At first you establish your habits, and then your habits establish you.

Let me explain what I mean by that and why it matters.

If you do something consistently over a long period of time it becomes a habit. Some habits are good and others are bad. Smoking is a bad habit. Eating well is a good habit. Over time, each of those habits impacts you.

There are certain spiritual practices that can become very good habits. In Acts 2:42 we learn this about the early disciples: “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”

It says they were “devoted” to those four things. In other words, they persisted in a way of life which prioritized them. Over time, after having been intentional, those God-given practices increasingly shaped them.

I can’t help but see a connection to verse 46 where we learn that their hearts were “glad and sincere.”

I’d like to encourage you to be devoted to the apostles’ teaching, to fellowship with other believers, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer. Having a heart which is glad and sincere doesn’t mean that you are always happy. It means that you are aware of and thankful for the goodness of God in your life, and that you are singularly focused on him and his ways.

If that sounds like a plan, make a plan.

In my experience, people don’t stumble into Christlikeness.

At first you establish your habits, and then your habits establish you.

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Notes:

–Today’s devotional is connected to my latest PODCAST based on this same text. It’s called “Four indispensable priorities, radical generosity, and singular sincerity.” Click here to listen, or look for ‘The Pulse Podcast with Matthew Ruttan’ wherever you subscribe to podcasts: iTunes (Apple), Spotify, Google Podcasts, Stitcher or TuneIn.

–Bible quotes are from the NIV.