But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. (Luke 5:16, NIV)
BREAKING NEWS: We become good at what we practice. Okay, so that is not actually breaking news for most, but I’m convinced it is a necessary reminder.
This may seem straightforward, but hear me out. If you practice your wedges every day, chances are high you will grow to be a good wedge player. If it’s putting, or drives or chipping, the same holds true that if you routinely practice with good fundamentals, you are increasing your odds of being proficient in that area. What also happens is that if you consistently play or practice golf with music on and people talking, you more than likely will get pretty good at distracted practice and playing.
What will more than likely be challenging is if you play in a tournament with no music or people talking. The habits we engrain may seem mindless or simply a way to relax and decompress, and there is nothing right or wrong in how you choose to practice. The key is to be clear on what your purpose is in practicing. Is it to have fun and enjoy a casual round of golf? Or is it to play professionally? Different objectives require different intentionality in practice.
The simple notion—we become good at what we practice applies in all areas of our life—relationships, nutrition, work, sport, and spirituality. As I was reminded recently, there is no such thing as there is not enough time, but there is priority. We accomplish and do what we prioritize as important.
You and I now have the opportunity to grow in our closeness to the Father because the sin that was separating us has been paid for at the cross.
There are numerous ways we can spend our time, and yet there are equally as many distractions. Jesus was no stranger to being pulled in multiple directions as he too was limited by time and a human body.
What we know about Jesus is that he was a carpenter prior to public life ministry at age 30, before being crucified and conquering sin at death by age 33. Not a bad resumé in a short time period. In those three crammed pack years, Jesus did so many miracles that the apostle John presumed the world itself could not contain the books that would be written (John 21:25).
Jesus lived his life on a mission. He was intentional with his interactions with his disciples, strangers and enemies. The Pharisees, Sadducees, many other people, and the devil constantly tried to distract him from the will of the Father, but he stayed connected to the Father. Our verse today, Luke 5:16, tells us he often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
To be clear, we can’t ever earn our salvation through spiritual practices such as prayer. No amount of good habits can usurp the necessary work of the cross and the salvation we have because of Jesus’ righteousness and work done on our behalf. The gospel is the good news that the work has been done for us to have a clean slate and our sins forgiven; praise be to Jesus!
You and I now have the opportunity to grow in our closeness to the Father because the sin that was separating us has been paid for at the cross. We can be intentional in drawing near to God and he will draw near to us. By the power of the Holy Spirit we have the freedom to fight (and win) against our knee-jerk reaction to distance ourselves from the One who knows us best and will mend our hearts and minds. May we put into practice what our Savior did and withdraw often to pray.
—
Aimee Neff
October 22, 2020
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The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
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