Next Level Habits

Luke 5:39

³⁹ And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is better.’”

Ephesians 4:21-24

²¹ if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: ²² that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, ²³ and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, ²⁴ and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.

I.                   HOW HABITS FORM.

Romans 6:15-19

¹⁵ What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. ¹⁶ Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? ¹⁷ But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. ¹⁸ Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. ¹⁹ I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness.

Yield – Parastano – to stand near,

You will always be a Servant…

You will always give yourselves to something…We were made that way.

James 1:13-15

¹³ Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: ¹⁴ But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. ¹⁵ Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.

Drawn towards something. (You give conscious attention at first)

Something’s happening in you. (Conception)

Automation. (Bringing Forth)

Death. (Loss of Conscious control)

1.    Every habit-forming activity follows the same neurological pattern.

2.    Habit patterns occur in the basal ganglia of the brain, which also plays a role in developing our emotions, memories and pattern recognition.

3.    Decisions are made in the prefrontal cortex. As soon as behavior becomes automatic the decision-making part of our brain goes into sleep mode.

4.    We perform automatic behaviors the same way every time if we are in the same environment.

5.    Habits start with a pattern loop (3 part process)

a.    There is a cue (trigger) that tells brain to go into automatic mode and let the.

b.    There is the routine which is the actual behavior.

c.     There is the reward. Something your brain likes that helps it remember the habit loop in the future.

II.                HOW TO BREAK HABIT PATTERNS?

Romans 12:1-2

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. ² And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

You must identify components of your loop

1.    Identify the Routine. (the behavior itself)

2.    Identify the Reward for the behavior. (What’s in it for you)

Rewards are powerful because they satisfy cravings. The problem is we are not always aware of the true cravings that drive our behavior.

You must experiment to discover your true cravings.

  

Ex. Chocolate Chip Cookie at 3:30

Cue? Hunger, boredom, break, low blood sugar, need to feel connected (friends) etc.

Reward? Blood sugar satisfied, feeling calm etc.

a.     To determine true source experiment with different rewards.

b.     As you discover your rewards write them down.

3.    Identify the cue for this routine. (What triggers the behavior)

Cues are difficult to determine because there is so much stimuli. Personal research is needed.

5 Questions to ask when an urge hits you

i.              Where are you?

ii.            What time is it?

iii.           What’s your emotional state?

iv.           Who else is around?

v.            What action preceded the urge?

The Cookie Example:

Where are you? (sitting at my desk)

What time is it? (3:36 pm)

What’s your emotional state? (bored)

Who else is around? (no one)

What action preceded the urge? (answered an email)

The next day:

Where are you? (walking back from the copier)

What time is it? (3:18 pm)

What’s your emotional state? (happy)

Who else is around? (Jim from Sports)

What action preceded the urge? (made a photocopy)

The third day:

Where are you? (conference room)

What time is it? (3:41 pm)

What’s your emotional state? (tired, excited about the project I’m working on)

Who else is around? (editors who are coming to this meeting)

What action preceded the urge? (I sat down because the meeting is about to start)

III.               DEVELOP A PLAN FOR BETTER HABITS.

1.    Anticipate and plan for the cue.

2.    Choose a better behavior that delivers the reward you are craving.

IV.            NEXT LEVEL HABITS WE SHOULD ADOPT.

1.    Faith. (A Positive Perspective)

Luke 8:22-25

²² Now it happened, on a certain day, which He got into a boat with His disciples. And He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side of the lake.” And they launched out. ²³ But as they sailed He fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy. ²⁴ And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water. And they ceased, and there was a calm. ²⁵ But He said to them, “Where is your faith?”

Our first controlled reaction should be faith…

John 6:5-6

⁵ Then Jesus lifted up His eyes, and seeing a great multitude coming toward Him, He said to Philip, “Where shall we buy bread, that these may eat?” ⁶ But this He said to test him, for He Himself knew what He would do.

2.    Self-Denial.

Philippians 2:3-9

³ Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. ⁴ Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others. ⁵ Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, ⁶ who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, ⁷ but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. ⁸ And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross.

Matthew 16:24-25

²⁴ Then Jesus said to His disciples, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me. ²⁵ For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.

3.    A Vertical Perspective.

Psalm 121

¹I will lift up my eyes to the hills—From whence comes my help? ²My help comes from the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

Psalm 10:4

⁴ The wicked, through the pride of his countenance, will not seek after God: God is not in all his thoughts.

Isaiah 26:3

³ Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on thee: Because he trusteth in thee.