I know, it’s been a long time since I’ve posted on my blog. When I wrote this last year I wasn’t able to post it then. I now have internet at home and can be more active in posting to the blog. So what you will read is how I had been feeling before my life got turned upside down. I am now a married lady as of a month ago and life is awesome! I hope someone will benefit from what I wrote.
I’ve been going through a period of feeling like no matter what I did, it didn’t really matter, ‘cause it’s just me. At least that’s what I’ve been thinking. I don’t know, maybe I’ve been in a depressed state. Living as a single after being married isn’t so easy, especially since I wasn’t crazy about being single before I was married. New flash….I’m still not crazy about it.
However, tonight at church my pastor got my attention. He’s been speaking on a series about complacency. He’s talking about being complacent as a church, as Christians, and how that happens and what the result is. Half-way through church tonight, it dawned on me….that’s been the problem. I’m not depressed; I’ve just allowed myself to get complacent about many areas of my life.
So how did I get to this point? I’ve listened to the wrong voice. The enemy of my soul knows my weakness, and that’s where he aims his attack. Pastor spoke about what complacency does.
1. Complacency lowers our determination to be everything God intended for us to be. He mentioned that just as Delilah kept badgering Samson to tell her from where his strength came, the enemy nags us until we succumb to lower expectations. That little word, UNTIL, jumped out at me. For the past four years, since my husband passed away, I’ve been in the mindset that it didn’t matter whether I fixed a meal, or cleaned the house or did whatever, it was just me, why bother? Now I look at my house and I am ashamed. I find that I do the bare minimum, whether it’s house cleaning or just popping something in the microwave because it’s too much trouble to fix a meal using the stove. Satan nags us that, “well, it isn’t that big of a deal…you can skip it just this once.” The next thing you know…..you’re skipping it all the time. To equate this to church and living our lives as Christians, we begin to take our lives as Believers for granted. For those of us whom God gives a leadership position, we allow complacency to take root, we take our God-given abilities for granted, and that spirit of excellence slips into lethargy. Those of us who have been given the responsibility to be leaders in the church or in a ministry, are held accountable by God for what we have done, or not done, with that responsibility. In fact, because we are leaders, we are held at a higher standard than those to whom we are ministering. I used to think that just meant pastors, because they were the shepherds of a flock, and their job was to teach us and lead us in the precepts of the Lord. Now I realize that since I’m on the worship team and I am involved in ministry at work….that really means me. I’m held accountable for every word I say and every action, thought, and attitude.
2. Complacency lowers God’s standards. King Solomon was warned by God not to marry or follow after those who would lead him away from God’s law and cause him to turn his back on God. (I Kings 11:3) Solomon didn’t heed that instruction and ended up marrying women who led him into idol worship. Solomon learned the hard way. A little compromise here and a little compromise there, and before he knew it he was seeing the result of his sin. As king, he led Israel into sin, and God had to discipline not only King Solomon, but the entire nation of Israel. He had become complacent and comfortable with not heeding God’s warning and it cost him. This is where I need to guard myself. I need to be sure that I don’t allow other things or people to become top priority. I need to take stock of my own attitudes and motives. Why am I doing what I’m doing? Will this decision take me away from God’s leading and plan for my life? Am I being obedient to His Word?
3. Complacency lowers your morals and behavior. King David, the man after God’s own heart, found this truth. II Samuel 11 recounts the story of David’s sin with Bathsheba. David became too comfortable, and instead of going to war, “at the time when kings go to war” (II Samuel 11:1), David decided to stay home. That’s where he got into trouble. He fell into the trap of, “just a little peek won’t hurt”. The only problem was it didn’t end there. The next thing David knew, he had an affair, tried to cover up an unplanned pregnancy, and ended up having a man murdered. Complacency is the start of a very slippery slope that can lead to degradation, and a life of sin. God calls us to live a life that is right. We are to be set apart, a redeemed people, people of holiness and purity, above reproach. Part of the problem is that we have a tendency to compare ourselves to others, when in reality we are to compare ourselves to Christ. HE is our standard. Pastor posed this question to us…. “Are you in the right place doing the right thing?”
4. Complacency lowers your level of personal expectation. Jeremiah 29:11 tells us that God makes plans for us. They are plans of good and not harm, to give us a future and a hope. God has a plan for what He wants us to become. Complacency makes us settle for less than what God intended for us. He wants so much more for us than we see for ourselves. If we allow ourselves to become complacent, we kind of shrug our shoulders and say, “Well that’s all I’ll ever amount to,” or “I’m never going to be……” whatever it is. Pastor said that until we see ourselves as more, then no one else will see us as more. I understand this because I grew up in an atmosphere where we were taught the Romans 12:3 verse that says we are not to think more highly of ourselves than we ought. However, it was more like thinking God couldn’t possibly love me as much as Scripture says, or that His grace isn’t really for me, ‘cause I’m a screw-up. It doesn’t really mean me. It was an overemphasis on humility, to the point that without saying it in actual words, I was taught that I wasn’t so important. It wasn’t until I started coming to this church that I began to see myself as God sees me. I am His precious child, loved and accepted, and bought with a price.
I find that I have to ask for God’s forgiveness for allowing myself to be duped by the enemy. I need to get into God’s Word more and arm myself with the proper tools to do Spiritual warfare against an enemy that is fighting to see me become defeated.
Lord, please forgive me for allowing complacency to take root in my heart. I need to eradicate it from my life. This isn’t easy to accomplish, so I am going to need your help to overcome. Your Word tells me that, “I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:13) It’s my job to believe that and act on it.
donnasmusings 