The Power to Change: Mastering the Habits That Matter Most

by Craig Groeschel

You do what you do because of what you think of you.

We choose the story we believe.

Who we are—our character—shapes our thoughts about ourselves and others. What we think is a reflection of who we are. That then shapes our lives. We have no choice but to live out who we think we are. What we think within ourselves, we are. We make decisions based on our self-identification.

Your self-identity is a primary reason that you make decisions.

Their behavior is being driven not by their true God-given identities but by their self-identities. You do what you do because of what you think of you.

If you try to change your behavior without changing your identity, you’re pulling up a weed without getting to the root.

Motivation and willpower are both limited resources that you will deplete quickly. Behavior modification does not equip you with the power to change. Are you beginning to see it now? The reason you haven’t experienced lasting change is because you’ve tried to alter what you do and haven’t changed what you think of you.

the apostle shares the key to transformation—real, lasting, eternal change. “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think”

So to change what you do, you need to first change what you think of you.

The weapon he uses against you is deception. “When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). His primary target is your identity. He knows how essential your self-perception is, so he lies to you about who you are.

You are not who Satan says you are. You are who God says you are.

Sought after (Isa. 62:12) Precious in his sight (Isa. 43:4) A new creation in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17) Not condemned (Rom. 8:1) Forgiven (Col. 1:14) Loved (1 John 3:1) Accepted (Rom. 15:7) A child of God (John 1:12) Jesus’ friend (John 15:14) Free (John 8:36) The temple of God (1 Cor. 6:19) God’s treasured possession (Deut. 7:6) Complete in Christ (Col. 2:10 NLT) Chosen (Col. 3:12) Called (2 Tim. 1:9) An ambassador of the Most High God (2 Cor. 5:20) God’s masterpiece (Eph. 2:10 NLT)

You may fear you have screwed everything up, but the depth of your sin is not greater than God’s power to forgive. Your bad decisions are not greater than God’s power to redeem and restore.

remind yourself of who you are and who God declares you are. Read those truths out loud any and every time you need to hear them. When you accept them in your heart, you’ll discover that your old life is gone—and a new future has begun!

having a “future self”—a better version of ourselves that we plan on becoming—will change how we live today.

And knowing that you are called to more, who you truly are—and who you want to become—is how you begin any successful attempt at change.

You will change, and you can become who you want to become. For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength. —Philippians 4:13 NLT

Your calling is more about who you are becoming than what you are doing.

If Future You is your hero, what qualities should Future You possess?

To try is to attempt to do the right thing by exerting effort in the moment. To train is to commit to developing strategic habits that equip you to do the right thing in the moment.

With a training-not-trying approach, you make doing your habit your win.

The focus has to be taken off how long it will take and placed on what can be done now.

We can so easily see other people’s outcomes. But what we can’t see is what they do every day. Private discipline paves the way to public success. Instead of envying outcomes, we’d be wise to imitate inputs.

Make doing your habit your win.

Obsess over the process, always reminding yourself: I’m in training.

Never underestimate how God can start something big through one small habit.

A habit shaped Daniel’s identity, giving him the confidence to be who God created him to be and do what God called him to do.

Never underestimate how God can start something big through one small habit.

Daily prayer created momentum for other God-honoring disciplines and helped him become who he was supposed to become.

We will create time and place triggers to start a good habit.

Experts say we need to HALT when we see a mood coming that makes us vulnerable. HALT is an acronym for hungry, angry, lonely, and tired.

I am the architect of my environment,

They made their goals obvious by preloading their decisions.

I will _______ after I _________.

Bad habits are difficult to stop because the payoff comes now and the pain is in the future.

we’re training ourselves to defer contentment to the future.

When becoming more like Jesus is the driving force of your life, success is no longer out there somewhere.

Successful people do consistently what other people do occasionally.

We stay stuck because we rely on willpower instead of God’s power.

instead of giving up, you can look up. Look up and find a God who loves you, has what you need, and is just waiting for you to ask.