As Was His Custom

Why do we do what we do week after week? There is power in ritual; there is presence in repeated action, in habits that build up. We often talk about habits as bad things, things we need to curtail or quit. But there can be good habits too, holy habits, we might call them. Certainly, attending gathered weekly worship is one of those habits to celebrate.

We might give some attention to the why of worship this week as we hear that Jesus attended prayers in the synagogue as a habit. Why do we gather for worship when we can worship on our own? When we do gather, why do we pray prayers of confession? Why do we pray prayers of intercession? Why do we sing? Why is there preaching and reading of scripture? All the things that we have done out of habit are good things, but they should not be unthinking things. We need to remember together why we do what we do.

One reason for reflecting on practice is so that we can tell the story when we invite others to join us. Adding some depth to the practices can help us converse with those who are unfamiliar with what we do. We are working on our testimony as we examine the meaning behind the practices of our faith.

Let our worship develop holy habits so that we, too, can gather—as is our custom.