Habits! They are either good or bad. No matter the habit, they take time to form and must

be constantly practiced to remain a habit. We teach our children from an early age the necessity

of brushing their teeth, morning and evening. Over time, brushing teeth will become a habit

which will hopefully keep their teeth intact for years to come. I suppose much of our parental

guidance for our children, especially in the early years, is helping them to form “good” habits

which will help them to become responsible adults in our society. If our children are involved in

athletics or fine arts (or just about anything wherein practice is required), the purpose of

workouts and rehearsals is to help establish habits which will be seen on the playing field or

concert hall. Habits, over time, become subconscious actions in our daily schedule. For the next

several mornings, check out which shoe and sock (right or left) you put on first. Unknowingly,

you developed a “habit” over time and wasn’t aware of it.

The same applies for our walk with Jesus Christ. Let me suggest some habits which

would be beneficial for each of us to put into our lives, if we are truly serious about a faith which

can be seen by others.

Spending time reading the Bible daily. Set aside a specific time each day when you are

less likely to be disturbed. Have your Bible in a favorite place, so you don’t have to spend time

locating it to read. Set aside a few extra moments at the same time to spend in quiet prayer.

Prayer is definitely one of those things we need to make as a habit in our lives.

And what about time visiting a shut in or elderly or an individual who visited our worship

service? Yes, it takes repetition to develop a habit for a visit each week. If you are just waiting

for the right time to come along, good chance you will never make that visit.

Let’s not forget about Bible class and worship attendance. It is easy to get home after a

full day of work and decide that it is just too much of a bother to get ready to go to Bible study.

And it might be that after a full (and late) Saturday evening, it is just easier to hit the snooze

alarm for a few extra minutes of shut-eye, convincing yourself it will be okay as long as I make it

to evening worship.

You see, those folks who always seem to be at worship whenever the doors are open are

the same ones who made worship a habit and would feel miserable if they were to miss. Some

have suggested that if you will do a certain action for at least 21 days, that action will become a

habit. Others would suggest it is just a myth, but fact is, habits do demand repetition and

sacrifice. And maybe therein lies the rub — sacrifice doesn’t always come easy. Yet, the Lord

calls for us to “...take up our cross daily…” (Luke 9:23). Let’s be about making GOOD habits!

~P.Mowrer