Feeling Stuck?

I have an awful track record with Bundt pans. And birthday cakes. And cooking in general, if I’m honest. It probably doesn’t help that I don’t love to cook.  It’s gotten a little better now that I don’t cook for an audience of disgruntled diners. They’re grown and do their own cooking for the most part. And, Scott will eat most anything and call it good. But apparently I still struggle with baking.

I’m not sure that I’ve ever successfully made a birthday cake for Scott in one attempt. I either discover half way through the process that I’m missing an ingredient, or it burns on the bottom, or it just doesn’t look quite right. This year, the issue was that it got stuck in the pan. I could tell it was going to be a problem so I did the most reasonable thing possible and left it to deal with the next day, making the problem worse. For a little added stress, I’d be serving the cake to guests. I wanted it to look AND taste good. Eventually I had to address the problem so I grabbed a knife to try to loosen the edges. I then flipped the pan upside down and gave it a few whacks. Sadly, that just dislodged the top, beautiful layer, and left a naked and exposed cake still stuck in the pan. With no hope of salvaging the cake in a presentable fashion, I decided to extract it from the pan, slice by slice, in the privacy of the kitchen while the guests were in the dining room. I plopped some ice cream on top and no one knew the difference. (Or, at least they didn’t mention if they did.)

I get stuck sometimes, too, just like that cake. So, I started thinking of reasons I get stuck and what I do about  it once I realize it. We can get stuck in thought cycles, stuck in bad habits, stuck in routines. We get stuck in seasons of grumbling and complaining. Stuck in circumstances. The list is endless in the ways we get stuck.  But, there are signs it’s happening and there’s hope of getting unstuck. 

Chances are, you know when you’re stuck, Lack of motivation, disinterest in others, feeling stagnant, and lacking direction are all signs of being stuck. And fear is often a major contributing factor. Change is hard because we fear the unknown. Our brains and bodies prefer what we already know even if existing patterns and choices aren’t yielding the outcomes we’re hoping for. 

So how do we get unstuck? It starts with self-assessment. We don’t need to bully ourselves to do something different. We just need to start with gentle observation. 

Where is God inviting you to trust him right now?

What are you believing about yourself that might not align with God’s truth?

What loss, disappointment, or hurt might you be carrying that is interfering with a more joy-filled life?

Is there something God has already asked you to do that you’ve been postponing?

Do some digging. 

Don’t be afraid of a little mess. 

Like my cake, you might find a sweet surprise waiting for you even if it doesn’t look just like you’d imagined.