Well-Worn Paths

For the last six years come spring we have bought a small herd of Angus steers to have up until the late fall. My husband grew up raising beef cattle, and this is a “hobby” for him. The interesting thing is that every year when we get a brand new herd, they tend to walk the very same paths through our fields. The well-worn paths never grow grass to cover where they walk day in and day out while living on our farm.

Their well-worn paths made me think about the well-worn paths in my life. The same things I do day in and day out. My habits.

Habits. They often dictate our day. Some of us call them “schedules,” but for many they have become habits. They are actions that have become natural occurrences of our day because of continual repetition. We do them without thinking.

Common (bad) habits include nail biting, using “ummm” or “like” frequently in speech, cracking joints, playing with hair, snacking late at night, avoiding eye contact, and skipping breakfast. Do you find yourself doing any of these?

How can we develop good, godly habits? It’s a word many of us like to avoid. Discipline.

Discipline is all about control – control of your heart and mind. “Where there is a will, there is a way.” Desire to change must exist.

In fact, discipline is what we need to succeed in all areas of our lives – physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

We must realize we are fighting against the flesh (meaning ourselves with our own sinful desires), the devil (1 Peter 5:8), and the world (Romans 12:2).

Godly Habits to Practice

1. Read and Obey God’s Word – The “reading” part is easy, right? Well, in comparison to the “obeying” part. But, as Christians, we are to separate ourselves from the world, aka, sin. We will never reach perfection, but we are to strive for it. God’s Word is powerful. Reading it daily will begin to infuse that power into our lives by empowering us to make the right choices regularly. Paul told Timothy in 1 Timothy 4:7 to “exercise thyself rather unto godliness.”
2. Pray – We couldn’t continue a relationship with our loved ones if all we did was read their letters and never communicated back. Our Beloved Father wants us to talk to Him; He is always waiting to hear our prayers to Him.
3. Worship of God – Elisabeth Elliot said, “Worship is not an experience. Worship is an act, and this takes discipline. We are to worship ‘in spirit and in truth.’ Never mind about the feelings. We are to worship in spite of them.” Worship can happen in a church service, when you listen to/sing Christ-honoring music, when we praise God whether in our hearts or to others (Hebrews 13:15-16), etc. It is all about declaring the greatness of our God inwardly or outwardly, showing Him our love and devotion.

Did you notice these three things are all about relationship? That is what Christianity is all about – not rules, rituals, or religion.

Other good, godly habits – There are many things we can do to increase our faith and grow our relationship in the Lord. Some other good ones are: love and encourage others, serve others (in the church and in other ministries), ask for His wisdom, be faithful to a local church/fellowship with other believers, forgive others, tell others about Christ, and give financially, spiritually, and with our talents.

How to Develop Habits

1. Make a goal and if necessary, break it into smaller goals. If you have never read your Bible or prayed regularly, I do not recommend starting out by reading five chapters a day. Start with one chapter or a short passage.
2. Take the free time in your day and use it to accomplish your godly habits. Decide to pray while driving to work, taking a shower, folding laundry, or washing dishes; read your Bible during your lunch break.
3. Forsake any other activities that waste time (watching TV, checking Facebook, etc) until you have read your Bible, prayed, etc. When I was trying to change my Bible reading time to the morning, I would not allow myself to get on my computer and check email or Facebook until I had sat down and read my Bible for the day.

The reason the cows walk the same well-worn paths is because of the lay of the land. They are taking the easiest path to get from point A to point B. (One of those points is usually the water trough.)

As Christians, let’s not try to make our lives about taking the easy route. Let’s not take just any well-worn path. Let us strive to take the path that will make us a better child of God. Let us live less out of habit and more out of intent. 💕