Grow Spiritually: Replace Old Habits With New

CURRENT TEACHING SERIES Life's Healing Choices

Grow Spiritually: Replace Old Habits With New By Rick Warren — Jun 26, 2015 “Practice these things. Devote your life to them so that everyone can see your progress.” (1 Timothy 4:15 GW) While you were given a brand new nature at the moment of conversion, you still have old habits, patterns, and practices that need to be removed and replaced. Let go of the fears that keep you from growing. The truth will set us free, but it often makes us miserable first. The fear of what we might discover if we honestly faced our character defects keeps us living in the prison of denial. Only as God is allowed to shine the light of his truth on our faults, failures, and hang-ups can we begin to work on them. This is why you cannot grow without a humble, teachable attitude. Stop basing your identity around your “defects.” We say, “It’s just like me to be …” and “It’s just the way I am.” The unconscious worry is that if I let go of my habit, my hurt, or my hang-up, who will I be? This fear can definitely slow down your growth. As I wrote yesterday, good habits take time to develop. Remember that your character is the sum total of your habits. You can’t claim to have integrity unless it is your habit to always be honest. A husband who is faithful to his wife most of the time is not faithful at all! Your habits define your character. Remember: You have to practice every day the habits that will make you more like Christ. “Devote your life to them so that everyone can see your progress” (1 Timothy 4:15b GW). Talk It Over What bad habit have you let define you? How can you humble yourself and show God that you are ready to face your hang-ups? What do you need to change about your life — your schedule, who you hang out with, how you spend your free time, etc. — so that you can work every day to develop better habits? Our Gift: Life's Healing Choices Study Kit Can you think of a time in your life when you have been hurt by someone? How about when you hurt someone else? Or, a time when you hurt yourself? These moments happen to us all. Some of our deepest pains and anxieties come from refusing to let God heal us. Everybody needs healing from some sort of hurt, hang-up, or habit. That’s why Pastor Rick created the Life’s Healing Choices Study Kit to take you through the eight healing choices Jesus taught in the Beatitudes. The DVD and Study Guide include these eight- life changing sessions taught by Rick Warren. LEARN MORE Complete Audio Series (Purchase) Includes all complete sermons from the Rick Warren Life's Healing Choices teaching series. LEARN MORE Series Summary Message 1: The Reality Choice Message 2: ​The Hope You Need For Change Message 3: ​Letting Go and Letting God Message 4: ​The Housecleaning Choice Message 5: ​The Transformation Choice Message 6: The Relationship Choice Message 7: The Growth Choice Message 8: The Sharing Choice PLAY TODAY'S BROADCAST

Pastor Rick Warren

Enjoy today's Devotional? Listen instantly to the full radio message at Daily Hope Radio. Did someone forward this devotional to you? Subscribe to Pastor Rick Warren's Daily Devotional. This devotional is based on the current Daily Hope radio series at rickwarren.org. Rick Warren has helped people live with hope and on purpose for more than 40 years. He’s the founding pastor of Saddleback Church in Southern California and author of several books, including "The Purpose Driven Church" and "The Purpose Driven Life," read by more than 100 million people in 137 languages. He created the PEACE Plan (plant churches of reconciliation, equip servant leaders, assist the poor, care for the sick, educate the next generation), which is used by churches in 196 countries. His radio teaching and daily devotional, Daily Hope, is offered across America. This devotional © 2015 by Rick Warren. All rights reserved. Used by permission. You can unsubscribe at any time by changing your e-mail preferences. Update your preferences  |  Unsubscribe