Old Habits Die Hard

OK. It’s now the second week of January and I’ll wager a bet that, for most of us, enthusiasm for the New Year’s Resolutions we committed to at the beginning of last week is beginning to fade. Our new habits haven’t become habits at all—-they are now just a few more items on an already too long “to do” list. And our old habits, say, watching all our favorite TV shows and then realizing on Sunday morning that we haven’t opened our Bibles all week because we were just so busy—-die hard.

Fortunately, Jesus understands that good intentions sometimes fade before we put them into action. And He stands ready to challenge our priorities and redirect us. Remember when Peter saw Jesus at the Sea of Galilee after the Resurrection? Peter had been out fishing and, looking up from his nets, he saw Jesus standing on the shore. Peter leaped overboard and waded in to the beach. That morning Jesus reminded Peter three times that what he was supposed to be doing was feeding Christ’s flock. (You can read the whole story in John 21.)

Did you ever wonder why Peter was fishing that day? It’s not like he didn’t know that Jesus had been resurrected. He had seen Christ and spoken with him. And it’s not like he didn’t know that the disciples now had a mission: Jesus, in his resurrected body, had specifically told them that as the Father had sent Him, now He was sending them. Jesus had told them of the tremendous power they had in Him. In fact, He had gone so far as to tell them that if they forgave anyone’s sins, those sins would be forgiven. Yet Peter was fishing. Why? I imagine it was because fishing was what he knew how to do. It was his old way of life. He was comfortable with the routine tasks. But when it came to being sent out into the world by Christ and forgiving sins, he was floundering. What exactly was he supposed to be doing each day?

God is a God with the power to pull us out of our old routines and transform us. Peter left old habits behind that day. He became the rock on which Christ built His Church. Christ can do the same with us if we are willing to stop fishing and try the new life.

Habit for January: How are you doing on our new habits for 2006? Remember to pray for two minutes before getting out of bed each morning and before you drift off to sleep each night. And read the New Testament for five minutes today--maybe during your commute, your exercise routine or before you turn on the TV tonight. For more info, see the January 3 post.