The prospect of a new year brings the hope of a fresh start. Individuals find inspiration to grow in certain areas of their lives and hope to make impactful changes.
Many people, however, struggle to create lasting goals for the new year. They may start strong in the first few months but fizzle out the rest of the year.
The same is true for spiritual growth goals. A believer might desire to deepen their relationship with God in the new year, but the momentum fades after a few months.
One way to remedy this is to integrate spiritual practices into everyday life. These can be as simple as reading the Bible in the morning or as complex as planning a spiritual retreat.
Throughout church history, Christians have utilized spiritual practices or disciplines to grow as followers of Jesus. Such practices do not save us since salvation is by grace through faith alone, but they can assist us in deepening our relationship with God and growing spiritually.
As we make the intention to implement these practices or disciplines, we start developing holy habits that draw us closer to the Lord. The more time with spend with God, the more we will find ourselves changed. We start growing spiritually.
Consider making these practices a part of your goals or resolutions for the year.
1. Bible Engagement
Reading the Bible is vital in the Christian life. As Jesus said, “‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God’” (Matthew 4:4; Deuteronomy 8:3).
Scripture is as necessary as food because it provides us with spiritual sustenance. Believers need to feast on the Word of God daily.
We can engage with the Bible each day through various means. A Bible reading plan is a helpful tool that allows a believer to read the entire Bible over a set period.
There are plans divided by years, such as the one-year and three-year reading plans. Other systems divide the sections into minutes, such as five-minute or ten-minute segments each day.
Another way to engage with Scripture is to listen to an audio Bible or read it aloud yourself. In the past, the central way that believers interacted with God’s Word was through hearing it.
Also, reading used to involve speaking the words aloud until people began reading silently. Hearing God’s Word verbally could help you better engage with the Bible.
Whichever way you choose to engage with the Bible, try to aim to read it each day. It is essential to growing in Christ.
2. Prayer
Like Bible engagement, prayer is also important in the Christian life. Prayer is the spiritual practice through which we talk to God and intercede for others.
Many believers think of it as a last resort during desperate times, but Scripture encourages us to pray continually (1 Thessalonians 5:17). If we want to deepen our relationship with the Lord, then we need to talk to Him.
Even if you do pray regularly, you may find yourself struggling to focus when praying. A way to start practicing the discipline of prayer in a fresh way is to write down your prayers to God.
The act of writing forces you to stay attentive to what you want to say to the Lord. You could record these prayers in a journal or notebook.
You can also enliven your prayer life by challenging yourself to spend an extended period of time with God. Free yourself of distractions and spend time talking to the Lord. You may be surprised at how God uses this to transform and grow you spiritually.
In addition to writing prayers and spending longer periods with God, consider praying throughout the day or at set times. Many believers in history found praying the Liturgy of the Hours helpful as a spiritual practice, enabling them to weave prayer into their daily lives.
This pattern is based on Old Testament examples, which were adopted by the early church (Psalm 55:17; Daniel 6:10).
Regardless of how you will engage in prayer this year, make sure to set aside regular time to talk to the Lord.
3. Celebration
Most Christians recognize the need for Bible reading and prayer but are hesitant about other spiritual practices. They may think that such practices are legalistic or ritualistic. However, there are disciplines that are biblically based and which have been used throughout church history.
One of these is the spiritual practice of celebration.
Scripture records Israel’s many feasts, which were times of remembrance for the Jewish people. They would reflect on what the Lord had done in the past, such as remembering God’s protection of the nation during the feast of Passover (Exodus 12:14).
Jesus fulfilled these festivals during His ministry and through His sacrificial death on the cross as the Lamb of God (John 1:29). However, believers today can benefit from celebrating times or seasons to remember what the Lord has done in the past and what He will do in the future.
The spiritual discipline of celebration includes meeting with other believers for worship. Together, believers take joy in Christ and worship Him. These meetings mirror the ongoing celebration in heaven (Revelation 4:9-11).
Observing the church calendar is another way to be involved in the worldwide community of believers who worship Christ.
There are specific times when Christians remember Jesus’ first coming while looking forward to His next (Advent) and reflect on His death and resurrection (Lent). Participating in the church calendar can enable you to find joy in the Lord all year long.
Find ways to celebrate the Lord in everyday life and with other believers.
4. Rest
Another spiritual practice that can help deepen your relationship with God is to take time to rest. In our activity-centered and work-obsessed culture, rest seems unneeded. At times, people can even feel guilty or lazy for taking time off.
However, God created rest for the benefit of humankind. After the Lord created all things in six days, He rested on the seventh day (Genesis 2:2-3). This is a pattern for human work. God gave Israel the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week set aside for rest (Exodus 20:11).
Jesus fulfilled the Old Testament Law and promises believers the ultimate Sabbath rest (Matthew 5:17; Hebrews 4:9-10). Christians are not under the Law and are not required to keep the Sabbath (Romans 6:14). The concept of rest, though, is biblical and given by the Lord.
Every believer needs to set aside time each day and week to rest and renew themselves in the Lord. Taking a day or a section of time off is an act of faith since we are trusting God with our time.
We will find it challenging at times to take a “Sabbath,” but that is why rest is a spiritual discipline. It takes effort and intention.
Taking a day off to rest each week may be how you choose to rest in the Lord, but you could also try to incorporate a time of rest into your daily life.
Decide in advance when you will take a “Sabbath” and commit yourself to that time. You might be giving up that ever-decreasing commodity called time, but you will learn to trust God and depend on Him more through the practice of rest.
As you free up your schedule to spend restful time with the Lord, you will grow in your relationship with Him.
5. Silence and Solitude
Although many other spiritual practices are beneficial in the Christian life, a final one we will examine is silence and solitude. These can be practiced separately or together, but they are often related. To be quiet before the Lord necessitates being alone with Him.
Jesus made spending time with the Father a priority. Scripture says that He often went “to lonely places and prayed” (Luke 5:16). Christ recognized that need for solitude when talking to the Father.
Similarly, the Bible tells us to be still before the Lord (Psalm 37:7). In our world of noise, practicing silence in the presence of God can help us better focus on the Lord.
Through the practice of silence, we can say, like David, “I have calmed and quieted myself, I am like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child I am content” (Psalm 131:2).
To start practicing silence and solitude, turn off all distractions and go to a private place to be alone with the Lord. Then, sit in silence before Him. You can start by being silent for a few minutes. Then, as you keep practicing, you can increase the time spent in quietness.
In terms of solitude, consider setting aside a day or weekend to get away for a longer period with the Lord. You may also decide to go on a spiritual retreat or create your own retreat by booking a hotel or cabin to spend alone time reading the Bible, worshiping, and praying.
Even if you cannot go on a retreat, simply carving out time to be alone with God will help you grow in love for Him and experience spiritual growth.
By intentionally setting aside time to spend alone with God and to be silent before Him, you can better focus on Him.
Why Does This Matter?
At the start of a new year, people desire to make changes and improve their lives. As believers, the most important thing in our lives is our relationship with Jesus.
We can grow in that relationship by practicing spiritual disciplines like Bible reading, prayer, celebration, rest, and silence and solitude.
Adding these spiritual disciplines to your resolutions this year will not only challenge you but also help you develop habits that will endure beyond the first few weeks of the new year.
For further reading:
5 Bible Journaling Ideas for the New Year
7 New Year's Resolutions That Are Outside the Box
7 Powerful Promises from God in the Bible
Photo Credit: ©Getty/Cn0ra
Sophia Bricker is a freelance writer who enjoys researching and writing articles on biblical and theological topics. In addition to contributing articles about biblical questions as a contract writer, she has also written for Unlocked devotional. She holds a BA in Ministry, a MA in Ministry, and is currently pursuing an MFA in Creative Writing to develop her writing craft. As someone who is passionate about the Bible and faith in Jesus, her mission is to help others learn about Christ and glorify Him in her writing. When she isn’t busy studying or writing, Sophia enjoys spending time with family, reading, drawing, and gardening.
