“People have always wanted instant, quick fixes."

A thought by Henry Cloud, from his book, Changes That Heal (p. 42). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. (Click on the book title to go to Amazon.com to buy the book.)

We want whatever it is now!

Henry says, “We have always been enticed by shortcuts. But shortcuts often spell failure, and this is Satan’s goal. Satan tempts with quick riches and money-making schemes; God offers the blessings of longtime faithfulness: ‘A faithful person will be richly blessed, but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished’ (Prov. 28:20). Satan tempts with instant intimacy through sexual passion, but God offers the faithful building of a loving relationship. Diet fads tempt with quick weight loss, but such diets do not develop the long-term discipline needed to maintain weight loss. Drugs and alcohol hold out immediate relief from suffering, but do not build character that can endure.

“In the parable of the sower, Jesus warns us against fast growth that has no depth. The seed sown on rocky places, ‘sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root” (Matt. 13:5–6). Quick growth with no firm root will always be superficial and short-lived. Deep growth is always slower. Developmental psychologists worry about children who show drastic, non-age-appropriate behaviors; it usually means that they are growing up too quickly. God’s way always takes time.”

He goes on, “I love the old proverb that says, ‘the longest distance between any two points is the shortcut.’ By trying to take the short route, we sometimes end up taking longer than we would have had we taken the long route in the first place. Whenever people want something ‘now,’ they will often pay later.

“I am reminded of this truth frequently when people are referred to me for help with a deeply rooted problem. After doing an initial evaluation, I often estimate the amount of time it will take for them to work through the problem. The ‘quick-fix’ type will say, ‘Oh, that’s way too long. I can’t wait that long. Can you refer me to a faster therapist?’ I usually try to explain why short-term therapy won’t ultimately work, but, after they refuse my explanation, I refer them to someone who works this way. Then, in about a year or two, they will call me again and say, ‘I went to counseling for a little while, and I started feeling better, but now my depression has come back again, and I need some more help.’

“Unfortunately, these people think they have failed; they should be better by now. In reality, they opted for guaranteed failure: growth without time. I am not decrying short-term therapy; it can offer a lot of help in sorting out both the issues to work on and the direction in which to go. But real growth always takes time.”

He then says, “Spiritual and emotional growth takes time. And often a transformation happens over time without the person knowing quite how it happened.”

Just be patient.  It will be worth it.  Will you do that? 

Yes, yes!