Why Jesus Becomes Routine to Us

If you’ve read my book, Nobodies for Jesus, you know I believe that most believers “get over” Jesus too easily. He becomes the norm for us, and we lose our passion that at one point drove us to tell everybody about Him. Here are some reasons we lose that passion:

1. The years between our conversion and now are many. The more time between our first encounter with Jesus and the present, the more likely it is that He’s just routine to us. Most of us find our most fervent times with Jesus in the past – closer to our conversion.
2. We’ve had no plan to keep our fire burning. The fire we experienced when we first met Jesus requires fuel to keep it burning. When we have no strategy to be re-fueled, it’s no wonder the fire dies down.
3. Our sin gets in the way. Disobedience always does that, you know – it causes us to miss the glory of Christ and creates distance between Him and us.
4. We spend no real time with Christ through Bible study or prayer. I know this reason is basic, but it’s nevertheless a cause for settling for the routine. When we spend little time reading His Word and talking to Him, we forget just how incredible our Redeemer is.
5. We direct our fascination elsewhere. Sometimes it’s another person, or a job, or a goal, or dollars, or power, or a position, or fame. It’s hard to stay fascinated with Jesus when we’re fascinated with something else – including ourselves.  
6. We take God’s blessings for granted. When we first met Jesus, grace was fresh and alive. It was unbelievable. Amazing, even. When those blessings become routine to us, so does the Jesus who gives us the blessings.
7. Church becomes more about us than about Him. We get caught up in our positions and responsibilities, or we get focused on the events and activities. We leave church on Sunday talking more about other stuff than we do about Jesus.    
8. We sometimes carry unconfessed – even unrecognized – anger toward God. Maybe He didn’t answer our prayers like we wanted, or He allowed suffering in our lives. It’s tough to be fascinated by Jesus when you’re mad at Him. 
9. We’re increasingly ignoring the local Body of Christ. God didn’t create us to be loners, and He doesn’t give us permission to be Christians apart from His church. We miss the wonder of Christ in other believers when we separate ourselves from His church.
10. Nobody’s ever challenged us to consider if Jesus is now just “routine” to us. I hope this post serves as that challenge for you. If you’d like us to pray for you, let us know in the comments section.