I Can't

Overflow with Craig Booker

Note: A lot of the material is inspired by Craig Groeschel's book. Each week, I take concepts from Pastor Craig Groeschel's book, The Power To Change, and apply them to brain health.

Craig Groeschel begins the section by telling a funny story about a thirty-five-year-old woman in Ness, Kansas, who got stuck sitting on the toilet for two years. [1]

She sat there so long her skin grew around the toilet seat. [1]

Her boyfriend brought her food and water and asked her to come out every day. [1]

Each day her response was, “Maybe tomorrow.” [1]

I think to some extent, we have all been that woman. We have all gotten stuck in different capacities thinking that maybe tomorrow will be different.

Sure, you might not be stuck on the toilet, but we all get stuck in a situation.

It could be:1

• A job you hate
• You are stuck spiritually, hoping to take things to the next level.
• You are overweight and in poor shape.
• You desperately want to stop yelling at your kids.
• Maybe you want to spend more quality time with your spouse.

So, how do we get unstuck?

Let’s take a look at the story of Paul.

He was Jewish and strongly against Christianity and following Jesus.

After a magnificent encounter with Jesus, he was radically changed.

He went from persecuting Christians to being a pastor.

“I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate. But if I know that what I am doing is wrong, this shows that I agree that the law is good. So I am not the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

And I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. I want to do what is right, but I can’t. I want to do what is good, but I don’t. I don’t want to do what is wrong, but I do it anyway. But if I do what I don’t want to do, I am not really the one doing wrong; it is sin living in me that does it.

I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God’s law with all my heart. But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?” Romans 7:15-24 NLT

“We can all relate to Paul because he was confessing that he was dying inside.

Paul wanted to do what God wanted. But he was stuck in patterns of sin, wrong thinking, bad habits, and addictive behavior.

He had tried. And tried. And nothing had worked.” [1]

Paul’s story is so relatable and relevant to where many of us are today.

You may wonder, “Why was Paul stuck?” Then again, why do we get stuck?

Here is what we have learned.

It could be because: [1]

1. We put do before who.
2. We try instead of train.
3. We hope for change instead of starting (and stopping) the right (and wrong) habits.
4. We do occasionally what we should do consistently.

“We stay stuck because we rely on willpower instead of God’s power.” -Craig Groeschel

The problem with my situation and probably your situation is we mistakingly believe that we can do it. [1]

The truth is we can’t. [1]

You might say, “Now, wait a minute, Craig, that is not very motivating.”

Sometimes the truth hurts. Understand I am going somewhere with this.

For far too long, you and I go about trying to do something in our own power. Maybe you are trying to quit a bad habit, and you say to yourself, “I can quit whenever I...