You've heard it said from time to time that there's a difference
between being active and being productive. You see that a lot with
diets. People will make some sacrifices and then become discouraged when
they don't see the kind of results they were hoping for. Before too
long, they'll give up and convince themselves they're just not capable
of becoming as fit as they would like to be.
The same
kind of thing happens spiritually. We'll acknowledge the need for and
the benefits of spiritual disciplines, and we might even get up early on
a couple of occasions and have a quiet time. Without a way to really
see what God is doing and all that He has done in the context of those
meetings with Him, we become satisfied and drift off into a very little of Christ-likeness; and the benefits of really being connected to
God are shrugged off.
One way to prevent yourself from falling short of your spiritual and physical goals is to write them down. Deuteronomy 6:2
provides a great biblical template to consider in terms of documenting
that which you want to govern your behavior.
In that passage, you see
God specifying how He wanted the Israelites to remind themselves of the
Law and the priorities they were to live by. In verse 20, He says to write His words on the doorframe of your house.
Whether you want to write Scripture on your front door is up to you;and I grew up with Joshua 24:15
hanging on my wall . In addition, I keep a
spreadsheet of my prayer requests, and I journal what God's showing me
in the context of my quiet times.
When I go to the gym, I
write down what I want to do before I start working out. , I
write down what I plan to eat the day before my first meal.
The
cool thing about writing your daily routine is
that it yields measurable and motivating results.So write them down!
What do you want to do?
When do you want to do it?
How do you want to get it done?
Document
what you want to shape in your behavior, and your life will begin to
take the shape you're shooting for physically and spiritually.
