Getting Unstuck
Since I need a little advice here, I think I will give it to myself.
I get stuck sometimes.
It is not usually an absence of options, but a plethora of them.
One gets stuck in the process of choosing and then shuts down.
I have decided the explore the nature of being STUCK and then I can work backwards to UNSTUCK. I have no idea what I am going to write. Join me:
S = Stymied.
That implies being thwarted by some outside force. Certainly outside forces influence us negatively or positively, but the reality is that most of the stymieing comes from within. The backwards step is to identify the cause and dis-empower it. However one need not over-identify, for analysis of paralysis can lead to even more paralysis. Just acknowledge the force standing guard to prevent your progress and relieve it of duty. It is at your command and, if there is a real problem, it can be dealt with at some other time. Confront the stymies with the supremacy of your own will over whatever resistance lies within you. The fruit of the Spirit is self-control. THE CURE FOR THE STYMIES IS SUPREMACY.
T = Timidity.
We are afraid. We are afraid of the shame, embarrassment, and disappointment that failure will bring and the increased responsibility of success. Therefore, we are timid, tenuous, and terrorized by and decisions we might make or actions we might take. After all, we might make a mistake. We might produce mediocre work. We might open a keg of worms. Our "mights" take away our might. To extrapolate and combine two verses, we are taught to take our thoughts captive and giving them to the the One who has not given us a spirit of timidity. We are also instructed to think on things that are wholesome, beautiful, and good. So, we talk to ourselves or, as we used to say, "We give ourselves a good talking-to." THE CURE FOR TIMIDITY IS TALK.
U = Under the Circumstances.
Being UNDER the circumstances means that we surrender to chance, coincidence, and happening. This, by the way, is the root meaning of "happy," to be subject to chance or fortune. That is why it is utter foolishness to place our happiness above all else in life. We cannot control our happiness. We can always choose it, but it is better to choose joy. "Joy," in the Greek, is from the same root word as "grace." Grace is a gift freely given and always available. We can receive it and choose to continue to live in it. It allows us to "go with the flow" and grow in the process. It gives us permission to fail and try again. It transcends happiness and happenstance. When we choose to live by grace and gratitude, we take whatever is given us and utilize it for good. We incorporate our pain as well as our pleasure into our goals and dreams. We use the cards we are dealt to win. We utilize our resources to live above the circumstances. THE CURE FOR "UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES" IS UTILIZATION.
C = Crisis.
Something "comes up" and we freeze. We put our plans on hold and break our pattern of discipline. We get discouraged. The origins of the word, "crisis" are found in the ideas of judgment and the turning point of a disease. it can be either good or bad. Statistically, positive and negative events in our lives create similar levels of stress that can affect mental and physical health. Change is stressful. Sometimes in a crisis, we remain as we are, but that does not mean we freeze. It means we continue to "keep on keeping on." One potential benefit of crisis is confrontation. It is an opportunity for bringing our ideas and practices into account, for evaluation, and for improvement. In the crisis, we must confront all the negative forces and choose that which will move us forward toward our God given dreams and goals. We must do so honestly and hopefully. See crisis as an opportunity to grow. THE CURE FOR CRISIS IS CONFRONTATION.
K = Knowledge.
But isn't knowledge a good thing? It is, but Dad always said, "Son, a little knowledge is a dangerous thing." It is an old question and debating point. In the Garden of Eden, it was not "The Tree of Knowledge" that threw humanity into a tailspin. It was the fruit of the "tree of the knowledge of good and evil." It was the knowledge that distorts wisdom. It obscures truth by filtering it through a haze of negative options. Knowledge is always filtered. We are always gazing through a screen of presupposition and experience. How we see the world is as much a matter of choice as the choice to eat forbidden fruit. We choose our biases either consciously or unconsciously. We could not be fully human without the choices we were given in the very beginning. When we are stuck, there is something wrong with our beliefs and understanding of reality. To get unstuck, we have to believe differently and expand our thinking to include a larger reality of unexplored knowledge. When Adam and Eve ate from the pretty tree, they were choosing to turn their back on all then other unlimited options for knowledge and growth. The knowledge they chose was extremely limited and futile. We need to grow in our thinking and think bigger more mature thoughts. We know enough to be dangerous, discouraged, and desperate, but not enough to be dominant over our lethargy and apathy. We need more knowledge. THE CURE FOR KNOWLEDGE IS KNOWLEDGE.
We can insert the "UN" in front of "STUCK" by grace through faith because these are ...
U = Universal principles.
They work because they are based upon truth that is enduring and preeminent. Truth is truth in anyone's hands. When activated it takes on a life of its own.
N = Neutral.
They do not require anything but application to be operative. Whatever your faith system or affiliation, you can begin to put them into practice and they will help you get unstuck. However, an experience with the author of the principles will enable you to exercise greater confidence in them and fully realize all the benefits that are yours in relationship with Him: grace, mercy, forgiveness, significance, purpose, and eternal life. Click here and on the other links to explore more about that larger reality.