I think of the church of Ephesus in Revelation 2. They did all the right stuff but God said, “Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.” It sounds like they too were in a rut. His solution to them was to 1) Remember: “Remember the height from which you have fallen.” 2) “Repent.” 3) Retool: “Do the things you did at first.”

It is important to understand that the word repent actually deals with the mind more than behavior. It is a change in your thinking that enables you to “retool.” A lot of boredom in the Christian life has to do with perspective … how we view the Christian life. Here are some things I believe make a difference.

1) Duty vs. Delight – The church of Ephesus did the right stuff but something was missing. When Christian life becomes more about duty (going to church, reading Bible, etc.), some of the excitement and motivation goes out of us. When we keep it about love and faith in what HE will do in and through us, we can live in anticipation out of which generates an enthusiasm and excitement in the Christian life.

2) Drudgery vs. Joy – Our society tells us to live in the moment, to get all you can now and instantly. The Christian life, however, is a process. We don’t experience all the rewards of being a Christian right now. We often have to simply persevere, even go through hard times. If we view the Christian life through our circumstances, we can easily get discouraged or go into the humdrums. Can we be content, like the Apostle Paul (Phil. 4:11), regardless of our circumstances? We can if we maintain a big picture perspective. “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” (Heb. 12:2-3)

3) Destination vs. Journey – Again, the Christian life is a process. We never arrive. We continually press on. (Phil. 3:10-14) When we get stuck in ruts it is often because we lost site of the venture.

4) Law vs. Grace – We have not arrived. We sometimes still sin. We sometimes have dry spells. If we beat ourselves up because of where we are, we will find it hard to get beyond. The focus needs to get off of “Am I doing something wrong?” to the grace and help we find in the Lord to change. Condemnation is oppressive and holds us down. Grace is freeing and builds us up. Titus 2:12-13 says that it is grace that “teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope-the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ.”

When your Christian life can be described with words like duty, drudgery, destination, and law, you will not tend to take those faith risks. However, when it is about delight, joy, grace, and you understand that you are on a journey, you will be more likely to step out.

Let me encourage you to read through the book of Philippians with the above four points in mind. As you read, keep asking yourself what a difference it makes if you approach the Christian life from a point of duty versus delight, from drudgery vs. joy, from destination vs. journey, and from law vs. grace. Look at the Apostle Paul’s example in this book in these regards.