Recovering
Sacred Rhythms

As we learn to read Scripture through practices like Lectio Divina and cultivate awareness of God's presence throughout the day, another ancient practice helps bring these two realities together. It is the practice of carrying God's Word with us beyond our devotional time and into the ordinary moments of daily life. Throughout the history of the Church, believers have discovered that Scripture has a unique ability to shape the heart when it is not only read, but remembered, reflected upon, and returned to throughout the day. This practice is sometimes called ruminatio, a word that describes the slow and repeated reflection upon Scripture. Rather than reading a passage and immediately moving on, we carry a verse, phrase, or passage with us. We return to it during the day. We think about it, pray through it, and allow it to accompany us in our work, conversations, and decisions. In this way, God's Word becomes more than information we receive. It becomes nourishment that continues to feed our hearts long after we have finished reading. The goal is not memorization for its own sake, although Scripture memory can certainly be a helpful part of the practice. The goal is to allow God's Word to remain present and active within us. As we revisit a passage throughout the day, we often begin to notice things we missed before. A verse may take on new significance in a particular situation. A promise may bring encouragement during a difficult moment. A command may gently guide our response to a challenge. Over time, Scripture begins to shape not only what we know, but how we think, respond, and live. On the Christian Practices website, the Living Word resources are designed to help you develop this simple but transformative rhythm. The invitation is not to add another task to your day, but to allow God's Word to remain with you as a companion throughout it. As you continue this journey, you may discover that Scripture is not only something you visit during a devotional time, but something that walks with you throughout the day, continually drawing your attention back to God and His presence in your life. Steve Lawes serves as the lead pastor of Keys Vineyard Church, founder of the Online Bible Institute Network, and leads the Christian Practices initiative through Tower of Praise, Inc. His heart is to help people grow in a steady and authentic relationship with God through simple, accessible rhythms of Scripture, prayer, and spiritual formation.    

As these rhythms became a regular part of my life, I began to recognize a subtle danger that accompanies every spiritual practice. It is possible to become so focused on the practice itself that we lose sight of the relationship it was intended to support. What begins as a pathway to God can slowly become a destination of its own. The very practices that help us grow can become distractions if we allow them to take a place they were never meant to occupy. This realization became one of the most important lessons of my journey.

The truth is that spiritual practices, no matter how helpful they may be, cannot create a relationship with God. They can nurture it. They can strengthen it. They can create space for it. But they can never replace it. Reading Scripture is not the same as knowing God. Saying prayers is not the same as walking with Him. Following a rhythm is not the same as living in relationship. The practices are valuable precisely because they point beyond themselves. They are signposts, not destinations. They are invitations, not achievements.

I began to notice that whenever I felt pressure to perform, to keep up, or to measure my spiritual life by how well I was maintaining the practices, something had drifted off course. The focus had quietly shifted from relationship to performance. Yet God was continually inviting me back to something simpler. He was not asking me to perfect a system. He was inviting me to walk with Him. The practices were at their best when they helped me return to His presence, listen to His voice, and respond to His invitation. They became less about accomplishing something and more about creating space to be with Someone.

Looking back, I now see that this may be the most important lesson of all. The goal of Christian Practices is not to produce experts in spiritual disciplines. The goal is to help people grow in a living relationship with God. Practices matter because relationships matter. Rhythms matter because they help us remain attentive. But relationship must always remain at the center. If a practice ever begins to compete with relationship, it has lost its purpose. The invitation is not to become devoted to a rhythm. The invitation is to become devoted to God. The rhythm simply helps us return to Him, again and again, throughout the journey.

Steve Lawes serves as the lead pastor of Keys Vineyard Church, founder of the Online Bible Institute Network, and leads the Christian Practices initiative through Tower of Praise, Inc. His heart is to help people grow in a steady and authentic relationship with God through simple, accessible rhythms of Scripture, prayer, and spiritual formation.