talking with friends, spouses, or kids; less time in God’s word, more time with the TV or books; less time worshipping with fellow believers, more Sunday mornings sleeping in.

If you’ll notice, these are all things each of us has control over, and they are all actions that we choose to make.

If you have grown complacent, start by asking God to kick you out of this place where you’ve landed. Ask him to renew your joy in your walk with him. This is a prayer God loves to answer.

Second, just do it. If you haven’t been spending time in God’s word and in prayer, set aside time TODAY to do so. And then set aside time tomorrow and the next day and the next. Don’t tell yourself you are going from 0 minutes to 60 minutes a day, just work on opening your Bible and opening your heart to hear God’s voice.

Third, get back with fellow believers who are living a life of joy. There is nothing more contagious than joy. Call a friend who has a strong walk with the Lord and spend time with him or her. Ask her how she keeps her joy and to pray that your joy will be regained as well.

A Christian’s life should not be ho-hum and hum-drum. Your heart should resonate with the joy of the Lord because your hope is in Him.

Yours for the celebration of life,

Claudia