A Wind-up Toy Life

At the end of every year, you cannot turn on the radio or the television without hearing the media bombard the audience with thoughts about new goals and goal setting.  Our friends and family ask us what new resolution, or behaviors, will we make or change for the start of the new year. It is a condition of our world that we long for change. I ache to be better, to do better, to live differently, determined to take away the struggle of overeating or not exercising enough, of spending too much money on things or time on the computer and not enough in God’s word.  I long for change of some of my behaviors.

Even if I desire change, I often find myself like the wind-up toy monkey I had as a child. In the morning, I wake up and wind the little key on my back and proceed to act and do exactly the same things I did yesterday. Oh, the day to day tasks change, but basically I move from here to there, clanging my cymbals, and getting the errands done; hopping from one task to another but never really moving forward. On occasion I get wound too tight and I cannot think correctly and sometimes I just slowly wind down and accomplish nothing. Somehow, every day is the same and the changes I desire never happen and disappointment in myself is felt deep inside my heart.

I struggle with this and I’m guessing you do too.

This struggle shows up in different behaviors, habits, actions or emotions for each of us. Some behaviors are healthy and enrich our lives. Think about the healthy behaviors you have in your life in relationships, finances, spiritual life or physical life and how you are enriched through those behaviors.

But some behaviors are unhealthy and we can all lay claim to an unhealthy behavior that impoverishes our life. It impoverishes us spiritually, financially, physically or in relationships.  It might be anger, an addiction, or laziness, possibly selfishness or something else entirely. We want to change, but you can’t. We have good intentions to change, yet we often fail to even start the change or it continues to persist.

Understand that you are not alone. The apostle Paul knew the tension to know what is right but to not live it.  Listen to what he said in Romans 7:15 and feel his despair, how he is like a wind-up toy too:

I do not understand what I do.

For what I want to do

I do not do,

but what I hate

I do.

I see myself in this passage. On one hand is me knowing and desiring the very things I should do but instead day to day routines, circumstances and habits keep me stuck doing the very things I resolved to not do.

There is hope for us though, and we will be exploring more on the topic in future posts to this web site. But I don’t want to leave you wallowing there. So one more thought.

The bible tells us in Lamentations 3:22,

Because of the Lord’s great love

we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.

They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

Ahhhh…...don’t you feel better now? That passage brings a big smile to my face like a gulp of fresh spring air. Because God loves us so much, we need not despair and be consumed. The Lord’s great love is new every morning!

So, as we wind ourselves up and proceed through the day living our healthy behaviors and habits but also as we cave into our unhealthy behaviors and habits, rest in the promise that as children of God, we get a do over every morning because He loves us. And that is a promise from our God and our treasure!

If you would like to automatically receive more encouragement and growth for your spiritual life, you may subscribe to www. mygodmytreasure.com web site. Feel free to encourage and invite your friends to subscribe also.  

Then join us on Monday, January 18th at 7pm at Higher Grounds Coffee Shop in Beaver Dam as other ladies expand and grow in this area plus explore and discuss the topic of “Overwhelmed Schedule - Underwhelmed Soul”.        (rs)