The good habits – a time for everything *

When I try to track the ‘correct’ things the disciples did while they were waiting for the Holy Spirit to come upon them, I see that it was important that they followed Jesus' instruction. As I read yesterday, they returned to Jerusalem, however, Jesus had not said anything about where they should go. So where then did they go? Of course they went were they used to go:

When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying.
Acts 1:13  

I have moved around a lot during my life, and when I come to new places, I often hear sentences like “Here we are used to…” And immediately after comes as often an apologetic “However, ‘Used to’ is dead!” 

Of course some habits can prevent us in doing new things, but there are good habits that we should stick to. Unfortunately, too many ‘Used tos’ have died without being replaced in many of our corps and churches. It is good to be aware of the fact that when the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples on the day of Pentecost, it was in a place where they ‘used to’ stay – they were in their own ‘habit’at.

We tend to travel at special conferences or congresses to get a new encounter with the Holy Spirit, but the Spirit’s habit is to attend where we use to attend? The question we should ask, is what we ‘use to’ do when we gather in the place we ‘use to’ to go. What the disciples did in the place they were staying, I will write more about tomorrow.

‘Manna’ for tomorrow:

It is important to take good care of good habits

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(1) The picture is an example of 'good habits': Two believers become soldiers in Romania. They are the first soldiers in a corps-plant in Bacau. The articles of faith are confirmed. They signed the ‘Soldier’s Covenant’ in prayer a.s.o. All of these are "good habits":

• Plant churches, 
• make disciples and soldiers,
•  confess the faith, 
• be in prayer, and 
• have a covenant relationship with the Lord. 

Colonel Rodney S. Walters enrolled the new soldiers last Sunday.

 * 'A time for everything' is connected with the Bible's teaching about a 'season for every activity' Eccl 3 This series is about the teaching in the time between Easter and Pentecost

It is about life-style

NORSK
In many ways holiness is a life-style, and life-style is a result of habits. Many will claim that it takes three weeks to develop a habit, and three months to get a life-style.

This thesis is one of the keys in the discipleship-program of Dr. Charles Lake, a program we also use in the Salvation Army in several countries. Lake applies this principle to daily Bible-reading and prayer. It takes three weeks before this becomes a habit, followed by another three weeks before you miss the exercise. However, after three months it has become a life-style. Particularly in the first phase this takes discipline, and therefore you need someone to be accountable to.

I have seen how this principle can function in my own life and in the lives of others. If there is an area where it is important to keep two thoughts in the head at the same time, it must be when the subject is discipline. Holiness is the working by God, and a result of his grace and love. Apart from receiving in faith, there is nothing I can do to save myself or to live a holy life. Salvation and sanctification is in Jesus, and in him alone. However, the principles that are valid in our physical life, are often the principles that will work also in the spiritual life.

My physical existence is a result of the love of my parents. In the same way as I cannot ‘save myself’, I could not “create myself”. From the moment I was born again, a development started I which I became more and more responsible steward of my own life. It was all about learning good habits, like e.g. to eat healthy food, get enough sleep, have good routines for personal hygiene and learn as much as I could about the world in which I am a citizen. If I do not manage to develop one good habit, I would still remain a world-citizen, even though it is not likely that I would have lived to my present age if I completely neglected my body and my life.

Thus, holiness is depending upon what I want and upon discipline to develop which makes it possible to live a good life in the holiness I have in Jesus Christ. In other words, I have part in the holy life, but what I do with this life is very much for me to choose. It can be good to have a mentor who can encourage me like e.g. Paul encouraged Timothy:

But you, man of God (1)
1 Tim 6:11

‘Manna’ for today:

I want holiness to be my life-style

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(1) Maybe the ‘formation’ of Timothy will be the focus for the next period?

It is about habits

NORSK
I am close to the end of the series from the “Well of holiness”. Perhaps you will not notice that I slowly move to other themes. For more than three months I have focused on different aspects of holiness, and I have also used impulses from themes that relate to holiness. 

Since holiness in principle is part of everything that has to with Christian living, it should not surprise anybody that the different themes often touch the same base.

Yet another couple of days the reflection will be about holiness. With Jesus as role-model, it will be useful to see what kind of habits he had. My habits strongly contribute to my formation, and I also believe that they influenced Jesus:

“Jesus went to Nazareth, where he had been raised. On the Sabbath he went to the synagogue as he normally did.”
Luke 4:16

I believe Jesus built a strong foundation due to the habit of going to the synagogue, the place of worship and reading of the Scriptures. What we normally do becomes so normal that it almost happens by itself. Thus it is important the habits I develop are the good ones. Mary and Joseph must have given Jesus a good upbringing including the formation of good habits. I believe we can encourage one another to form such habits even as seniors. 

Tomorrow I will write more about this. Today I praise God because Jesus did what he normally did, and it was just on the spot where he normally went that he under the anointing of the Spirit proclaimed who he is (1).

‘Manna’ for today:

Holiness is about formation of good habits

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* Children praying before they go to Sunday School - Magna took the pic last Sunday in Georgia
(1) See: ‘It is about an important part of the package’