A Secret That Works as Hard as You Do Building a Legacy
There's a secret to building a legacy of faith that keeps working even when you're not thinking about it.This secret is easily established. It begins with your daily life.
Here's how ...
You have your daily routines—when life seems crazy; the routines are usually there. You may change them during the summer or over the holidays when the kids are home, but basically they're not something you think much about.They are just ... there.The secret is hidden in the normal, everyday things you do consistently. They're the routines ... or rituals you do automatically because they've become second nature to you.They're your spirit-rituals. (Spiritual is simply the words "spirit" and "ritual" combined.)Here's 3 things I've learned about daily routines that are actually spiritual rituals:
Rituals keep you centered in the midst of a chaotic life
Amid the clutter of everyday life something needs to stay constant. Spirit rituals do that for you. They're the bookends that hold your day in place.They might be a daily devotional time during your lunch hour or time alone with Jesus as you walk the dog.
Rituals give a sense of security and safety for your family and you
Grace prayed over a meal transforms a dinner into something other than fast food, even when it is. Dinner prayer calmly enfolds you in safety and is the pause you need to remember your faithful Provider.Bedtime prayer with the grandkids leaves them knowing that Grandma's house is a safe place and one they want to return to again and again. Later in life they'll remember those moments even after you're gone.
Rituals are unconsciously handed down to your kids and grandkids
Early bedtime routines of brushing teeth, washing the face, bedtime stories, and saying prayers become lifelong habits. Even if your kids walk away from the Lord, they tend to come back to this routine when they have children of their own.If you've made church attendance a positive experience, kids will seek to relive that memory when they hit difficult times in their lives. They'll call a pastor or find a church if they don't have one. Pain is a good reminder of what "pain relief" they found in their early routines.Believe me ... I know this is true. Many of my counseling clients are kids that grew up in our church and moved away from the Lord after graduating high school. But when they bump into the pain of life, they give me a call. Their parents had established spiritual "pain relief," and it all floods back when needed.What rituals have you established in your life that secretly work to build a legacy of faith even when you're not thinking about it?Leave a comment to let me know what you're thinking about spirit rituals hidden in your daily routine.I look forward to hearing from you. SusanInterested in more on routine and ritual? See Spirit Ritual and Finding the Holy in Your Daily Routine and Live a Celebrated Life: The Beauty of Ceremony by Ann Voskamp."Jesus likes it when we share." -Adelaide, age 3: Pass this along to everybody and their brother. OK, maybe not everybody's brother, but you know ... all of your friends would be nice.