Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to the Christian Business Concepts with
your host, harold Milby.
Christian Business Concepts isdedicated to guiding companies
and business owners in becomingeffective, efficient and
successful through God's Wordand godly principles.
Now, here's your host, haroldMilby.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Thanks, kelly, and welcome everyone to this week's
Christian Business Conceptspodcast.
I'm so glad that you've decidedto be a part of the CBC family
this week and I'm Harold Milby.
I'm your host and each week wetry to encourage, enlighten and
empower you by discussingbiblical business principles,
(00:38):
and we're so happy that youdecided to download this week's
podcast and hope that you'llcontinue to do so and also share
it with others.
Now, before we get startedtoday, I want to make sure I
give a big shout out to SavannahGeorgia here in the United
States for having so manydownloads here in the last few
weeks.
And thanks to all of you downthere in the South, and we
(01:00):
appreciate that, and we thankeveryone that downloads podcasts
around the world.
We appreciate each and everyone of you.
You know our desire here reallyat CBC, is to help business
leaders and organizationalleaders find true godly success
through the biblical principlesthat we discuss every week.
(01:24):
Now let's jump into today'stopic.
You know I want to talk todayabout being in a rut.
You know, being in a rut isreally a common experience that
many individuals face at somepoint in their lives.
You know, and you know I myselfhave been in ruts before you
know, it's just a situationwhere you feel stuck, you feel
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unmotivated and uninspired tomake changes or progress in your
life and while it may seem kindof harmless at first, but when
you're in a rut it can reallyhave a lot of negative effects
on your mental, your emotionaland your physical well-being.
And so we want to talk todayabout what some of those effects
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are.
We want to talk about whatcauses ruts and then, lastly, we
want to talk about what do wedo?
How do we get out of a rut?
And I want to talk about thatfrom a business perspective.
And also, again, this isChristian business concept.
So we're definitely going tolook at it from a Christian
perspective.
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And what does the Word of Godsay?
As Christians, we're called.
We are called, each and everyone of us, to a life of faith
and purpose and growth in ourrelationship with God.
But there are times that evenbelievers can find themselves in
a spiritual rut.
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We'll say you feel disconnected, maybe unmotivated, maybe you
feel overwhelmed by some of thechallenges that you're going
through.
So by turning to scripture andseeking guidance from God,
christians can find hope, theycan find strength and wisdom and
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you can break free of whateverthis stagnation is and you can
rediscover a vibrant, evenfulfilling, faith as you
continue to move forward in yourquest as a believer and as a
child of God.
You know, psalms 51 and 10 saysCreate in me a new, clean heart
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, o God, filled with cleanthoughts and right desires.
And that passage reallydescribes what it is like when
you're not in a rut.
You know it's not so muchaddressing being in a rut, but
if you're not in a rut, that'swhat it looks like.
You're looking to God to createin you a new and clean heart
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and to be filled with cleanthoughts and right desires.
That's when you know you're notin a rut.
But what are some of theseeffects that being in a rut
causes?
Well, first there's mentaleffects.
So you have decreasedmotivation, because when you're
in a rut you may feel that lackof motivation to take on maybe
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new challenges or pursue certaintypes of goals, or you know
those types of things.
You just don't have an interestin those activities that maybe
you once enjoyed.
Yeah, there's a lot of feelingsof apathy, just melancholy.
So that's one mental effect.
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Another is cognitive decline.
So being in a rut sometimes canalso impact your cognitive
abilities, such as your memory,your concentration, your
decision-making skills.
You may find it difficult tofocus on tasks or make sound
judgments, which can affect yourperformance at work or at home.
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It can affect your performancein every area of your life.
And then the other mentaleffect is negative thinking.
If you're in a rut it cantrigger a lot of negative
thought patterns.
You can have self-doubt, a lotof self-criticism, pessimism
instead of optimism and thesenegative beliefs.
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Honestly, they can lower yourself-esteem, your confidence,
and that just continues thiscycle.
It perpetuates this cycle ofbeing stuck in a rut.
But there's not only mentaleffects, there's also emotional
effects of being in a rut.
You know there's this increasedstress and anxiety because you
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know when you're stuck you feelunfulfilled and that leads to
these heightened levels ofstress and anxiety.
You may experience depression.
You know being in a rut for anextended period of time can also
contribute to that.
You can experience a sense ofhopelessness and sadness and
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despair and that can affect youroverall mood and your outlook
on life.
And then, of course, there'sirritability and mood swings.
You know when you're in a rutyou may find yourself more
easily agitated, more easilyfrustrated by just minor things
and this can lead to these moodswings, and not only mood swings
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, but when you have mood swingsit can affect relationships that
you may have with other peopleyour spouse, your coworkers,
people who work above you,people who work below you.
It can affect thoserelationships in a negative way.
And then, of course, there'sphysical effects.
So the physical effects manytimes of being in a rut is like
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fatigue.
Maybe you have a lack of energy.
You know being in a rut is likefatigue.
Maybe you have a lack of energy.
You know being in a rut it candrain you, it can drain your
energy.
It can leave you feeling verylethargic.
You may struggle to find themotivation to do anything
physically or to take care ofyour health, and that really can
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impact your overall well-being.
And then it can cause sleepdepravity or sleep disturbances.
You know stress and anxietyfrom being in a rut can really
disrupt your sleep patterns.
It can lead to insomnia, it canjust lead to a lot of
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restlessness and when you havepoor sleep you just kind of
exacerbate the whole issue.
It just adds to the mental andemotional struggles and again it
just continues this cycle ofall these negative effects.
And then lastly, on thephysical side, it weakens your
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immune system, which is veryimportant.
So you have a lot of thisstress and negative emotions
that's associated with being ina rut.
That just weakens.
It weakens that part of yoursystem and your body and it
makes you a lot more susceptibleto illnesses, sicknesses,
infections, and so those aresome negative physical effects.
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And then there's the spiritualeffects, the spiritual effects.
So your faith becomes stagnant.
You know, when you get in a rut, you can.
It can lead to a lack of anykind of spiritual growth or
progress in your relationshipwith God.
You may feel disconnected fromhim.
You may feel like you're amillion miles away from him.
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You'll struggle with doubts andquestions and you'll lose your
passion and maybe your zeal foryour faith.
It'll also lead to unfulfilledpurpose.
So see, god's got a unique plan.
He's got a unique purpose foreach and every one of you.
But being in a rut cansometimes prevent you from
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fulfilling that purpose or evenseeing that purpose, because you
begin to feel lost.
You don't have any directionand you're unsure of God's
calling for your life and you'reunsure of God's calling for
your life.
Another spiritual effect is justa decreased desire to pray and
study the Word of God, you mayfind it difficult to maintain a
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very consistent prayer life andengage in regular Bible study.
This can weaken your spiritualfoundation, if it were, and
hinder your ability to hear fromGod and receive guidance from
him.
And then of course we can't youknow, we can't forget about the
emotional effects of being in arut, because then you begin to
have this guilt and shame, youknow, for being in a rut, and it
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can lead to you feeling likeyou can't live up to your
spiritual expectations or yournatural expectations.
You feel like you're going tofall short of God's standards or
maybe your company's standards,and this can create really a
barrier in your life with regardto your relationship with God,
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and it can hinder your abilityto receive his grace and
forgiveness because you don'tbelieve you deserve it.
And then it can create anxietyand fear.
You know, when you feel stuckand uncertain about your faith,
it can trigger feelings ofanxiety about your future, fear
about your future.
You may worry about making thewrong decisions or having to
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deal with challenges alone, ormaybe you could even have a fear
of just totally losing yourfaith altogether, and so you
know it just leads to a lot offrustration and discontentment.
So being in a rut can just leadto these feelings of
frustration and discontentmentwith your natural life, your
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professional life, yourspiritual life, and so you know,
you've got to understand thatthere's a lot of negative
effects when it comes to beingin a rut.
Now, what kind of things causeus or lead us to get into a rut
to begin with?
Because, see, if you maybe knowwhat can bring that on, or you
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know what causes you to be in arut, then maybe you can head
them off at the pass, so tospeak, and you can stop it
before it ever starts.
And one and one of those thingsis is that, uh, that causes you
to become a person that's in arut?
Is you don't have, uh, cleargoals.
You know, one of, that's one ofthe primary causes of getting a
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rut you don't have clear goals,you don't have good direction
in your life.
Uh, you know, when you'reunsure about what you want to
achieve and where you're headed,it's easy to feel lost, it's
easy to feel unmotivated andunsure about how to move forward
.
Without these clear goals towork towards, you could find
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yourself just stuck in a routine, in a cycle every day, and you
become complacent in a cycleevery day and you become
complacent, and that just leadsto this sense of stagnation and
disconnection from your purpose.
The next thing that can cause arut is just a fear, a fear of
failure.
When you're afraid to take riskor make mistakes or step out of
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your comfort zone and you wantto play it safe and avoid new
challenges or opportunities forgrowth.
A lot of times this will leadto being in a rut.
Now I understand this fear canhold you back from pursuing your
dreams and trying new thingsand embracing change.
Those things right there in andof themselves will lead you to
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feel like you're stuck.
Those things right there in andof themselves will lead you to
feel like you're stuck and sofear of failure.
Next is just negative thoughtpatterns.
You can get into these negativethought patterns like
self-doubt, maybe someself-criticism.
Those are the kinds of thingsthat can contribute to getting
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into a rut.
These negative thoughts, thesebeliefs.
They can create a barrier.
It's like a brick wall thathinders your ability to overcome
these challenges and setbacks.
Doubt and uncertainty aboutyour faith also contributes to
us getting into a rut.
So when believers grapple withthe questions and struggles and
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crises of faith, they kind offeel lost, they feel confused.
Maybe you might feel distantfrom God.
I want you to know that God'salways there for you, no matter
what you think, no matter whatyou feel, no matter what you're
going through.
Even in the midst of a rut, godis still there for you.
Another is lack of self-care.
You know, when you don't carefor your physical, your
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emotional, your mentalwell-being, that can cause you
to get into a rut.
You know, when you fail toprioritize your health, your
happiness, your overallwell-being, it's going to lead
to these feelings of exhaustion,to burnout, disconnection even
from yourself.
So, without taking care of yourneeds and nurturing your soul,
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you may find yourself feelingdepleted.
You've run out of gas, you'reunfulfilled and you just feel
like you're stuck in a rut.
Out of gas, you're unfulfilledand you just feel like you're
stuck in a rut.
Another is external factors likework stress or relationship
problems, financial difficultiesor health issues.
These can also play a big rolein getting to a rut.
(15:02):
You know, when you'reoverwhelmed by these external
pressures and challenges, it'shard to find the energy, to find
that motivation and resilienceto kind of break free of it and
break free of the negativity,break free of that stagnation,
to get out of that rut.
You know it causes a lot offeelings I think that you have
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within yourself and asChristians we can easily get
caught up in a lot of busyness,a lot of distractions that just
kind of pull us away from ourfaith.
So balancing work and familyand social commitment and other
responsibilities can leave verylittle time for ourselves
sometimes.
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But we have to make sure welook at these things and don't
let them get out of balance.
Another is a lack of spiritualdiscipline.
You know one of the primarycauses that Christians get into
a rut is a lack of spiritualdiscipline.
You know, when believersneglect consistent prayer, bible
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study, worship, fellowship withother believers, you begin to
feel disconnected from God andyour faith.
And without a spiritual, astrong spiritual foundation,
it's easy to fall into a rut,into complacency.
You lose sight of theimportance of nurturing and
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having this strong relationshipwith the Lord.
And then there's sin andspiritual warfare.
It can cause a lot ofChristians to get into a rut.
When believers struggle withtemptation, they struggle with
guilt, shame, spiritual attacks.
They may feel defeated or maybeunworthy, or you feel distant
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from God's grace and forgiveness.
And so you know these sinfulpatterns, these unresolved
conflicts or maybe spiritualstrongholds in your life can
really create barriers tointimacy with God.
It can hinder you, as abeliever, from really
experiencing what I think is thefullness of God's love and the
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fullness of his power for you inyour life.
You know God's grace is greaterthan any sin.
God's grace is bigger thananything that you feel like
you're stuck in, any sin.
That you feel like you're stuckin.
God's bigger, he's greater andhis grace is there for you.
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And then, lastly, you may havethis lack of community support,
in other words, the isolationand lack of church support,
community support.
It can contribute to us gettinginto a rut, because when
believers feel like they'redisconnected from a supportive
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church family or a small groupor a mentorship, they're going
to find themselves strugglingand you just can't get any kind
of encouragement, you can't getany kind of accountability, you
can't get any kind of spiritualguidance.
So without this strongcommunity of faith we'll call it
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to lean on, believers can feellike you're alone, you can feel
discouraged.
And let me just say thisthere's a lot of people who go
through this, but it's of theirown doing, because they don't
feel like they can.
Let's put it this way, theyfeel like they should be
stronger, stronger than that.
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They feel like, well, if I haveto go get help, then I'm not
very strong, I'll just try topress through and try to get
through it on my own, and that'sreally the farthest thing from
the truth.
What you need to do is actuallycall out upon those people who
can encourage you and help youand minister to you, so don't be
afraid to do that.
So how do you get out of a rut?
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Well, let's talk about thatbriefly.
So what you want to do is,first, you want to identify what
the root causes are of youbeing in a rut, what the
stagnation is.
You've got to begin to reflecton what's contributing to these
feelings that you have, such asmaybe not having clear goals or
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having this fear of failure ornegative thought patterns.
You know, I think you have tounderstand what the underlying
reasons are for your rut thatyou're in, so that you can
pinpoint those areas that areaffecting you and so you can
attack those areas and begin togrow and change through that.
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You can attack those areas andbegin to grow and change through
that.
And it's really importantduring this time as you're
trying to identify these rootcauses.
You know that you actually arehonest, completely and totally
honest with yourself and I wouldput it in a journal, I'd write
it down.
I mean, you look at somethingon paper that you're feeling.
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That really helps you to try todiscern what the root cause is.
So that's the first thingIdentify what the root cause is.
Then, next, you want to setclear goals.
You know, once you'veidentified this root cause of
your rut, you need to begin toset some clear, achievable goals
, define what you want toaccomplish, break down those
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goals into smaller, manageablesteps and then create this plan
to track your progress.
So when you set specific,measurable and realistic goals,
it'll provide for you directionand motivation to move forward.
The next thing you need to do isyou need to challenge
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absolutely challenge thenegative thoughts that you may
have and you've got to replacethem.
So you challenge them, but youreplace those negative thoughts
with positive affirmations andbeliefs.
You know, if you go on the CBCwebsite, you'll find in the
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resources tab.
There's a lot of great thingsin there and a lot of
confessions that you use toconfess who God says.
You are Not who you think.
You are not who you think youare because you're unworthy, but
you begin to confess who Godsays you are and there's nothing
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more powerful than that andthat's how you get that help to
overcome these negative thoughts.
So there's a lot of helps thereon the CBC website.
I encourage you to check out.
But you've got to cultivate thispositive mindset.
You know the Bible says to berenewed in the spirit of your
mind, to be transformed by therenewing of your mind.
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That's something you have to do.
You've got to be transformed bythe renewing.
You've got to seek out ways torenew your mind read the right
things, watch the right things,listen to the right things, do
things to bring encouragementand help you to change those
negative thought patterns.
Uh, you know it takes just onepositive thought.
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When you know, when you'regiven a chance to survive and
overcome an army of negativethoughts, it only takes one.
So you want to make sure thatyou do everything that you can
to cultivate a positive thoughtpattern in your life.
The next is practice self-care.
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We talked about the effects andhow.
Self-care is one of thoseeffects.
But you can do something aboutthat.
You need to set time back toexercise, whether you start five
minutes a day, 10 minutes a day.
But just start, do something,you know exercise, meditate,
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have some hobbies, do somethingto relax, do something to to
help you, uh, physically,emotionally and mentally.
Uh, you know, take the time torest and recharge and rejuvenate
.
Those are the three hours.
I talk about a lot rest andrecharge and rejuvenate, uh, and
you do that for your, for yourmind, for your will, for your
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emotions, spirit man.
So you've got to be able toreplenish your energy, replenish
your motivation.
So self-care is so essentialfor combating stress.
If you're having a stressfulday, go home and work out, go
home and walk on the treadmill,go home and walk in your
neighborhood, do somethingphysical and it will help you if
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you're feeling stressed.
So make sure that you take careof yourself.
Then next, try some newexperiences.
You know, step out of yourcomfort zone.
Try something new.
Try something you've never donebefore, whether it's something
creative, whether it's somethinginspirational, something
that'll help you grow.
Just try to experience andembrace change.
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Take some risk.
Explore opportunities thatmaybe challenge you to expand
your horizons and break freefrom that routine.
You know you've got to try somenew things to help you get out
of that rut.
Try some new things that'llhelp you discover, maybe some
new passions in your life thatyou didn't even know you had.
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Or maybe it'll help you findthat you've got talents you
didn't know you had.
But you want to change yourperspectives and help that to
ignite your passion and againyour motivation.
So try some new things, try todo some new things.
And then next, you want to staypersistent.
Stay persistent, be resilientin your efforts to get out of
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that rut.
Don't quit, don't give up.
Continue to do everything youcan to get out of that rut.
Progress doesn't happenovernight and setbacks are going
to be a natural part of thatjourney.
But you need to continue.
You've got to push through it.
Embrace that failure.
Look at it like a learningexperience, a learning
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opportunity, and then celebratejust the littlest victories.
It doesn't matter how big thevictory is.
Celebrate it and then staycommitted to your goals.
You know James 1 and 12 saysblessed is the man who remains
steadfast under trial, for whenhe has stood the test, he will
receive the crown of life whichGod has promised to those who
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love him.
So be steadfast, be resilient.
Next, seek God in prayer.
That can't be under-emphasized,I can't over-emphasize that
enough.
The first step for Christiansto get out of a rut is you've
got to begin to seek God inprayer.
Turn to him.
Turn to him when you're in astruggle, pour out your heart to
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him.
God's not afraid of youremotions.
God's not afraid of youcomplaining.
God's not afraid of youspeaking your heart's not afraid
of you complaining.
God's not afraid of youspeaking your heart, speaking
what's really in your soul.
You know, look at David.
David did that in the book ofPsalms.
You can read many chapters inthe book of Psalms and listen to
David pouring his heart out toGod.
God wants you to do that andthen seek his guidance and he'll
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bring you comfort, he'll bringyou strength, but that comes
through prayer.
Prayer brings that peace andclarity and direction, even in
the midst of some of thegreatest uncertainties and
challenges that you may be goingthrough.
You know, philippians 4 and 6says do not be anxious for
anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with
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thanksgiving, but in everysituation, by prayer and
petition with thanksgiving,present your request to God and
then next meditate on the Wordof God, meditate on Scripture,
find encouragement and wisdom.
Again, go to the CBC website.
There's all kinds of lists thathave Scriptures that you can
confess over your life.
Open your mouth, speak them outloud.
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Don't just think about them,but just speak those words and
then meditate on what you'veheard yourself say.
Dive into God's word, you know.
Look at his promises.
Allow that truth to renew yourmind and your heart.
You know, let the word of Godbe a lamp to your feet, a light
to your path as you seek toreally break free from this rut.
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All right, and then embracechange and renewal.
You know we talked about that alittle bit, but embrace it.
You want to be renewed, as theBible talks about in your
spiritual life.
Allow God to transform yourheart, your mind, your spirit.
Let him lead you on a path ofgrowth and transformation.
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Let him change your life forthe better, not just to change,
but change it for the better.
You know, maybe you got to letgo of some old patterns, let go
of some old habits and beliefsthat are holding you back.
But ingrace God's plans andpurposes for your life.
You know, 2 Corinthians 5.17says Therefore if anyone is in
Christ, he has become a newcreation.
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The old has gone, the new ishere, and so embrace that,
embrace the change, embracerenewal and then connect with
some kind of a Christiancommunity, connect with a church
, family, a small group or afellowship to find support and
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get that encouragement,accountability in your life.
Surround yourself with fellowbelievers who can really
encourage and inspire andchallenge you and when you get
out of that rut you're going tobe willing to help somebody else
who comes along the way, who'sgoing through what you just went
through.
You know, hebrews 10, 24through 25 says let us consider
how we may spur one another ontoward love and good deeds, not
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giving up meeting together assome are in the habit of doing,
but encouraging one another, andall the more as you see the day
approaching.
So it's so important that we dothat, so that we get involved.
So you can't do that unlessyou're in a godly Christian
community where that you canreceive those things.
And then, lastly, you need totrust in God's plan.
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And trusting in God that's thebig thing, that's the hard thing
at times, but you've got totrust in his plan and timing for
your life.
You know, even when you feelstuck or uncertain, you just got
to surrender those fears,surrender those doubts and
worries to him.
You've just got to trust thathe's working all things together
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for your good, because he is,and then you lean on his
promises, lean on hisfaithfulness as you begin to try
to get through and navigatethrough, maybe, these challenges
to get out of that rut.
You know, jeremiah 29 and 11says I know the plans I have for
you, declares the Lord.
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Plans to prosper you and notharm you.
Plans to give you hope and afuture.
If you're going to get out of arut, you've got to trust God.
You know getting into a rut canbe caused by a lot of different
factors.
We've talked about them.
You know lack of clear goals,fear, failure.
You know, by understanding alot of these whys and these
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underlying causes, and then webegin to take some proactive
steps to address them, I believethat you can break free from
this cycle, from this rut, andrediscover your sense of purpose
and motivation and fulfillmentin your life.
Remember, it's okay to get help, it's okay to talk to somebody
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about it.
Just make those changes.
Take small steps if you have tofor positive growth and
transformation.
But I believe, withdetermination and resilience and
if you have a willingness toreally make those changes and
embrace change, you can breakfree from that rut, I believe
you can have determination andresilience and, as you break
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free from that cycle ofstagnation, I think you'll
rediscover a very vibrant and avery purposeful and a very
fulfilling relationship with God, which will help you to be more
successful in your career, inyour family and in your personal
life.
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Lord, I thank you today forthose who have downloaded and
listened to this podcast.
Lord, help us to apply theseprinciples in our lives.
Lord, to help us to overcomebeing in a rut or to keep us
from ever getting into a rut.
Lord, I pray that for those whohave listened, and I pray that
they will find true godlysuccess in Jesus' name, amen.
(31:58):
Well, again, I want to thankyou for taking the time to
download and listen to today'spodcast here at Christian
Business Concepts, and I askthat you help us to grow the CBC
community by sharing thispodcast with four or five other
people that you think couldbenefit from it, and also,
please help us grow by sharingthe link to this podcast on your
(32:22):
LinkedIn or Facebook pages.
Well, that's all the time wehave for today, so remember that
Jesus is Lord and he wants youblessed.
Speaker 1 (32:37):
Thank you for tuning into this week's Christian
Business Concepts podcast.
Go toChristianBusinessconceptscom for
more information and resources.
Be sure to check out otherpodcasts that will help you take
your business and your personallife to a whole new level of
success.
Welcome to the Christian Business Concepts with
your host, harold Milby.
Christian Business Concepts isdedicated to guiding companies
and business owners in becomingeffective, efficient and
successful through God's Wordand godly principles.
Now, here's your host, haroldMilby.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
Thanks, kelly, and welcome everyone to this week's
Christian Business Conceptspodcast.
I'm so glad that you've decidedto be a part of the CBC family
this week and I'm Harold Milby.
I'm your host and each week wetry to encourage, enlighten and
empower you by discussingbiblical business principles,
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and we're so happy that youdecided to download this week's
podcast and hope that you'llcontinue to do so and also share
it with others.
Now, before we get startedtoday, I want to make sure I
give a big shout out to SavannahGeorgia here in the United
States for having so manydownloads here in the last few
weeks.
And thanks to all of you downthere in the South, and we
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appreciate that, and we thankeveryone that downloads podcasts
around the world.
We appreciate each and everyone of you.
You know our desire here reallyat CBC, is to help business
leaders and organizationalleaders find true godly success
through the biblical principlesthat we discuss every week.
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Now let's jump into today'stopic.
You know I want to talk todayabout being in a rut.
You know, being in a rut isreally a common experience that
many individuals face at somepoint in their lives.
You know, and you know I myselfhave been in ruts before you
know, it's just a situationwhere you feel stuck, you feel
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unmotivated and uninspired tomake changes or progress in your
life and while it may seem kindof harmless at first, but when
you're in a rut it can reallyhave a lot of negative effects
on your mental, your emotionaland your physical well-being.
And so we want to talk todayabout what some of those effects
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are.
We want to talk about whatcauses ruts and then, lastly, we
want to talk about what do wedo?
How do we get out of a rut?
And I want to talk about thatfrom a business perspective.
And also, again, this isChristian business concept.
So we're definitely going tolook at it from a Christian
perspective.
(02:32):
And what does the Word of Godsay?
As Christians, we're called.
We are called, each and everyone of us, to a life of faith
and purpose and growth in ourrelationship with God.
But there are times that evenbelievers can find themselves in
a spiritual rut.
(02:53):
We'll say you feel disconnected, maybe unmotivated, maybe you
feel overwhelmed by some of thechallenges that you're going
through.
So by turning to scripture andseeking guidance from God,
christians can find hope, theycan find strength and wisdom and
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you can break free of whateverthis stagnation is and you can
rediscover a vibrant, evenfulfilling, faith as you
continue to move forward in yourquest as a believer and as a
child of God.
You know, psalms 51 and 10 saysCreate in me a new, clean heart
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, o God, filled with cleanthoughts and right desires.
And that passage reallydescribes what it is like when
you're not in a rut.
You know it's not so muchaddressing being in a rut, but
if you're not in a rut, that'swhat it looks like.
You're looking to God to createin you a new and clean heart
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and to be filled with cleanthoughts and right desires.
That's when you know you're notin a rut.
But what are some of theseeffects that being in a rut
causes?
Well, first there's mentaleffects.
So you have decreasedmotivation, because when you're
in a rut you may feel that lackof motivation to take on maybe
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new challenges or pursue certaintypes of goals, or you know
those types of things.
You just don't have an interestin those activities that maybe
you once enjoyed.
Yeah, there's a lot of feelingsof apathy, just melancholy.
So that's one mental effect.
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Another is cognitive decline.
So being in a rut sometimes canalso impact your cognitive
abilities, such as your memory,your concentration, your
decision-making skills.
You may find it difficult tofocus on tasks or make sound
judgments, which can affect yourperformance at work or at home.
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It can affect your performancein every area of your life.
And then the other mentaleffect is negative thinking.
If you're in a rut it cantrigger a lot of negative
thought patterns.
You can have self-doubt, a lotof self-criticism, pessimism
instead of optimism and thesenegative beliefs.
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Honestly, they can lower yourself-esteem, your confidence,
and that just continues thiscycle.
It perpetuates this cycle ofbeing stuck in a rut.
But there's not only mentaleffects, there's also emotional
effects of being in a rut.
You know there's this increasedstress and anxiety because you
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know when you're stuck you feelunfulfilled and that leads to
these heightened levels ofstress and anxiety.
You may experience depression.
You know being in a rut for anextended period of time can also
contribute to that.
You can experience a sense ofhopelessness and sadness and
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despair and that can affect youroverall mood and your outlook
on life.
And then, of course, there'sirritability and mood swings.
You know when you're in a rutyou may find yourself more
easily agitated, more easilyfrustrated by just minor things
and this can lead to these moodswings, and not only mood swings
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, but when you have mood swingsit can affect relationships that
you may have with other peopleyour spouse, your coworkers,
people who work above you,people who work below you.
It can affect thoserelationships in a negative way.
And then, of course, there'sphysical effects.
So the physical effects manytimes of being in a rut is like
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fatigue.
Maybe you have a lack of energy.
You know being in a rut is likefatigue.
Maybe you have a lack of energy.
You know being in a rut it candrain you, it can drain your
energy.
It can leave you feeling verylethargic.
You may struggle to find themotivation to do anything
physically or to take care ofyour health, and that really can
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impact your overall well-being.
And then it can cause sleepdepravity or sleep disturbances.
You know stress and anxietyfrom being in a rut can really
disrupt your sleep patterns.
It can lead to insomnia, it canjust lead to a lot of
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restlessness and when you havepoor sleep you just kind of
exacerbate the whole issue.
It just adds to the mental andemotional struggles and again it
just continues this cycle ofall these negative effects.
And then lastly, on thephysical side, it weakens your
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immune system, which is veryimportant.
So you have a lot of thisstress and negative emotions
that's associated with being ina rut.
That just weakens.
It weakens that part of yoursystem and your body and it
makes you a lot more susceptibleto illnesses, sicknesses,
infections, and so those aresome negative physical effects.
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And then there's the spiritualeffects, the spiritual effects.
So your faith becomes stagnant.
You know, when you get in a rut, you can.
It can lead to a lack of anykind of spiritual growth or
progress in your relationshipwith God.
You may feel disconnected fromhim.
You may feel like you're amillion miles away from him.
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You'll struggle with doubts andquestions and you'll lose your
passion and maybe your zeal foryour faith.
It'll also lead to unfulfilledpurpose.
So see, god's got a unique plan.
He's got a unique purpose foreach and every one of you.
But being in a rut cansometimes prevent you from
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fulfilling that purpose or evenseeing that purpose, because you
begin to feel lost.
You don't have any directionand you're unsure of God's
calling for your life and you'reunsure of God's calling for
your life.
Another spiritual effect is justa decreased desire to pray and
study the Word of God, you mayfind it difficult to maintain a
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very consistent prayer life andengage in regular Bible study.
This can weaken your spiritualfoundation, if it were, and
hinder your ability to hear fromGod and receive guidance from
him.
And then of course we can't youknow, we can't forget about the
emotional effects of being in arut, because then you begin to
have this guilt and shame, youknow, for being in a rut, and it
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can lead to you feeling likeyou can't live up to your
spiritual expectations or yournatural expectations.
You feel like you're going tofall short of God's standards or
maybe your company's standards,and this can create really a
barrier in your life with regardto your relationship with God,
(10:25):
and it can hinder your abilityto receive his grace and
forgiveness because you don'tbelieve you deserve it.
And then it can create anxietyand fear.
You know, when you feel stuckand uncertain about your faith,
it can trigger feelings ofanxiety about your future, fear
about your future.
You may worry about making thewrong decisions or having to
(10:49):
deal with challenges alone, ormaybe you could even have a fear
of just totally losing yourfaith altogether, and so you
know it just leads to a lot offrustration and discontentment.
So being in a rut can just leadto these feelings of
frustration and discontentmentwith your natural life, your
(11:13):
professional life, yourspiritual life, and so you know,
you've got to understand thatthere's a lot of negative
effects when it comes to beingin a rut.
Now, what kind of things causeus or lead us to get into a rut
to begin with?
Because, see, if you maybe knowwhat can bring that on, or you
(11:34):
know what causes you to be in arut, then maybe you can head
them off at the pass, so tospeak, and you can stop it
before it ever starts.
And one and one of those thingsis is that, uh, that causes you
to become a person that's in arut?
Is you don't have, uh, cleargoals.
You know, one of, that's one ofthe primary causes of getting a
(11:58):
rut you don't have clear goals,you don't have good direction
in your life.
Uh, you know, when you'reunsure about what you want to
achieve and where you're headed,it's easy to feel lost, it's
easy to feel unmotivated andunsure about how to move forward
.
Without these clear goals towork towards, you could find
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yourself just stuck in a routine, in a cycle every day, and you
become complacent in a cycleevery day and you become
complacent, and that just leadsto this sense of stagnation and
disconnection from your purpose.
The next thing that can cause arut is just a fear, a fear of
failure.
When you're afraid to take riskor make mistakes or step out of
(12:43):
your comfort zone and you wantto play it safe and avoid new
challenges or opportunities forgrowth.
A lot of times this will leadto being in a rut.
Now I understand this fear canhold you back from pursuing your
dreams and trying new thingsand embracing change.
Those things right there in andof themselves will lead you to
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feel like you're stuck.
Those things right there in andof themselves will lead you to
feel like you're stuck and sofear of failure.
Next is just negative thoughtpatterns.
You can get into these negativethought patterns like
self-doubt, maybe someself-criticism.
Those are the kinds of thingsthat can contribute to getting
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into a rut.
These negative thoughts, thesebeliefs.
They can create a barrier.
It's like a brick wall thathinders your ability to overcome
these challenges and setbacks.
Doubt and uncertainty aboutyour faith also contributes to
us getting into a rut.
So when believers grapple withthe questions and struggles and
(13:52):
crises of faith, they kind offeel lost, they feel confused.
Maybe you might feel distantfrom God.
I want you to know that God'salways there for you, no matter
what you think, no matter whatyou feel, no matter what you're
going through.
Even in the midst of a rut, godis still there for you.
Another is lack of self-care.
You know, when you don't carefor your physical, your
(14:15):
emotional, your mentalwell-being, that can cause you
to get into a rut.
You know, when you fail toprioritize your health, your
happiness, your overallwell-being, it's going to lead
to these feelings of exhaustion,to burnout, disconnection even
from yourself.
So, without taking care of yourneeds and nurturing your soul,
(14:38):
you may find yourself feelingdepleted.
You've run out of gas, you'reunfulfilled and you just feel
like you're stuck in a rut.
Out of gas, you're unfulfilledand you just feel like you're
stuck in a rut.
Another is external factors likework stress or relationship
problems, financial difficultiesor health issues.
These can also play a big rolein getting to a rut.
(15:02):
You know, when you'reoverwhelmed by these external
pressures and challenges, it'shard to find the energy, to find
that motivation and resilienceto kind of break free of it and
break free of the negativity,break free of that stagnation,
to get out of that rut.
You know it causes a lot offeelings I think that you have
(15:27):
within yourself and asChristians we can easily get
caught up in a lot of busyness,a lot of distractions that just
kind of pull us away from ourfaith.
So balancing work and familyand social commitment and other
responsibilities can leave verylittle time for ourselves
sometimes.
(15:47):
But we have to make sure welook at these things and don't
let them get out of balance.
Another is a lack of spiritualdiscipline.
You know one of the primarycauses that Christians get into
a rut is a lack of spiritualdiscipline.
You know, when believersneglect consistent prayer, bible
(16:07):
study, worship, fellowship withother believers, you begin to
feel disconnected from God andyour faith.
And without a spiritual, astrong spiritual foundation,
it's easy to fall into a rut,into complacency.
You lose sight of theimportance of nurturing and
(16:28):
having this strong relationshipwith the Lord.
And then there's sin andspiritual warfare.
It can cause a lot ofChristians to get into a rut.
When believers struggle withtemptation, they struggle with
guilt, shame, spiritual attacks.
They may feel defeated or maybeunworthy, or you feel distant
(16:49):
from God's grace and forgiveness.
And so you know these sinfulpatterns, these unresolved
conflicts or maybe spiritualstrongholds in your life can
really create barriers tointimacy with God.
It can hinder you, as abeliever, from really
experiencing what I think is thefullness of God's love and the
(17:12):
fullness of his power for you inyour life.
You know God's grace is greaterthan any sin.
God's grace is bigger thananything that you feel like
you're stuck in, any sin.
That you feel like you're stuckin.
God's bigger, he's greater andhis grace is there for you.
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And then, lastly, you may havethis lack of community support,
in other words, the isolationand lack of church support,
community support.
It can contribute to us gettinginto a rut, because when
believers feel like they'redisconnected from a supportive
(17:56):
church family or a small groupor a mentorship, they're going
to find themselves strugglingand you just can't get any kind
of encouragement, you can't getany kind of accountability, you
can't get any kind of spiritualguidance.
So without this strongcommunity of faith we'll call it
(18:18):
to lean on, believers can feellike you're alone, you can feel
discouraged.
And let me just say thisthere's a lot of people who go
through this, but it's of theirown doing, because they don't
feel like they can.
Let's put it this way, theyfeel like they should be
stronger, stronger than that.
(18:40):
They feel like, well, if I haveto go get help, then I'm not
very strong, I'll just try topress through and try to get
through it on my own, and that'sreally the farthest thing from
the truth.
What you need to do is actuallycall out upon those people who
can encourage you and help youand minister to you, so don't be
afraid to do that.
So how do you get out of a rut?
(19:00):
Well, let's talk about thatbriefly.
So what you want to do is,first, you want to identify what
the root causes are of youbeing in a rut, what the
stagnation is.
You've got to begin to reflecton what's contributing to these
feelings that you have, such asmaybe not having clear goals or
(19:21):
having this fear of failure ornegative thought patterns.
You know, I think you have tounderstand what the underlying
reasons are for your rut thatyou're in, so that you can
pinpoint those areas that areaffecting you and so you can
attack those areas and begin togrow and change through that.
(19:42):
You can attack those areas andbegin to grow and change through
that.
And it's really importantduring this time as you're
trying to identify these rootcauses.
You know that you actually arehonest, completely and totally
honest with yourself and I wouldput it in a journal, I'd write
it down.
I mean, you look at somethingon paper that you're feeling.
(20:05):
That really helps you to try todiscern what the root cause is.
So that's the first thingIdentify what the root cause is.
Then, next, you want to setclear goals.
You know, once you'veidentified this root cause of
your rut, you need to begin toset some clear, achievable goals
, define what you want toaccomplish, break down those
(20:29):
goals into smaller, manageablesteps and then create this plan
to track your progress.
So when you set specific,measurable and realistic goals,
it'll provide for you directionand motivation to move forward.
The next thing you need to do isyou need to challenge
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absolutely challenge thenegative thoughts that you may
have and you've got to replacethem.
So you challenge them, but youreplace those negative thoughts
with positive affirmations andbeliefs.
You know, if you go on the CBCwebsite, you'll find in the
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resources tab.
There's a lot of great thingsin there and a lot of
confessions that you use toconfess who God says.
You are Not who you think.
You are not who you think youare because you're unworthy, but
you begin to confess who Godsays you are and there's nothing
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more powerful than that andthat's how you get that help to
overcome these negative thoughts.
So there's a lot of helps thereon the CBC website.
I encourage you to check out.
But you've got to cultivate thispositive mindset.
You know the Bible says to berenewed in the spirit of your
mind, to be transformed by therenewing of your mind.
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That's something you have to do.
You've got to be transformed bythe renewing.
You've got to seek out ways torenew your mind read the right
things, watch the right things,listen to the right things, do
things to bring encouragementand help you to change those
negative thought patterns.
Uh, you know it takes just onepositive thought.
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When you know, when you'regiven a chance to survive and
overcome an army of negativethoughts, it only takes one.
So you want to make sure thatyou do everything that you can
to cultivate a positive thoughtpattern in your life.
The next is practice self-care.
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We talked about the effects andhow.
Self-care is one of thoseeffects.
But you can do something aboutthat.
You need to set time back toexercise, whether you start five
minutes a day, 10 minutes a day.
But just start, do something,you know exercise, meditate,
(22:59):
have some hobbies, do somethingto relax, do something to to
help you, uh, physically,emotionally and mentally.
Uh, you know, take the time torest and recharge and rejuvenate
.
Those are the three hours.
I talk about a lot rest andrecharge and rejuvenate, uh, and
you do that for your, for yourmind, for your will, for your
(23:20):
emotions, spirit man.
So you've got to be able toreplenish your energy, replenish
your motivation.
So self-care is so essentialfor combating stress.
If you're having a stressfulday, go home and work out, go
home and walk on the treadmill,go home and walk in your
neighborhood, do somethingphysical and it will help you if
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you're feeling stressed.
So make sure that you take careof yourself.
Then next, try some newexperiences.
You know, step out of yourcomfort zone.
Try something new.
Try something you've never donebefore, whether it's something
creative, whether it's somethinginspirational, something
that'll help you grow.
Just try to experience andembrace change.
(24:06):
Take some risk.
Explore opportunities thatmaybe challenge you to expand
your horizons and break freefrom that routine.
You know you've got to try somenew things to help you get out
of that rut.
Try some new things that'llhelp you discover, maybe some
new passions in your life thatyou didn't even know you had.
(24:27):
Or maybe it'll help you findthat you've got talents you
didn't know you had.
But you want to change yourperspectives and help that to
ignite your passion and againyour motivation.
So try some new things, try todo some new things.
And then next, you want to staypersistent.
Stay persistent, be resilientin your efforts to get out of
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that rut.
Don't quit, don't give up.
Continue to do everything youcan to get out of that rut.
Progress doesn't happenovernight and setbacks are going
to be a natural part of thatjourney.
But you need to continue.
You've got to push through it.
Embrace that failure.
Look at it like a learningexperience, a learning
(25:13):
opportunity, and then celebratejust the littlest victories.
It doesn't matter how big thevictory is.
Celebrate it and then staycommitted to your goals.
You know James 1 and 12 saysblessed is the man who remains
steadfast under trial, for whenhe has stood the test, he will
receive the crown of life whichGod has promised to those who
(25:33):
love him.
So be steadfast, be resilient.
Next, seek God in prayer.
That can't be under-emphasized,I can't over-emphasize that
enough.
The first step for Christiansto get out of a rut is you've
got to begin to seek God inprayer.
Turn to him.
Turn to him when you're in astruggle, pour out your heart to
(25:58):
him.
God's not afraid of youremotions.
God's not afraid of youcomplaining.
God's not afraid of youspeaking your heart's not afraid
of you complaining.
God's not afraid of youspeaking your heart, speaking
what's really in your soul.
You know, look at David.
David did that in the book ofPsalms.
You can read many chapters inthe book of Psalms and listen to
David pouring his heart out toGod.
God wants you to do that andthen seek his guidance and he'll
(26:20):
bring you comfort, he'll bringyou strength, but that comes
through prayer.
Prayer brings that peace andclarity and direction, even in
the midst of some of thegreatest uncertainties and
challenges that you may be goingthrough.
You know, philippians 4 and 6says do not be anxious for
anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with
(26:41):
thanksgiving, but in everysituation, by prayer and
petition with thanksgiving,present your request to God and
then next meditate on the Wordof God, meditate on Scripture,
find encouragement and wisdom.
Again, go to the CBC website.
There's all kinds of lists thathave Scriptures that you can
confess over your life.
Open your mouth, speak them outloud.
(27:02):
Don't just think about them,but just speak those words and
then meditate on what you'veheard yourself say.
Dive into God's word, you know.
Look at his promises.
Allow that truth to renew yourmind and your heart.
You know, let the word of Godbe a lamp to your feet, a light
to your path as you seek toreally break free from this rut.
(27:26):
All right, and then embracechange and renewal.
You know we talked about that alittle bit, but embrace it.
You want to be renewed, as theBible talks about in your
spiritual life.
Allow God to transform yourheart, your mind, your spirit.
Let him lead you on a path ofgrowth and transformation.
(27:48):
Let him change your life forthe better, not just to change,
but change it for the better.
You know, maybe you got to letgo of some old patterns, let go
of some old habits and beliefsthat are holding you back.
But ingrace God's plans andpurposes for your life.
You know, 2 Corinthians 5.17says Therefore if anyone is in
Christ, he has become a newcreation.
(28:09):
The old has gone, the new ishere, and so embrace that,
embrace the change, embracerenewal and then connect with
some kind of a Christiancommunity, connect with a church
, family, a small group or afellowship to find support and
(28:29):
get that encouragement,accountability in your life.
Surround yourself with fellowbelievers who can really
encourage and inspire andchallenge you and when you get
out of that rut you're going tobe willing to help somebody else
who comes along the way, who'sgoing through what you just went
through.
You know, hebrews 10, 24through 25 says let us consider
how we may spur one another ontoward love and good deeds, not
(28:52):
giving up meeting together assome are in the habit of doing,
but encouraging one another, andall the more as you see the day
approaching.
So it's so important that we dothat, so that we get involved.
So you can't do that unlessyou're in a godly Christian
community where that you canreceive those things.
And then, lastly, you need totrust in God's plan.
(29:16):
And trusting in God that's thebig thing, that's the hard thing
at times, but you've got totrust in his plan and timing for
your life.
You know, even when you feelstuck or uncertain, you just got
to surrender those fears,surrender those doubts and
worries to him.
You've just got to trust thathe's working all things together
(29:38):
for your good, because he is,and then you lean on his
promises, lean on hisfaithfulness as you begin to try
to get through and navigatethrough, maybe, these challenges
to get out of that rut.
You know, jeremiah 29 and 11says I know the plans I have for
you, declares the Lord.
(29:59):
Plans to prosper you and notharm you.
Plans to give you hope and afuture.
If you're going to get out of arut, you've got to trust God.
You know getting into a rut canbe caused by a lot of different
factors.
We've talked about them.
You know lack of clear goals,fear, failure.
You know, by understanding alot of these whys and these
(30:26):
underlying causes, and then webegin to take some proactive
steps to address them, I believethat you can break free from
this cycle, from this rut, andrediscover your sense of purpose
and motivation and fulfillmentin your life.
Remember, it's okay to get help, it's okay to talk to somebody
(30:48):
about it.
Just make those changes.
Take small steps if you have tofor positive growth and
transformation.
But I believe, withdetermination and resilience and
if you have a willingness toreally make those changes and
embrace change, you can breakfree from that rut, I believe
you can have determination andresilience and, as you break
(31:12):
free from that cycle ofstagnation, I think you'll
rediscover a very vibrant and avery purposeful and a very
fulfilling relationship with God, which will help you to be more
successful in your career, inyour family and in your personal
life.
(31:33):
Lord, I thank you today forthose who have downloaded and
listened to this podcast.
Lord, help us to apply theseprinciples in our lives.
Lord, to help us to overcomebeing in a rut or to keep us
from ever getting into a rut.
Lord, I pray that for those whohave listened, and I pray that
they will find true godlysuccess in Jesus' name, amen.
(31:58):
Well, again, I want to thankyou for taking the time to
download and listen to today'spodcast here at Christian
Business Concepts, and I askthat you help us to grow the CBC
community by sharing thispodcast with four or five other
people that you think couldbenefit from it, and also,
please help us grow by sharingthe link to this podcast on your
(32:22):
LinkedIn or Facebook pages.
Well, that's all the time wehave for today, so remember that
Jesus is Lord and he wants youblessed.
Speaker 1 (32:37):
Thank you for tuning into this week's Christian
Business Concepts podcast.
Go toChristianBusinessconceptscom for
more information and resources.
Be sure to check out otherpodcasts that will help you take
your business and your personallife to a whole new level of
success.
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On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!