Many are frustrated by the productivity, or lack of productivity, in our lives.

We would like to be more engaged in God’s work but, before we know what happened, the week is over and we feel like we have simply run through a mouse maze. We make no real progress on our goals.

Last week I wrote an article for the Center for Great Commission Studies at Southeastern Seminary. In this post, I discussed the importance of establishing routines. I then give 10 simple practices that might help you in your missionary living.

Below is an excerpt and a link to the fuller article.

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FROM: MISSIONAL ROUTINES: “The Center for Great Commission Studies”

I know, we all hate the idea of routines. They seem so mechanical, so unspiritual. They’re so . . . well, routine. When we talk about walking with God and joining him in his mission, it feels wrong to couch it in the language of routine. Our service to the Lord should arise from a love relationship. We tell ourselves (and others) that this kind of behavior should just flow out naturally. We shouldn’t need a list or routine to maintain it.

That type of thinking is ok if it works. But the problem is that for most people it isn’t working. You are not alone. The experience of Christians throughout history seems to indicate that disciplines and routines are the keys to spiritual development and joining God in his mission. Without daily routines, we are likely to get sucked into the flow of life and before we know it, the week is gone, and we have not done anything to sustain a relationship with God or advance his mission in the world.

In his book, The Power of Habit, Charles Duhigg writes:

Most of the choices we make each day may feel like the products of well-considered decision making, but they are not. They are habits. And though each habit means relatively little on its own, over time. . . Routines have an enormous impact. . .

He then cites a study from Duke University claiming that 40% of the actions people perform each day weren’t actual decisions, but habits.

To read the entire article, click here