How To Transform Your Life One Day At A Time

Keith KettenringChristian Living, The Uncommon Journey

Have you made a resolution this year to deepen your relationship with God? Have you taken to heart the invitation: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you” (James 4.8)? Have you come to realize the power of habit and ritual to transform your character and soul? If so, here is a morning routine that you can adopt that will accomplish all of this for you. 

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“He [Jesus] went to the Mount of Olives, as He was accustomed…” Jesus regularly went to a special place to meet with His Father.  

Set up a morning ritual:

  • awake at a set time with an alarm
  • get up immediately
  • get dressed
  • make coffee/tea or drink a glass of water 
  • go to your place of solitude and light a candle (as a way of focusing on God since Jesus is the Light)
  • sit in quiet solitude with God (at times sipping your coffee/tea while quieting your mind and opening your heart to God)
  • stand and pray the Trisagion prayer (this furthers your communion with God and allows what follows to become a part of praying) 
  • read and meditate on a portion of scripture (sitting or standing)
  • pray with the scripture in mind
  • remain quiet with God as long as you are able
  • engage in liturgical/set prayers and intercessory prayers 
  • conclude with the Jesus Prayer (“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner”) allowing it to be a springboard for communion with God all day long 
  • blow out the candle 

The links above (bold type) take you to a post from August 2016. It will provide more information on this kind of praying. 

When you engage this ritual for 21 days and more, you will experience some profound changes.  

I have done this ritual, or something like it, for over 25 years. I can vouch for the spiritual and life-giving effectiveness of good ritual. It continues to provide the structure for my communion with God and my ever-so-slow transformation of life.

In this type of routine/ritual/habit, moments of intimacy with God take place. You draw near to Him and He draws near to you. 

You are invited to develop or further develop this kind of ritual that will help transform your heart. 

Let me know how it goes for you by sharing your experience of this “routine” below. 

Dr. K