By John Stallings
If you saw the movie Groundhog Day; you have a perfect example of a man who’s stuck, living the same day over and over.
It’s sort of a twilight zone of sameness with no seeming ability to affect any kind of change. We yearn for new vistas but seem to be fresh out of ideas as to how and where to find them. We look down the road and see no chance of anything but more of the same. We all know what it’s like to be in a car that’s stuck, either in snow or mud, but this is worse. It’s the realization that we’re not moving forward, and we feel paralyzed. There are projects we know we need to start or finish, but we’re seemingly trapped and frozen in place.
Some people feel that “being stuck” is a signal that something has gone horribly wrong; somehow they’ve missed it, and they’re terribly off course. This is not always the case; as a matter of fact, feeling stuck is a condition that can be good for us. For one thing, a prime prerequisite for getting unstuck is to be stuck. When we’re stuck, we’ve lost our momentum and are forced, at least temporarily, to stop and assess our lives.
Feeling stuck acts as an inward summons or call. We face the fact that we are dissatisfied with where we are. We see the utter futility of our situation, and, if we are wise, we reach for another level to satisfy the desire for change. At that point, we are reaching for that which really satisfies, and, in so doing, we are calling out for God. So that’s why I say that being stuck isn’t really a bad thing. What has happened is, because of the stuck feelings, we have begun to readjust our lives, looking for a clearer perspective. In a way we are calling out, “What’s next for me, God?
”SOMETIMES PEOPLE GET STUCK IN THE PAST.Some people live in the past and seem to revel in the hurts of yesterday. They won’t shake loose from their past failures or calamities because, to them, the past is more important than the present. When you talk to them, you quickly see they are totally caught up with and committed to keeping the past more real than the present. They are stuck.
If you saw the movie Groundhog Day; you have a perfect example of a man who’s stuck, living the same day over and over.
It’s sort of a twilight zone of sameness with no seeming ability to affect any kind of change. We yearn for new vistas but seem to be fresh out of ideas as to how and where to find them. We look down the road and see no chance of anything but more of the same. We all know what it’s like to be in a car that’s stuck, either in snow or mud, but this is worse. It’s the realization that we’re not moving forward, and we feel paralyzed. There are projects we know we need to start or finish, but we’re seemingly trapped and frozen in place.
Some people feel that “being stuck” is a signal that something has gone horribly wrong; somehow they’ve missed it, and they’re terribly off course. This is not always the case; as a matter of fact, feeling stuck is a condition that can be good for us. For one thing, a prime prerequisite for getting unstuck is to be stuck. When we’re stuck, we’ve lost our momentum and are forced, at least temporarily, to stop and assess our lives.
Feeling stuck acts as an inward summons or call. We face the fact that we are dissatisfied with where we are. We see the utter futility of our situation, and, if we are wise, we reach for another level to satisfy the desire for change. At that point, we are reaching for that which really satisfies, and, in so doing, we are calling out for God. So that’s why I say that being stuck isn’t really a bad thing. What has happened is, because of the stuck feelings, we have begun to readjust our lives, looking for a clearer perspective. In a way we are calling out, “What’s next for me, God?
”SOMETIMES PEOPLE GET STUCK IN THE PAST.Some people live in the past and seem to revel in the hurts of yesterday. They won’t shake loose from their past failures or calamities because, to them, the past is more important than the present. When you talk to them, you quickly see they are totally caught up with and committed to keeping the past more real than the present. They are stuck.
In John 5, Jesus saw a man sitting beside the pool of Bethesda. He had been sitting there for thirty-eight years, trying to be first into the water after it was troubled by the angel. Jesus came along and heard the man’s story and immediately saw that he was stuck. I would say that thirty-eight years of sitting in the same spot, whining about the same problem is really being stuck. It didn’t cross the man’s mind that there was another way. When Jesus was able to get him to quit worrying about his past defeats and disappointments and look to Him, the man was healed, and he carried his bed away.
WE CAN GET STUCK IN OLD PATTERNS AND HABITS.It’s not hard to develop bad habits (sometimes sinful), but more often people are just bogged in ruts. Some give up, figuring they can’t change, so why try? Perhaps because of resentment or a negative thought pattern they’ve been in so long, they think their situation could never change. Perhaps they’ve come to believe their lot in life is already static, and nothing can ever be different.
MAYBE YOU’RE STUCK FINANCIALLY OR WITH SOME OTHER PHYSICAL NEED.
WE CAN GET STUCK IN OLD PATTERNS AND HABITS.It’s not hard to develop bad habits (sometimes sinful), but more often people are just bogged in ruts. Some give up, figuring they can’t change, so why try? Perhaps because of resentment or a negative thought pattern they’ve been in so long, they think their situation could never change. Perhaps they’ve come to believe their lot in life is already static, and nothing can ever be different.
MAYBE YOU’RE STUCK FINANCIALLY OR WITH SOME OTHER PHYSICAL NEED.
In John 2, Jesus attended a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and they had run out of wine. The people were stuck with no libation, and obviously it put the wedding planners in a bit of an embarrassing spot. They were stuck with no wine. Though Jesus’ time had not yet come to do miracles, He responded to the need and performed His first miracle by turning water into wine. When we are stuck financially, emotionally, or in any other way, we should immediately turn to Jesus, knowing He’ll always be responsive to our needs.
YOU MAY BE STUCK WITH A FALSE ASSUMPTION.
YOU MAY BE STUCK WITH A FALSE ASSUMPTION.
In Joel 2:23-32, the prophet speaks to a people who are stuck in despair, feeling things will never get better. He tells them to look up and be glad for God is going to do great things for them. They have a great future if they’ll rise up and take hold of it by faith. He says in verse 25,--And I will restore to you the years that the locust hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm, my great army which I sent among you. 26And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that hath dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. 27And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed.28And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions.
In I Kings 17 we read the story of Elijah being sent to the home of the widow of Zarephath. A famine was in progress, and the only thing she had was just enough meal to make a cake for herself and her son, then die of slow starvation. This poor little widow woman was indeed stuck. Elijah asked her to make him a little cake first, and at that point she had a choice. She could believe the word of the man of God or do it her way, and no doubt die. When she opted to obey, she was given a miracle supply of oil and meal that lasted for many days. When things are going bad and we are stuck in some situation or other, we should always listen for Gods voice, for He’ll have a plan to get us unstuck. The only thing the widow had to do was exercise obedience, and her need was met. To get unstuck, you and I will often have to make that same choice--to obey God.
SOMETIMES BEING STUCK IS JUST PURE PROCRASTINATION.We develop a habit of putting things off until it finally turns into resistance to tasks that are unpleasant to us. Though we don’t enjoy thinking about it, sometimes we can become stubborn, which started as a childhood-survival technique we may have developed to ward off controlling people. We learned early that we can resist certain things, and people can do nothing but accept our resistance. Perhaps we even enjoyed seeing how it frustrated others when we used those powers of resistance. This may have worked as a child, but it isn’t necessary now, and if we don’t recognize what’s happening, it can be a tool to sabotage our motivation. Now it translates to pure, old, mule-headed stubbornness, keeping us from the changes we should make.
MAYBE WE ARE STUCK BECAUSE WE ARE RESISTING CHANGE.Are you stuck at the beginning of the great New Year, 2008?HERE ARE A FEW HELPFUL HINTS FOR GETTING UNSTUCK.
1. Look at your situation realistically. Does anything in the aforementioned apply? Ask God to help you see what’s really stopping your progress.
2. Look for the bottlenecks in your situation and address them.
3. Develop a “what’s next” mentality. God will show you His will if you seek Him.
4. Don’t hesitate to go to people you respect and enlist their prayers and advice. Don’t forget to seek God.
5. When you get temporarily stuck on a project, walk away for a while, and you’ll come back to it with a new perspective.
6. Home run king, Henry Aaron, had this advice: In a slump, keep swinging.
7. Help others with their problems, and yours will seem smaller.
8. Take care of yourself spiritually, emotionally, and physically.
9. Start each day with God’s Word and a prayer for guidance.
SOMETIMES BEING STUCK IS JUST PURE PROCRASTINATION.We develop a habit of putting things off until it finally turns into resistance to tasks that are unpleasant to us. Though we don’t enjoy thinking about it, sometimes we can become stubborn, which started as a childhood-survival technique we may have developed to ward off controlling people. We learned early that we can resist certain things, and people can do nothing but accept our resistance. Perhaps we even enjoyed seeing how it frustrated others when we used those powers of resistance. This may have worked as a child, but it isn’t necessary now, and if we don’t recognize what’s happening, it can be a tool to sabotage our motivation. Now it translates to pure, old, mule-headed stubbornness, keeping us from the changes we should make.
MAYBE WE ARE STUCK BECAUSE WE ARE RESISTING CHANGE.Are you stuck at the beginning of the great New Year, 2008?HERE ARE A FEW HELPFUL HINTS FOR GETTING UNSTUCK.
1. Look at your situation realistically. Does anything in the aforementioned apply? Ask God to help you see what’s really stopping your progress.
2. Look for the bottlenecks in your situation and address them.
3. Develop a “what’s next” mentality. God will show you His will if you seek Him.
4. Don’t hesitate to go to people you respect and enlist their prayers and advice. Don’t forget to seek God.
5. When you get temporarily stuck on a project, walk away for a while, and you’ll come back to it with a new perspective.
6. Home run king, Henry Aaron, had this advice: In a slump, keep swinging.
7. Help others with their problems, and yours will seem smaller.
8. Take care of yourself spiritually, emotionally, and physically.
9. Start each day with God’s Word and a prayer for guidance.
10. You are looking for ways to make progress in your life. If you weren’t, you wouldn’t have read these little tips by such a non-expert as I. If we keep reaching, the best is yet to come in. In Saskatchewan there’s a sign by the side of a muddy road which reads:
CHOOSE YOUR RUT CAREFULLY, YOU’LL BE IN IT A LONG TIME. Happy New Year,
John & Juda
CHOOSE YOUR RUT CAREFULLY, YOU’LL BE IN IT A LONG TIME. Happy New Year,
John & Juda
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