The Habit of Faith

I was reading today’s devotion from Streams in the Desert and I came across the turn of phrase: the habit of faith.  Something within them resonated with me.  Perhaps it is because the word habit is usually associated with the negative adjective “bad” in front of it.  For example, the bad habit of biting your fingernails, or chewing with your mouth open or following the slow driver in the fast lane too closely. 

What struck me about this is that habits can be good too.  What is a habit anyway?

Habit:  a settled or regular tendency or practice, especially one that is hard to give up. 

So the question is this:  Is your faith a habit?  Is it a regular practice? Is it hard to give up?  Or as is so often the case do you flee your faith when the going gets tough? 

The lesson to be learned here is that a habit takes time, energy and effort to attain.  This is perhaps more true for a good habit than a bad one.  If your faith seems shaky and not in the habit category, perhaps you need to spend a little time on developing it.  Regular time in the Word, listening to what God has said to others and what He wants to say to you is a good start.  Working through your trials with a prayerful heart is another way to develop your habit.

Remember, any habit that has God as its obsession is a good thing.  It will be what you turn to automatically when you need it.  Your habit of faith will sustain you as you rely solely on the One that is sufficient to meet your deepest needs.