Bad habits are bad because they take control of us and lead us to harm ourselves and others, and they’re powerful because of the sinful nature at work in every human heart. God made us with the capacity for habits, which can be a real blessing. But our fallen nature bends that capacity toward sin, which is why bad habits come so easily and good ones take so much effort.
How Do Habits Work?
We all notice other people’s annoying habits, but the truth is that everyone has habits. A habit is a pattern of behavior or thought repeated so often that it becomes automatic in certain situations. Some are good, some are bad, and some are downright destructive.
Most habits follow a simple pattern sometimes called the “habit loop.” It starts with a trigger, which leads to a routine (the habit itself), which delivers some kind of reward. Say you stop at a gas station, and the stop cues you to walk inside and grab a snack, which rewards your taste buds. Do that enough times and you’ll find yourself buying a snack every time you fill up, almost without thinking.
That ability to act without deciding every little thing is part of how God designed us. It’s what lets you back the car out of the driveway, type on a keyboard, or ride a bike without concentrating on every movement. Good habits work in our favor. But habits like lying, overspending, smoking, or pornography can take over and start running us. The apostle Paul described this frustrating experience of doing what we don’t want to do.
Romans 7:15 I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.
Most of us know exactly what Paul means. We want to change, we even decide to change, and we still find ourselves doing the thing we hate.
Why Are Bad Habits So Hard to Break?
If habits were just a matter of brain wiring, good habits would be as easy to build as bad ones. But they aren’t. Romans 7 explains why: there’s a power at work inside every person that pulls us away from God. The Bible calls it the sinful nature, or the flesh.
Romans 7:22-25 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
The sinful nature is that ingrained impulse that pushes us away from God and toward ourselves. It’s the driving force behind bad habits, and it’s what gives them so much power. That’s sobering, but notice where Paul lands: “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” The struggle is real, but it isn’t hopeless. Jesus is the rescuer we need, and through his death and resurrection he gives us forgiveness and the power of his Spirit to fight back.
What Is the First Step Toward Freedom?
The first step to freedom from bad habits is an honest inventory. That starts with refusing to rationalize what God calls sin. Many habitual behaviors and attitudes are clearly off limits in Scripture, including drunkenness (Ephesians 5:18), gossip (2 Corinthians 12:20), complaining (Philippians 2:14), and filthy language (Colossians 3:8). Others start with a good impulse and become sin when taken too far, like caring about people turning into constant worry (Philippians 4:6-7).
An honest inventory also means admitting what has control over you. Some things aren’t explicitly sinful, yet they can still master us.
1 Corinthians 6:12 “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything.
So take stock of whatever has a controlling grip on your life, and notice the triggers that set you off in that direction. Then look honestly at what your habits are doing to you and to the people around you, because harmful consequences are a powerful motivation to change. Own up to what you find, submit it to God, and invite a trusted friend or mentor into the conversation to help you see yourself clearly. That kind of honesty prepares you for the changes God wants to make.
The Takeaway
What makes bad habits bad is that they master us and harm us and others, and what makes them so stubborn is the sinful nature within us all. The way forward starts with an honest inventory and leads to Jesus, who rescues us and gives us power to change.
