Going deeper... a pattern for life
/One of the things we learn about Jesus as we study his life is that Jesus had a pattern to his life and ministry…
Patterns of time with God… Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. (Luke 5:16)
Patterns of time with his community… He went to Nazareth, where he had been brought up, and on the Sabbath day he went into the synagogue, as was his custom. (Luke 4:16)
Patterns of time serving others… Again crowds of people came to him, and as was his custom, he taught them. (Matt 10:1)
As we seek to disciple with Jesus – to be with him, to become like him and to do as he did – creating our own patterns inspired by his and those of the church down the ages is a really powerful way in which we can grow. Such a ‘rule of life’, as it has often been called, is like a trellis on which a plant grows. The point is not the trellis, but the plant which grows upon it. Likewise, the aim is not to perfectly tick off a list of practices, but to put a framework in our lives which means we are regularly opening ourselves up to God and his Spirit’s work in our lives. Jesus has saved us freely through his cross – this is not about trying harder for God. It is about being so delighted that God has set us free, forgiven us and given us life that we want to do all we can for our lives to be a delight to him.
You probably already have some of these spiritual patterns in your life already, so start simply and start where you are. Here we suggest a simple set of patterns which might help you to get started:
Daily practices
Scripture: reading God’s Word in the Bible is how we feed ourselves as disciples of Jesus. We have suggestions of how you might get started and how to go deeper with Bible reading.
Prayer: prayer was essential for Jesus, it is for us too. A regular time of prayer serves to bring our hearts and thoughts back to God. We have suggestions of how you might get started and how to go deeper with prayer.
Looking after yourself: our bodies and minds should not be forgotten in our walk with Jesus. It might be that you need to replace a negative practice with positive one. Examples might include limiting your alcohol intake or taking up daily exercise. Or recognising you spend too much time on your devices and deciding to turn screens off after 8pm or for one day a week.
A heart growing habit: why not take up another ‘spiritual discipline’ such as silence or fasting. The ‘Who am I becoming’ booklet gives some guidelines on a few and places to look for more practice and information.
Blessing others: start a practice which means you will be blessing others and finding opportunities to show God’s love and share God’s love with others. Ideas include anything from texting an encouragement to someone different each day to cutting your neighbour’s lawn; from babysitting to delivering cakes!
Weekly practices
Worship: join with us in our weekly services to worship God and learn from him.
Belong: join one of our Connect groups or missional communities. These are places where we share life, learn together, pray for each other and serve together. For help finding a group, please do email David Spence (david@coggesparish.com).
Service: find a place to serve in our church and/or out there in our community. A free ‘personal discipleship plan’ session (see the page on service) with a trained mentor is a great way to explore your gifting and how you might serve.
Rest: God has made us to have a pattern of rest – a day of rest each week. We explore this practice in this talk and also in the ‘Who am I becoming’ booklet.
Giving: respond to the needs of the world and the church through giving. To give to the work of Cogges church (including the compassion fund) click here. You might like to give to organizations and people who are on your heart too.
The previous post ‘Going deeper… with practices’ gaves some places where you can find practical information about how to get started with some of these practices. The practicing the way website from Bridgetown Church in Portland, Oregon also provides helpful guides to think through we might put this together into a ‘rule of life’.