Day by day, what do you habitually do? What would others say about your customs?
Jesus’ Customs
We know something about Jesus’ customs:
He went to the synagogue on the Sabbath (Luke 4:16).
He customarily taught the crowds (Mark 10:1).
He often slipped away to the wilderness to pray (Luke 5:16).
The last week before He was crucified He taught daily in the temple and He spent the nights on the Mount of Olives (Luke 21:37-38).
Paul
Paul’s custom was to go to a synagogue and reason with them from the Scriptures. (Acts 17:2)
Jesus’ Mother and her Husband
Jesus’s mother and her husband carried out the custom of the Law when He, as a newborn, was presented to the Lord in the temple, and they offered a sacrifice (Luke 2:22-24). They customarily went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover (Luke 2:41-42).
Believers
After Pentecost, believers “were continually devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.” (Acts 2:42)
Israel
On the other hand, Israel was commanded not to follow the customs of the nations (Leviticus 20:23), but they did so anyway (2 Kings 17:7-8).
Customs
“Customs” are habits, powerful elements to a life, thoughts, or activities you do without thinking, or without thinking much. They can be bad or good.
I want so much to hear my Lord say: “Well done, My good and faithful servant.” I imagine you do as well.
To hear the Lord’s praise, I need to live a life seeking Him first, and habitually obeying Him.
I am more apt to lead a life of obedience if I habitually read and study the Bible, and habitually pray. I want to go to my desk for Bible study without thinking how I got there, without talking myself into it. I want not to have to use prompts to drive me to prayer, but, rather, find myself in prayer as a settled routine.
Secular studies have found that about 40% of our daily actions are habits. We need to thoughtfully eradicate the bad habits and establish the habits we need to draw closer to the Lord.
A useful tip: if you have an established good habit, link a desired new habit to the habit already in place. For example, if you habitually study the Word, link prayer to your study before and/or after. That way, when you settle down to the Bible, you also are in prayer mode.
It sounds easier than it is, so I am determined to make developing good habits a habitual part of prayer (!).
