For the last two years I’ve been writing questions: questions to help people start habits, questions to help people stop habits, and questions to help people break free from their negative emotions.
The questions are designed to attack specific lies, so all you need to do is find out what lie you’re believing and then turn to that set of questions for help. Here’s an example:
Let’s say I’m trying to break the habit of too much time on the computer. My boundaries are three times a day on the computer for no more than one hour total. I keep track of my boundaries by keeping a file on my computer where I record the times I get on and off each day.
So here I am trying to follow my boundaries, but I’m having a rough day. Everything is going wrong and I feel like I deserve a little break. I’ve already used up my computer time for the day, but I’m tempted to get on again. Here’s the lie I’m believing: I deserve this.
So I turn to the entitlement questions.
How to Use the Questions
Think of the questions as a foundation for a conversation with God: you’re sitting together, you with a cup of coffee, He with a listening ear, and you’re talking over your habit with Him.
You’re enjoying your time together until the second or third question, when you start to get a little uncomfortable. You keep going because you love God. But as the questions progress, you get more and more convicted.
Finally you can’t stand it anymore. You put your coffee aside and fall on the floor before Him, ready to do His will. As soon as you feel that shift in your beliefs and your willingness to do His will, the desire for your habit evaporates.
If I’m approaching the questions from this angle, God uses them to change me. If I’m approaching them like an item on my checklist, all I get is a little check.
For me it’s easier to see life from God’s perspective if I take the time to write the answers in my journal, but if I’m pressed for time I just go through them in my head.
When should I do the questions?
The questions work best if you get on top of your desires first thing in the morning. If you wait until you’re in a frenzy of wanting your habit, the questions probably won’t work.
Often in a situation like that, I don’t have enough control to do the questions, so I just do my habit and then renew my mind as soon as possible after I do my habit.
Why bother renewing my mind after I do my habit?
Remember when I talked about preparation truth? If you renew your mind after you do your habit, you’ll be preparing for the next time that temptation rolls around. Not to mention the fact that if you really love your habit, afterwards might be the only time you can make yourself do it.
Are you ever going to get to the questions?
What can I say? I’m a mom, I feel compelled to give a long explanation first. But here are the questions – actually, I’ll put the questions in a separate post. That way you can print them out if you want to try using them with your own habit.
Since we talked about entitlement in our example, I’ll post those questions today and then talk more about entitlement or give you an example of how I would answer the questions next time. Here’s the link: Entitlement Bible Verses and Questions
P.S. Since I wrote this post, I’ve launched an app with more than 32 sets of questions on it to help you break free from your habits and negative emotions. Although it’s geared toward weight loss, it can also help with other habits. Here’s the link: I Deserve a Donut.