How Bad Habits Enter Into Your Life

I’ve found myself wondering how I’ve picked up bad habits. From too much TV time to wasting time on Facebook to ignoring my wife. Bad habits creep into my life. And I’m sure they do yours as well.

When we recognize the bad habit, we often wonder how we let the bad habit into our life.

The Trinity Root at September 11 Memorial

Image by Tony Fischer

The Problem

Bad habits are something we don’t want to pick up. They’ll drag us down, holding us back from our potential.

And yet we let bad habits take hold in our lives. Most of the time we don’t even realize the habits are forming.

Why? Why does this happen?

We let bad habits take root because they slowly work their way into our lives. A recent sewer problem made this clear.

One day we noticed water on our basement floor near the drainage hole. I tried to plunge it and nothing happened. I dreaded losing the ability to use the bathroom or take a shower. Caving, a plumber was called.

When the plumber arrived, he assessed the situation and came to the conclusion there were roots growing in our sewer line. Upon further examination, he discovered there was a crack in our pipe system. This crack allowed the roots to creep into the line until they clogged the pipe.

Bad habits take hold exactly in the same way. We have weaknesses that can be easily accessed. The desire for too much entertainment. The need for a quick fix. The search for attention.

Every time we give into one of these weaknesses, we open up a crack and allow a little root to enter our lives. Eventually, our lives our filled with bad habits!

The Solution

Our plumbing problem had a solution. It was the plumber and his sewer snake (drain auger). The sewer snake is a tool that cuts up the invading roots and pulls the chopped roots out of the pipe. After this is done, the pipes drain freely.

Our lives will require us to take an auger to them once in awhile. As we begin to notice the bad habits taking hold, we will have to cut them out.

This may mean denying yourself that extra slice of cake, because you know it’ll lead to three more pieces today and more tomorrow (or at least that’s how it works for me). Maybe it’s avoiding your favorite restaurant where the cute waitress flirts with you. Whatever your weakness is, you need to be aware of it and begin the fight.

Sure, it’ll hurt as you’re cutting into the habits that have taken hold of your life. You’ll feel as if something is dying.

And you’ll be right in feeling the death of something. It’s the roots of bad habits that are trying to invade your life. You’re killing the bad habits by removing their source of life!

The choice is up to you. Will you let the roots take hold or will you clean them out before it’s too late?

Question: How do you deal with bad habits in your life? Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

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