Bad habits are hard to break. (Cue Chicago “Hard Habit to Break.”)
Like eating ice cream every night. Or putting off doing your taxes. Or drinking so much coffee that you begin to hear colors.
(Don’t judge me. You have your own bad habits, I’m sure of it. And if not, please don’t rub it in.)
Many habits are due to the environment. I have a habit of sneezing in the spring because of my environment, but that’s another story.
Several months ago we bought new sink faucets for the kitchen and bathrooms because our old faucets had a habit of leaking. Love the new faucets but there is one small problem.
You see, these faucets have a handle that you push up or down depending on what temperature you want. For the bathroom faucets, you push up for hot, down for cold. “Heat it up” is what I tell myself. So far so good, right?
But for the kitchen faucet, you push down for hot, up for cold. Yep, backwards.
My wife says there is a marking on the kitchen faucet indicating this, but apparently it is too small for the average human eye to see it and she has bionic sight. (Cue Bionic Woman sound effect.)
What all this means is that every time I go to operate a sink—something I have done every day of my life for 61 years, by the way—I have to think hard to remember how this faucet works. You may think that doesn’t sound so difficult, but remember: habits! It’s hard to get in a habit when it’s different each time.
My wife reminds me at the kitchen sink that it’s “down for hot.” Of course I did already know it was “down for hot” but just needed to remember.
In fact, for the majority of life, I know what to do. I just need to remember.
The Israelites had the same problem. That’s why God has to remind them of the same things over and over. And over. And He even has them remind themselves in various ways.
- According to Deuteronomy 6:8, they were to tie Scripture on their hands and bind them on their foreheads. These are called phylacteries or tefillin. They were small leather boxes that contain portions of the Law of Moses. Despite this literal application, many scholars think this verse to be more figurative.
- And according to the next verse (6:9), they were also to write them on the doorframe to the house. This is called a mezuzah (Hebrew for “doorpost”) and usually contains the Shema from Deuteronomy 6:4: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.”
- According to Deuteronomy 17:18-20, each time a new king takes the throne of Israel, he is to write his own copy of the Law of Moses and “read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees.”
In the New Testament, Peter also understood the importance of reminding:
- “So I will always remind you of these things, even though you know them and are firmly established in the truth you now have. I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me. And I will make every effort to see that after my departure you will always be able to remember these things.” – 2 Peter 1:12-15
- “Dear friends, this is now my second letter to you. I have written both of them as reminders to stimulate you to wholesome thinking. I want you to recall the words spoken in the past by the holy prophets and the command given by our Lord and Savior through your apostles.” – 2 Peter 3:1-2
It seems we humans need a lot of reminding to get past our bad habits and establish good ones.
What are some practical ways to remind ourselves continually of the Word of God? There are many possibilities, but here are a few ideas:
- Daily getting in the Bible and prayer, preferably in the early morning, but at other times as well
- Regular church meetings and small group meetings
- Listening to the Bible digitally
- Posting artistic Scriptures in the home
- Memorizing a verse a week
- Writing out meaningful Scriptures in a journal
What are some other ways you can think of to remind yourself of God’s Word?