Narrator: Imagine a woman in Ness City, Kansas, who sits down on her boyfriend’s toilet and doesn’t get up for two years. For 730 days, her boyfriend brings her food and water, pleading with her to leave the bathroom. Her response is always the same: "Maybe tomorrow." When paramedics are finally called, they find her physically stuck to the seat, her skin having grown around it. This shocking, true story serves as a powerful metaphor for a feeling many people know all too well: being stuck. We want to change, we know we need to change, and we even try to change, but we remain trapped by our own habits, addictions, and patterns, always telling ourselves, "Maybe tomorrow."

In his book, The Power to Change, author and pastor Craig Groeschel argues that this cycle of failure isn't a sign of a personal defect but a flawed strategy. He contends that the key to breaking free isn't about trying harder or mustering more willpower. Instead, it’s about a fundamental shift in perspective—a spiritual process of transforming who we are from the inside out.

Narrator: The foundational principle of the book is that lasting change begins with identity. Groeschel asserts, "You do what you do because of what you think of you." Our behaviors are not just a series of rational choices; they are the outward expression of our internal self-perception. To illustrate this, he shares a story from his early days as a pastor.

He and his friend, Pastor Robert, were working in a rundown office when they saw a crowd of teenagers gathering in their parking lot for a fight. Their initial, impulsive reaction was excitement. They ran outside yelling, "Fight! Fight!" like kids on a playground. But in a moment of sudden clarity, they stopped. They remembered who they were: pastors, Christians, and peacemakers. Their identity overrode their impulse. They immediately changed their chant to "Break it up! Break it up!" and intervened.

This story reveals that when faced with a choice, we subconsciously ask, "What would someone like me do in this situation?" If we see ourselves as a "failure," we will act in ways that confirm that identity. If we see ourselves as "disciplined," our actions will begin to align with that belief. Groeschel argues that most attempts at change fail because they are simple behavior modification—like pulling a weed without getting the root. True, lasting change is a second-order change, a transformation of the underlying belief system. The book posits that our true identity is not defined by our failures or others' opinions, but by who God says we are. Therefore, the first step to change is not to focus on what you do, but on who you are becoming.

Narrator: Many people set goals, but few achieve them. The difference, Groeschel explains, is the distinction between trying and training. "Trying" is about exerting effort in the moment, relying on a finite and unreliable resource: willpower. "Training," on the other hand, is about committing to strategic, disciplined habits that prepare you for the moment of decision.

To make this point, he uses a humorous but effective analogy. Imagine an out-of-shape person who hasn't run since middle school deciding to run a marathon. They don't train. They don't change their diet. They just show up on race day, fueled by Twinkies and pure determination, telling everyone they are going to "try really hard." The outcome is predictable: they collapse in a heap after a few miles.

Success in any endeavor, whether physical or spiritual, doesn't come from trying; it comes from training. The Apostle Paul used this same analogy, comparing the Christian life to an athlete who goes into "strict training" to win the prize. Training is what you do today to be able to do tomorrow what you can't do today. It’s the consistent, often boring, behind-the-scenes work that builds the capacity for success. Groeschel redefines discipline not as punishment, but as "choosing what you want most over what you want now." Public success is always paved with private discipline.

Narrator: If training is the path to change, then habits are the steps along that path. Groeschel, drawing on research from authors like James Clear, explains that all habits follow a four-step neurological loop: Cue, Craving, Response, and Reward. The cue is the trigger, the craving is the motivation, the response is the habit itself, and the reward reinforces the loop. To change your life, you must learn to manipulate this loop.

To start a good habit, the book offers five strategies. First, make it obvious. Place your running shoes by the door. Second, make it attractive. Pair the new habit with something you enjoy. Third, make it easy. Start with a "two-minute rule"—a version of the habit that takes less than two minutes to do, like reading one page of the Bible instead of a whole chapter. Fourth, make it communal. Surround yourself with people who already embody the habit you want. Finally, make it repetitious. The more you do it, the more the neural pathway is strengthened.

Conversely, to stop a bad habit, you must invert these laws. Make it invisible by removing the cues. Make it unattractive, difficult, and isolating. For example, if you want to stop wasting time on your phone, remove social media apps, turn on screen time limits, and leave your phone in another room. The goal is to create friction that makes the bad habit harder to perform than to avoid.

Narrator: One of the most common reasons people give up on new habits is the lack of immediate results. Groeschel explains this using the agricultural principle: you reap after you sow. There is always a delay between the work you put in and the results you see. This period of delay is what James Clear calls the "Plateau of Latent Potential" or what Groeschel terms the "Valley of Disappointment."

He illustrates this with the analogy of a pot of water on a stove. The water heats from 70 degrees to 150, then to 211, but nothing seems to be happening. It's still just hot water. All the energy seems wasted. It’s at 211 degrees—just before the breakthrough—that most people get discouraged and quit. But the transformation from water to steam only happens at 212 degrees. The work wasn't wasted; it was being stored.

This principle teaches that we must value progress over perfection and consistency over intensity. The small, seemingly insignificant habits—saving a little money, choosing a salad, praying for five minutes—are the seeds being sown. We may not see the harvest immediately, but if we don't give up, a harvest is guaranteed.

Narrator: The final and most crucial part of Groeschel's argument is that human willpower is ultimately insufficient for deep, lasting change. He points to research, like the famous "cookie and radish" experiment, which demonstrated that willpower is a limited resource that gets depleted with use. Relying on it is a setup for failure and a cycle of shame.

The book's ultimate "plot twist" is the shift from self-reliance to God-reliance. The answer to the cry, "I can't," is the truth, "But God can." Groeschel shares a personal story of working out with his trainer, Paco. While doing a bench press burnout, the author’s strength gave out completely. He let go of the bar, but his trainer, not realizing, kept lifting it while yelling, "It's all you! It's all you!" In that moment, the author had a revelation: at the end of our own power, we discover God's power.

This divine power, the same power that raised Jesus from the dead, is available, accessible, active, and abundant. The key to accessing it is to "walk by the Spirit," which Groeschel breaks down into a four-part practice: Renew your mind with God's truth, Remain in an intimate relationship with Jesus, Acknowledge your weakness in the moment of temptation, and Ask God for His power to help you.

Narrator: The single most important takeaway from The Power to Change is that true transformation is not a battle of willpower, but a spiritual journey of identity. It’s about shifting your focus from what you do to who you are becoming in Christ. Success is not defined by the absence of failure, but by the consistent, disciplined training of your habits, all fueled by a power greater than your own.

The book leaves us with a profound challenge: identify the one area in your life where you've been trying and failing in your own strength. What would happen if you stopped trying and started training? What if you acknowledged "I can't" and finally embraced the truth that "God can"? The power to change is real, but it’s found not in our own resolve, but in our surrender.