Battling Complacency
By Dannielle Robertson
It was a sobering moment when I realized I had become complacent and had begun going through the motions of my faith rather than being active and engaged. Christian complacency can look like different things for different believers, and it’s dangerous because it is easy - all you must do is sit back and go with the flow. This is because complacency does not require discipline, accountability, or action. Because of these things, a life of complacency can be appealing to many, making it a dangerous tool that the enemy uses against us.
As Christians, we can’t afford to become complacent in our faith. We are commanded to discipline, action, and accountability. We are commanded to watch ourselves and our doctrine closely. Hebrews 2:1-3 urges us:
“We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. For since the message spoken through angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation?”
We need to pay closer attention to what we know to be true so we can live accordingly and not be in a complacent drift.This is where it becomes personal for each of us, and we must hold up the mirror, look inward, and ask the question: “Have I become complacent in my faith?”
You either are growing closer to Christ and maturing in His ways or you are drifting away. This means we can’t be complacent in our devotional life or spiritual disciplines. Each of us must battle complacency and apply the truth to our lives every moment of every day. How can we do this?
Battle Complacency by Stepping Away from the Checklist. Christ did not come for us to be prisoners to systems, processes, and regiments. He came to set us free from sin and death and for us to be connected to Him. From cover to cover, God’s Word is an invitation to come to Him. When we seek Him and meditate on who He is and what He has done for us, our desire to draw near to him will grow. This does not mean that we wait for our emotions to tell us when we should spend time with Jesus, because we know that our hearts are deceptive (Jeremiah 17:9) and our emotions are unreliable. In fact, sometimes we DO draw near to the Lord simply out of obedience. But how wonderful is it to rest on the promise that when we draw near to God, he will draw near to us (James 4:8)! Protecting ourselves from a “checklist mentality” means frequently evaluating and surrendering our motivations to the Lord for him to make right!
Battle Complacency by Spending Time in God’s Word. I cannot emphasize this enough: find what works for you! There is no cookie cutter, one-size-fits-all method to spending time in God’s Word. Personally, reading plans stress me out and I have never completed a reading plan. It took me years to figure out that I connect with God’s Word more when I listen to it rather than when I read it. Find what works for you. The important thing is that you do something! Engage with God by reading or listening to His Word. Talk to Him about it, ask Him questions, and pray His Word. This is the Living Word of God!
Battle Complacency Through Goal-Setting. When someone asks me to sign up for something new — something that implies having to adopt a new discipline or add more structure into my already packed day — I tend to panic. It is overwhelming to me to think about committing to something new, especially if it is a “should” that I “must” do every day for the rest of my life. I immediately feel like I cannot breathe and I want to run to my secret chocolate stash. But if you tell me to try something for five days or ten days or 30 days, then I am open to it. Maybe you’re like me. If so, break goals down into smaller, more manageable chunks. So, set a goal and ask a friend to join you and do it together. The Bible App allows you to do reading plans with friends where you can have discussion each day and come alongside someone if they fall behind.
Battle Complacency Through Relationships. Our society is unfortunately training us to be complacent in how we live our lives by telling us, “You do you and I will do me”. But the Gospel doesn’t allow us to be complacent in relationships. We aren’t called to let relationships just drift along, rather we pursue people for Christ and we help one another be built up in Christ. This means we hold our brothers and sisters accountable and we seek to be held accountable by our brothers and sisters.
Battle Complacency Through Worship. We should not be not complacent to sit back and be presented a worship service. We should desire to be involved and active participants in worship through service and engagement. We are not called to be complacent consumers but active worshippers. This looks like intentionally considering the words that we are singing, knowing that many of the lyrics are pulled directly from Scripture passages. Being an active worshipper means that we are not merely emotionally engaged with the music but mentally engaged with the truth that we are singing together.
Battle Complacency Through Outreach. We should not be complacent to watch people head toward hell and do nothing about it. We are called to pray for others, to share the Gospel, to go out into the world in love, and to trust that God is working in the lives of those around us. We pray that he will bring them to faith and stay consistent in our efforts to share His love. Too often we can be complacent with people’s eternal future’s, but we can no longer live in such a way.
Our complacency disappears when we meet with God. When the Jesus we know about is replaced by the Jesus we know.
Let us learn to connect with God more deeply. Let us seek Him because we want to. Let us battle complacency with intimacy. Let us be the light God made us to be and go into a dark world that is desperate for Him in so many ways.
REFLECTION
What are some ways you have become complacent in your faith?
What is a specific goal you could set for yourself today to help cultivate spiritual growth in your life and battle complacency?
Who is a friend you could reach out to today to hold you accountable?
Spend some time in prayer and ask God to work in your heart to fight against complacency and give you the courage to invite trusted community into the process of Spiritual growth.