The Status Quo Series

If you were to go to a leadership seminar. One of those all day events, where you fill in all the blanks on pages filling a professionally done binder. An event where struggling people from all walks of life and professions come hoping that they are just 8 hours away from greatness. If you attend such a seminar, you will hear lots of great sound bites.

Sound bites like, ¡§He who thinks he leads and has no one following is only taking a walk.¡¨ Sound bites like, ¡§People do not care how much you know until they know how much you care.¡¨

Sound bites like, ¡§It¡¦s what you learn after you know it all that counts.¡¨ Or, ¡§Things may come to those who wait, but only the things left by those who hustle.¡¨ Or, ¡§Short-cuts don¡¦t pay off in the long-run,¡¨ ¡§Don¡¦t be afraid of going slowly, be afraid of standing still,¡¨ and ¡§All teams are groups, but not all groups are teams.¡¨

Good stuff. Often applicable to a given person¡¦s situation. And if you attend very many of these types of events, it won¡¦t be long before you hear a very common one that goes something like this, ¡§If you keep doing, what you¡¦ve always done, you¡¦ll keep getting, what you¡¦ve always gotten.¡¨ Anyone heard that one before? Let that soak in for a moment, ¡§If you keep doing, what you¡¦ve always done, you¡¦ll keep getting, what you¡¦ve always gotten.¡¨

Truth is that is a pretty accurate statement. Applies not only to leadership, but to many areas of life: family, job, friendships, sports, and maybe even your spiritual life. You see, there is a phenomenon often observable in the church whereby a group of people want things to be different. They are tired of the same old-same ol. But there is one problem. They aren¡¦t willing to change anything. They just want everything to remain the same.

And the same can be true when it comes to your desire for healing. Whether you are seeking a miracle in your life of spiritual deliverance, physical healing, or relational restoration. . .the question I have for you today is, what are you willing to do differently in order to see it happen? Many of us are still getting what we¡¦ve always gotten because we keep doing what we¡¦ve always done. So if you really want to see a miracle happen in your life, if you really want to see God move in a powerful and mighty way in your life. . .I have to ask you, what are you willing to do differently in order to see that happen?

Because most people that I know, including myself in many areas of life, are very attached to this thing we refer to as the ¡§Status Quo.¡¨ The world as we know it. The usual circumstances, events, solutions, and methodologies. We enjoy life in the rut. Because we know the rut.

In fact, some of us have spent so much time in the rut that life has passed us by and we haven¡¦t even noticed. Each year Beloit College in Wisconsin puts out the college freshman mindset list for the newest batch of collegians. This will really make you feel old, and stuck in a rut. Listen to some of the things on this year¡¦s list.

„« Most students entering college this fall were born in 1986.

„« To them, Desi Arnaz, Orson Welles, Roy Orbison, Ted Bundy, Ayatollah Khomeini, and Cary Grant have always been dead.

„« Photographs have always been processed in an hour or less.

„« The U.S. has always been a Prozac nation.

„« There has always been a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and a Comedy Channel.

„« They have always been comfortable with gay characters on television.

„« There have always been night games at Wrigley Field.

„« Computers have always suffered from viruses.

„« Text messaging, cell phones, and instant messaging have always been modes of communication.

„« Politicians have always used rock music for theme songs.

„« Fox and the WB have always been major television networks.

„« Toll-free 800 phone numbers have always spelled out catchy phrases.

„« Bethlehem has never been a place of peace at Christmas.

„« Oprah has always dominated afternoon television. Who was Phil Donahue anyway?

„« Oliver North has always been a talk show host and news commentator.

„« They have suffered through airport security systems since they were in strollers.

„« They have done most of their search for the right college online.

„« And cheap gas to them is under $2.00 a gallon.

Some of those are pretty good reality checks for some of us. Especially those of us who graduated from high school the year that these young bucks were being born. We live life in the status quo. The world as we have always known it, but it probably never really was. One of my preaching professors at Asbury always used to refer to it as the good old days that never were.