June 20th - The Stacking Habit

The story...

My story begins with my attempt to share a bad habit that I replaced with a good one.  I selected a habit that I'd like to change over the next month.  When I post this blog on June 20th, you'll hear, or read, my rendition of what actually occurred.  Will I be able to replace the habit with a better one and will I be more comfortable with myself as a result?

The habit I choose is: organizing the stuff near my side of the bed every day.  I've a habit of stacking things, quickly tossing down my clothes, and inviting my spouse, without actually saying so, to stack stuff there too.  I'll organize my side of my bedroom every day after I complete the nytimes.com "Wordle" game.

My Wordle result - 05/17/23

I've heard it said that a good way to begin a new habit is to "Stack" it after a habit that you find pleasure in or look forward to.  Personally, I look forward to every Sunday morning when I meet my friends at church, synch our lives, remind each other of the reality of what God's revealed, and to praise and wordship "That in Which There is No Greater."  Being involved in the only church in town will involve people and their sin which will inevitably cause conflict and problems.  God's Word and Power will offer peace for each of his "Christ Ones" as they navigate through life together.  People and their habits being transformed toward...

STACKING TRIAL UPDATE:  It didn't work - I still have a stack of stuff next to my bed.  Maybe the stack is part of my routine or habits that best fits this stage of life that I'm journeying through?  I'm okay with me just as I am today - living in the present more honestly and humbly.

Just for today...

"The 'defects of character' I want to be rid of are sure to have deep roots in habit . . . If I am truly willing, I will see them replaced gradually by impulses of a different quality, that I can live with, comfortably and free from self-reproach."   One Day at a Time (p. 172)

"The first step in learning to respond more effectively to others is to learn to respond more effectively to myself.  I can learn to respond with love, caring, and respect for myself, even for those parts of me that experience fear, confusion, and anger."  Courage to Change (p. 172)