5 Simple Ways to Maintain Momentum

By Tom Holladay


When you're feeling down, look up and adopt these everyday healthy habits to grow with God.

1. Pray for the first two minutes. The first two minutes of what? The first two minutes of everything! The first two minutes of your day, the first two minutes after you get in the car, the first two minutes at work. It is amazing how staying in a dialogue with God about everything will help you to stay connected to him.

2. Stop and listen. Staying connected to God means maintaining a conversation with God, which means it is as important to listen as it is for you to talk. Try asking God a question about a decision you are facing and then just listen for a moment. Blaise Pascal, the philosopher and mathematician, said, "All human evil comes from this, man's being unable to sit still in a room."

3. Put God's truth where you can see it. The Bible is God's love letter to you, filled with truth about everything in your life. As you hear or read a verse of Scripture that is meaningful to you, let it become meaningful beyond that moment. Write it down on a card, and put that card where you'll see it often. This writing the words of God on your heart, by the way, is how God directed Jewish families to learn his truth; look it up in Deuteronomy 6.

4. Spend time daily in spiritual reflection. A great way to grow deeper is through a daily devotion. And I know one intimately that I can recommend. I teach a daily podcast called "DriveTime Devotions." This 10-minute podcast devotional goes through the New Testament, one chapter a week and one book of the Bible at a time. You can find "DriveTime Devotions" on iTunes or at saddlebackfamily.com/mediacenter/drivetime. I would be honored to know that you are tuning in and allowing me to help you build some good habits.

5. Tell God, "Thank you." I've found that one of the most important habits for staying connected to God is to establish an attitude of gratitude. Telling God "Thank you" throughout the day completely changes my perspective and refreshes my sense of connection with him.
Here's my challenge for you: Try just one of these habits this week, and watch what God does in your life. Keep it going for two weeks, and you'll see him do even more. By the time you've done it for six weeks, that one change in your life will be an established habit, keeping you moving up even when the escalator is headed down.


Tom Holladay is a teaching pastor at Saddleback Church, and author of "The Relationship Principles of Jesus".