Faith Venture

I’ve talked a lot of times about how if motivation is what you seek, you will fall short. Momentum is what you need. — Arnold Schwarzenegger in his Pump Club newsletter.

Jan stopped me the other day at the beginning of my exercise routine. We sometimes meet during our early morning exercise. I told her I am always at the end of our street about 6:50 am. That brought back memories from when I was maybe 15 delivering the morning newspaper. Helping my grandfather do a little construction work on our house, I was later than usual on my collection rounds. The first woman said, “Where have you been? I can always set my clock that you’ll be here at 9:00 am.” I realized I’ve almost always been a creature of regular habits. Regular habits builds the momentum Arnold talks about.

Often we talk of what the spiritual disciplines consist. John Wesley talked of study and prayer. Richard J. Foster added 10 more.

Maybe the point isn’t as much which disciplines you follow as it is developing the habit, the routine, the making it part of your life. 

Maybe we need to emphasize a prior step—forming habits. I refer you to Charles Duhigg’s The Power of Habit and James Clear’s Atomic Habits. 

Maybe like me you can get out of bed in the morning, drink a cup of water, make coffee, then settle into your chair, pull out your Bible or spiritual reading, and study and meditate for 20-30 minutes. It’s just a routine part of starting your day.

Maybe mornings aren’t your prime time. As part of your shut-down ritual from work in the afternoon, you brew a cup of herbal tea, grab your book, sit, read and meditate before fixing dinner.

Make the coffee or tea the trigger that says “It’s time to sit.”