DAILY DEVOTIONAL ✝️   

Habits

I’m a long suffering baseball fan.  I’m long suffering because the only team I follow is the Cincinnati Reds, and the last time they won the World Series was 1990.  But they’re my team. I don’t watch many games anymore,  but I check every morning to see if they won the night before.  They lost last night 5-0.  What that points to is tradition, or maybe just habit.

 

Not all habits are good (see following a team that lets you down a lot) but many habits are good, or at least give us a feeling of accomplishment.

 

Amy Cuddy is a social psychologist who studies nonverbal communication. She was a professor at Harvard Business School and is a best-selling author. She looks at the “strange” habits of athletes:

 

Baseball player José Valverde was a man of ritual. Before trotting out to the mound, the former Detroit Tigers closer would fill his mouth with water in the bullpen, then spit it out in perfect symmetry — left, right, no shortcuts. He’d slap his glove against his thigh, swap his cap to his throwing hand and start his run on to the field, crossing the entire infield without stepping on a single line. Not just the foul lines — every line. The stripes mowed into the outfield, the chalk borders, even the seams where the grass met the dirt. In baseball’s maze of lines, Valverde moved like each one was a downed electrical wire.

 

For a time, Tigers Cy Young winner Justin Verlander swore by the same Taco Bell feast before every start: three crunchy taco supremes (hold the tomato), a cheesy gordita crunch and a Mexican Pizza (no tomato). Many athletes have unusual habits…

 

None of these players were unhinged. If anything, the science suggests they’re doing something smart. A 2017 neuroscience study found that rituals don’t just make people feel better — they change how the brain responds to success and failure. 

 

So, should I develop habits, traditions, or rituals to benefit me in life?  I’m not suggesting a heart-burning ritual of food, or a weird way of walking like Monty Pythons Ministry of Silly Walks. But I am suggesting that developing good Godly habits can help you in life! 

Such as:

Daily Prayer: (Philippians 4:6,7) Spend quiet time in focused communication with God, as well as spontaneous conversation throughout your day.

Reading Scripture: (2 Timothy 2:15) Read and study the Bible consistently to gain wisdom, resist temptation, and know God's voice.

Trust and Faith: (Psalms 20:7) Choose to rely on God's control instead of worrying or fretting over circumstances.

Daily Repentance (1st John 1:9): Acknowledge mistakes quickly, accept God's grace, and turn away from wrong actions.

Loving and Serving Others: (Galatians 5:13) Show kindness, practice forgiveness, and look for ways to help people around you.

Fellowship: (Hebrews 10:25) Gather regularly with other believers to encourage one another and grow in faith. 

 

Good habits all!

And Go Reds….~jme

 

THOUGHT  OF THE DAY:🤔 Attention is not the same as approval.