Getting Unstuck

Today, I went out walking and it turned into a prayer walk. Before the exercise, I was contemplating recent events and tempted to forgo venturing out, stay inside, and brood.

But no. That was my old pattern: Get lost in my thoughts and allow them to spin around and around – much like a tire stuck in red, Georgia mud!

So I decided to get unstuck.

A Simple Strategy to Getting Unstuck

To get unstuck, I use a simple strategy that I call ”Moving Towards.”

Whenever I have mental resistance against doing something good, I stand up and start taking small, gentle steps towards that beneficial thing.

In this way, I practice three principles I have learned:

1. The hardest action you take is moving from rest to motion. Remember: “A body at rest tends to stay at rest; a body in motion tends to stay in motion.” So to get unstuck, you’ve got to put that body in motion.
2. Mental resistance wastes energy. The same energy that you are using to resist taking action could be re-directed to getting it done!
3. Dress the part. What activity are you mentally resisting? Go ahead and start getting ready to get it done. As applicable, put on the clothes, gather the materials, open the file, find the number to make the call, or start the application.

In my case, I put on my T-shirt and shorts to get my body in motion. I was dressing the part!

Next, I put on walking shoes, got my walking stick, drank some water, and then stepped out into the sunshine.

The mental resistance lifted, I got unstuck, and was ready to move forward!

What I Learned through Getting Unstuck

I walked almost an hour, talking to the Lord about my concerns, praying, and just hearing from Him.

By the time I got back home, I had peace of mind that I did not have before.

As I walked, the following quote kept running through my mind.

I am only one, but still, I am one. I cannot do everything, but still, I can do something. And because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do the something that I can do.”

– Edward Everett Hale

Making the decision to take beneficial action every day applies to so many things, not only to taking care of our health but the events that we are observing in the world today.

I also think of the following Biblical principle:

In the morning sow your seed,
And in the evening do not withhold your hand;
For you do not know which will prosper,
Either this or that,
Or whether both alike will be good.

– Ecclesiastes 11:6

The Lord has us here on this Earth for a reason. We are not here just to hang out; we are here to make a difference!

We serve a God who created us on purpose, for purpose.

Therefore, let us not shrink back from life challenges. Let us not accept living ”constipated lives,” which is how I think of staying stuck.

We’ve got something in us that wants to come out!

Let us move forward, knowing that the Lord is our ”Jehovah Nissi” – He is our Banner who has already gone before us.

Therefore, we can move forward in confidence in every action the Lord calls us to take.

We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us!