Latest / Inspired Edge: From Fear to Faith-Filled Living / Breaking the Cycle: Renew Your Mind and Choose Joy

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Breaking the Cycle: Renew Your Mind and Choose Joy · Inspired Edge: From Fear to Faith-Filled Living

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  There are seasons in life where you know you should be grateful.
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  You know God has been faithful.
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  And yet if you're being truthful with yourself, something inside you just feels off.
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  Maybe you feel discouraged, or maybe you're frustrated with where you are in life.
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  Maybe you find yourself repeating the same thoughts, the same reactions, or even the same choices and you're wondering, why do I keep ending up here?
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  If that sounds familiar to you, I want just to remind you that you're not alone.
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  I'm Chuck Keller, a Christian life coach who helps busy professionals break out of burnout and fear based patterns so that they can live with bold faith, clear direction and purpose driven action using what I call the five light
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  keys of clarity, confidence, focus, faith and purpose.
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  And this is inspired edge from Fear to faith filled Living Today I want to talk about something that can quietly affect almost every area of our lives.
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  The habits that keep us stuck.
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  And not just physical habits.
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  I'm talking about habits of thought, habits of reaction, habits of discouragement.
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  Patterns that we may not even recognize anymore because they've become so familiar.
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  And more importantly, I want to talk about how God can help us begin breaking those patterns by renewing our minds.
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  We don't wake up in the morning and say, I think I'll spend today discouraged.
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  We don't plan to worry all afternoon.
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  We don't intentionally decide to compare ourselves with everyone around us.
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  And yet somehow we can find ourselves doing exactly those things.
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  You may even look back at a difficult season and wonder, why did I stay stuck there for so long?
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  Why did I keep thinking that way?
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  Why did I continue responding the same way when I knew it wasn't helpful?
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  The Apostle Paul describes a similar struggle in Romans 7:15.
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  He writes, For I do not understand my own actions, for I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.
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  Have you ever felt that you know how you want to respond?
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  You know what Scripture says, you know the kind of person that you want to be.
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  But then the pressure hits, the difficult conversation happens, the unexpected bill arrives, someone disappoints you, your plans fall apart, and suddenly you're back in the same pattern.
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  Worry, fear, anger, avoidance, self criticism, maybe even shutting down completely.
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  If that pattern repeats often enough, it begins to feel normal.
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  God designed our brains with an incredible ability to form habits.
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  Think about how many things you do every day without consciously thinking about them.
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  You probably don't spend a whole lot of time thinking about how to brush your teeth.
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  You don't consciously analyze every movement when you drive a Familiar route.
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  Your brain learns patterns so.
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  So that it doesn't have to constantly start from scratch.
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  And that's incredibly helpful until the pattern we've learned isn't helpful anymore because we can develop emotional and spiritual habits too.
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  Maybe your habit is assuming the worst.
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  Something goes wrong and your mind immediately says, here we go again.
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  Or maybe your habit is comparison.
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  You see someone succeeding and immediately wonder, why are you falling behind?
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  Or maybe your habit is avoidance.
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  You know there's something God is asking you to address, but instead you stay busy so that you don't have to face it.
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  Or maybe that habit is self doubt.
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  An opportunity appears, and before you even pray about it, you've already decided that you're not capable.
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  Sometimes these patterns happen so quickly that we barely even notice them.
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  Thought, emotion, reaction, outcome.
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  And then the cycle repeats.
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  A negative thought produces a negative emotion.
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  That emotion influences an action.
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  And that action produces an outcome.
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  And that outcome reinforces the original thought.
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  And eventually we begin to believe that this is just who I am.
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  But Scripture tells us something very different.
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  Romans 12:2 says, do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.
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  I love that word, renewal.
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  Paul isn't saying here that transformation happens simply because we try harder.
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  He points us toward a renewed mind.
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  God begins changing the way we live by changing the way we think.
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  And the first step is awareness.
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  One of the most important parts of breaking any unhealthy pattern is simply recognizing that it exists.
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  Because you can't change a pattern that you never notice.
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  And this is where one of my five life keys becomes incredibly important.
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  Clarity.
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  Clarity means becoming aware of what is actually happening inside of us.
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  Not condemning ourselves, not beating ourselves up.
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  Simply becoming honest.
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  Ask yourself what situations consistently trigger discouragement in me?
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  What thoughts tend to repeat when I'm under pressure?
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  What do I automatically believe?
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  Believe when something doesn't go according to plan.
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  Maybe you hear yourself saying, I'm never going to figure this out.
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  I'm falling behind.
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  I'm not good enough.
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  Nothing ever changes.
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  God must have forgotten about me.
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  Those thoughts matter because our repeated thoughts often influence our repeated choices.
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  But once we bring those thoughts into the light, something begins to change.
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  And we can begin asking a different question.
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  Is this thought actually true?
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  And maybe even a better question.
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  Does this thought agree with what God says?
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  So choosing a different response.
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  Breaking a pattern doesn't always begin with a dramatic change.
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  Sometimes it begins with one small decision.
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  You recognize that old thought, and instead of automatically following it, you pause, you pray.
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  You remember Scripture and You choose a different response.
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  Maybe anxiety is telling you that everything is falling apart, but faith responds, God is still here.
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  Maybe insecurity says, you're not capable, but Scripture reminds you that your identity isn't determined by your performance.
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  Maybe fear says, don't take that risk.
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  But God may be asking, will you trust me enough to take the next step?
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  Philippians 4:13 says, I can do all things through him who strengthens me.
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  This verse isn't a promise that everything we attempt will automatically succeed, but it's a reminder that Christ strengthens us to walk faithfully through what he places before us.
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  And sometimes faith looks very simple.
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  It looks like choosing the better thought, having the conversation, setting the boundary, taking the next step.
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  Opening your Bible instead of opening social media.
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  Praying.
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  Instead of rehearsing your worries for another hour, one faithful decision begins interrupting those old patterns.
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  And then another, and then another.
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  And slowly what once felt automatic begins losing its hold.
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  Jeremiah 29:11 is one of the most familiar verses in Scripture where it says, for I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord.
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  Plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.
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  Those words were originally spoken to God's people during a difficult season when they were living in exile.
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  Their circumstances weren't immediately changing, but God's faithfulness had not changed.
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  I think there's something important there for us.
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  Sometimes we believe joy will return when our circumstances finally improve, when that job changes, when the relationship improves, when the financial pressure disappears, when the uncertainty goes away.
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  But God often begins his work in us before he changes what's happening around us.
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  He renews our perspective.
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  He deepens our trust.
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  He reminds us who we are.
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  And he teaches us to walk faithfully even when we don't have all the answers yet.
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  That's where another one of the five life keys become important.
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  Faith Faith isn't pretending everything is fine.
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  Faith means trusting God when everything isn't fine.
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  And sometimes that trust is exactly what begins loosening the grip of those patterns that have kept us stuck.
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  So here's something I want you to try for the next few days.
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  Pay attention to those patterns.
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  When you feel discouraged, anxious, frustrated, or defeated, don't immediately judge the feeling.
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  Just notice what happened before it.
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  Ask yourself three questions.
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  What am I thinking right now?
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  Is that thought true?
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  And what does God say about it?
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  Then choose one small action that reflects what you believe God is asking you to do instead.
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  That might be praying.
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  It might be writing down a scripture.
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  It might be calling someone.
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  It might be doing that task that you've been avoiding.
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  It might simply mean mean telling yourself, I don't have to follow this thought.
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  This is what renewing your mind can look like in everyday life.
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  Not perfection.
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  Practice, not instant transformation.
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  Faithful Repetition as we begin to close today, I'd encourage you to spend a little time with these following questions.
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  Where have negative patterns begun interfering with your spiritual growth?
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  What thought or reaction seems to repeat itself most often when you're under pressure?
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  And what scripture could you begin using to challenge that pattern?
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  You might also spend some time this week just meditating on Romans 12:2 be transformed by the renewal of your mind and perhaps write this journaling prompt at the top of the page God, what pattern in my thinking are
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  you inviting me to change?
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  And then just give yourself a few quiet moments to listen.
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  You may be surprised by what comes to mind.
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  And remember, this kind of growth connects directly with the framework I use in my coaching called the five Life Clarity, Confidence, Focus, Faith and Purpose.
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  Sometimes the first breakthrough is simply clarity, right?
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  Recognizing the pattern and then comes confidence, remembering who you are in Christ.
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  Focus helps you intentionally choose what deserves your attention.
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  Faith reminds you to trust God rather than fear, and purpose helps you keep moving toward the life God is calling you to live.
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  If you've been feeling stuck in some of those patterns and you're ready to understand what may be holding you back, I'd love to invite you to take the next step with me.
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  Start by looking at your own five life keys.
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  Where are you strong right now?
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  Where might God be inviting you to grow?
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  And if you want help working through that, consider connecting with me through inspirededgecoaching.com whether that's through one of my free resources, a discovery call or coaching, my goal is simple to help you move from fear based patterns to
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  toward bold faith, clear direction and purpose driven action.
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  Because the old pattern doesn't have to determine your next step.
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  God is still working, your mind can be renewed, your habits can change, and through Christ you can begin walking in greater freedom.
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  Faith and Joy thanks for just spending these few minutes with me today.
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  I'm Chuck Keller.
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  This is Inspired Edge From Fear to Faithful Living.
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  Until next time.
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  Keep seeking clarity, building confidence, protecting your focus, strengthening your faith and walking boldly in your God given purpose.