The 90-in-90 That Saved My Life (And Why Consistency Beats Perfection)

How admitting I'd never done anything for 90 straight days became the foundation for finding freedom through Christ

"Are you familiar with a 90-in-90?" Dr. Rick Marks asked me during one of our early sessions.

I had no idea what he was talking about.

"Ninety meetings in ninety days," he explained. "It's how people in recovery start building consistency and community."

I literally threw up a little in my mouth.

Not because the idea was disgusting, but because it was humiliating. At nearly 50 years old, I was about to admit something that would become one of the most embarrassing and transformative confessions of my life:

I had never done anything consistently for 90 straight days. Nothing.

Not brushing my teeth. Not taking a shower. Not exercising. Not reading my Bible. Not even going to the bathroom.

Lack of consistency was one of my signature sins, and it was destroying every area of my life.

But that 90-in-90 challenge didn't just change my habits. It became the foundation for finding true freedom through Christ.

The Humbling Truth About Consistency

Sitting in Dr. Rick's office, I had to face a brutal reality: if I couldn't consistently do something as basic as personal hygiene for 90 days, how could I expect to build anything meaningful in my life?

My relationships were inconsistent—hot and cold, engaged and withdrawn. My spiritual life was sporadic—intense seasons followed by months of neglect. My commitments were unreliable—good intentions with poor follow-through. My emotional regulation was unpredictable—calm one day, reactive the next.

I was living proof that inconsistency breeds chaos.

The patterns that were wrecking my life weren't dramatic moral failures or explosive sins. They were the quiet, persistent habits of inconsistency that slowly eroded everything I tried to build.

I wanted transformation, but I was unwilling to embrace the daily discipline that transformation requires.

Why Perfection Fails and Consistency Wins

For decades, I had been approaching change through perfectionism. I would make grand resolutions, commit to dramatic overhauls, and expect immediate, permanent transformation.

This approach failed every time because it was built on my own strength and willpower.

When I inevitably fell short of my perfect standards, I would abandon the effort entirely. All-or-nothing thinking kept me stuck in cycles of ambitious starts and disappointing failures.

The 90-in-90 taught me something revolutionary: small, consistent steps beat perfect intentions every time.

Here's why consistency is more powerful than perfection:

Consistency builds trust with yourself. Every day you follow through on a small commitment, you prove to yourself that you're capable of change.

Consistency creates neural pathways. Your brain literally rewires itself through repetition, making healthy choices increasingly automatic.

Consistency compounds over time. Small daily actions create massive long-term results that dramatic efforts never achieve.

Consistency doesn't require perfect circumstances. You can be consistent when you're tired, stressed, busy, or unmotivated.

Most importantly: consistency teaches you to depend on God's strength rather than your own.

The Spiritual Discipline of Small Steps

What I discovered through my 90-in-90 journey was that consistency is actually a form of spiritual discipline.

Every day I showed up—whether I felt like it or not—I was practicing surrender. I was choosing to trust God's process rather than demanding immediate results.

Every day I took action despite my feelings, I was learning that obedience matters more than emotion.

Every day I continued when progress felt slow, I was developing the faith that God works through ordinary faithfulness, not extraordinary moments.

The 90-in-90 wasn't just about building habits. It was about learning to let God make me consistent instead of trying to manufacture consistency through my own willpower.

What My 90-in-90 Actually Looked Like

Dr. Rick encouraged me to find meetings from multiple organizations and approaches. My 90 actions in 90 days included:

• Morning devotional time with Bible reading and prayer
• Attending support group meetings (AA, Celebrate Recovery, church small groups)
• Connecting with mentors and accountability partners through calls and texts
• YouTube speakers and presentations about recovery and spiritual growth
• Service opportunities to help others instead of focusing only on myself
• Physical exercise for at least 30 minutes daily
• Tracking my progress through journaling and reflection

The key wasn't perfection in any one area. The key was showing up consistently across multiple areas of growth.

Some days I felt motivated and engaged. Other days I went through the motions. Both kinds of days counted because I was learning that faithfulness isn't dependent on feelings.

The Power of Community

One of the most important aspects of the 90-in-90 was that it forced me out of isolation.

Isolation is where destructive patterns thrive. When we're alone with our struggles, they feel bigger and more overwhelming than they actually are.

But when I started showing up consistently to meetings and groups, several things happened:

I discovered I wasn't alone. Other people were fighting similar battles and finding freedom through the same principles.

I found accountability. People noticed when I was absent and celebrated when I was present.

I learned from others' experience. Hearing testimonies of transformation gave me hope for my own journey.

I built a support network. Relationships formed naturally around our shared commitment to growth.

Most importantly: I experienced the body of Christ in action, supporting each other through the daily work of transformation.

When God Provides the Strength

The most profound discovery of my 90-in-90 was that I couldn't do it through my own willpower, and I didn't have to.

God provided the strength I needed, one day at a time.

On days when I didn't want to show up, He gave me the motivation. On days when I felt discouraged, He sent encouragement through others. On days when I doubted the process, He reminded me of small progress I hadn't noticed.

I learned that consistency isn't about being strong enough to never miss a day. It's about being surrendered enough to let God carry you through every day.

This took the pressure off perfectionism and put the focus where it belonged: on daily dependence on Christ.

The Compound Effect of Faithfulness

After 90 days, something remarkable had happened. The same person who had never done anything consistently for 90 days had just completed 90 days of consistent action.

But the real transformation wasn't just about completing the challenge. It was about who I had become through the process.

I had developed:

• Trust in God's strength rather than reliance on my own willpower
• Community connections that supported ongoing growth
• Daily spiritual disciplines that kept me connected to Christ
• Accountability relationships that helped me stay on track
• A new identity as someone who follows through on commitments

For the first time in my life, I experienced what it felt like to be consistent. And it was addictive in the best possible way.

The Foundation for All Other Freedom

That 90-in-90 became the foundation for every other area of freedom I've experienced.

Once I learned I could be consistent in one area, I could apply that same principle to any area where I needed transformation:

• Consistent emotional regulation instead of reactive outbursts
• Consistent communication instead of conflict avoidance
• Consistent spiritual practices instead of sporadic devotion
• Consistent relationship investment instead of taking others for granted

The 90-in-90 taught me that lasting change happens through daily faithfulness, not dramatic moments.

Your Invitation to Consistency

If you're tired of living in cycles of good intentions and failed follow-through, if you want transformation but keep getting trapped in perfectionism, if you're ready to discover what God can do through your consistency—this is your invitation.

You don't need to be perfect. You just need to be willing to do whatever it takes to find freedom through Christ.

The Rise program walks you through the same 12-step process that taught me consistency, community, and dependence on God's strength rather than my own.

It's not about perfection. It's about progress through daily surrender.

Each step builds on the previous one, creating the kind of consistent growth that leads to lasting transformation. You'll learn to:

• Take daily action even when you don't feel motivated
• Build community connections that support your journey
• Develop spiritual disciplines that sustain long-term change
• Experience God's strength in your areas of weakness
• Create consistency in relationships, emotions, and spiritual life

This isn't about trying harder through your own strength. This is about learning to let God make you consistent.

Start Your Own 90-in-90 Journey

Ready to discover what God can do through your consistency?

The Rise program gives you everything you need to begin your own journey from inconsistency to faithfulness, from self-reliance to God-dependence, from good intentions to lasting transformation.

Available as both an online course and downloadable trade book, so you can learn in whatever format works best for you.

START YOUR RISE JOURNEY TODAY →

Your Next Step

Today, choose one small action you can commit to for the next 7 days. Not 90 days—that might feel overwhelming. Just 7 days.

Maybe it's:

• 5 minutes of morning prayer
• One encouraging text to a friend
• 10 minutes of Bible reading
• A brief gratitude journal entry
• One act of service for others

The size of the action matters less than the consistency of showing up.

After 7 days, extend it to 14. Then 30. Then 90.

Let God prove to you that He can make you consistent when you surrender your inconsistency to Him.

Remember: Consistency beats perfection every time. You don't need to be strong enough to never fail. You just need to be surrendered enough to let God carry you through each day. Your freedom through Christ is waiting on the other side of daily faithfulness.

What's one small action you're willing to commit to for the next 7 days? Share in the comments—your commitment might inspire someone else to take their first step toward consistency and freedom.