Practices of Faith

Practices of Faith

Here are multiple practices of faith, or things you can do to display your devotion to God and to aid you in growing in your faith.

1. Meditation- Meditation is just about being still, clearing your mind, and listening for what God has to say to you. It is a lot harder than it sounds, but you need to not focus on yourself and focus solely on God.
2. Witnessing- Witnessing is the open testament about your faith. It is professing your knowledge and experience of God. This can be having a blog, a bible instagram account, a youtube channel, or good old fashioned talking to people.  
3. Silence- Silence is about reflection. Be silent for as long or short as you like, but your focus and purpose of silence is for listening to God.
4. Fasting- Fasting is done for many purposes. It is when you do not ingest anything for a certain period of time. Some do it to grow closer to God, to sharpen their focus on his will in their life, or to petition God for something. But, fasting frequently and for long periods of time is not healthy, so be careful.  
5. Living Simply- To me, living simply means not relying on possessions and opulence for life. It is letting go of the world and holding firmly onto heaven.
6. Devotional Reading- Reading a daily devotional puts you in the mindset to be looking for God in your daily life. It reminds you to be aware of where God is working in you and those around you that day.  
7. Prayer- Prayer is a fancy word for talking to God. It is telling God your worries, sins, praises, fears, joys, and anything else on your mind. Of course, God already knows everything about you, but he wants you to tell him everything on your own accord out of faith.
8. Baptism- Baptism is a religious act in which you are sprinkled with water or immersed in a pool. It represents purification, as when you come out of the water all of your sins have been washed away.
9. Bible Study- A bible study is simply when a group of believers come together to study God’s word. It aids not only in study and comprehension of the Bible but in accountability, fellowship, different perspectives and for getting second opinions,  
10. Journaling- God reveals himself in scripture, and journaling is a way to keep track of how he revealed himself when you read a particular verse. It is helpful in comprehension of complex passages, and in seeing how you have grown. It is amazing to read something in the bible and find your thoughts from the last time you read it. Often times, your perspective and understanding of the verse has changed, so it is super helpful to write down what certain things mean to you.
11. Keeping the Sabbath- Keeping the Sabbath means that you rest and reflect on God one day a week. For most, that day is Sunday, but it is okay to make any other day your personal sabbath. The main idea is to rest, be with family, and take the time to be with God.
12. Lectio Divina- Lectio Divina is the practice of praying with scripture. Sometimes you don’t have the words to say, so you can use this to call out to God with what you need. An example of this would be praying, “Help me to be strong and courageous. Do not let me be afraid or discouraged, for the Lord my God is with me wherever I go.” Joshua 1:9
13. Fellowship- Fellowship is spending time with other believers. It is going to church and talking to people, joining a small group, a club, or a Christian organization. You go and spend time with people who are there in the trenches with you. Fellowship is about doing life together.
14. Communion- At the last Passover while Jesus was on Earth he was with his disciples. He broke bread and said, “This is my body broken for you.” Then he took a glass of wine and said, “This is my blood, poured out for you.” Communion is remembering this. It is some form of taking bread and wine or grape juice. It is done at church, and depending on the church it may be weekly, or only on special occasions.
15. Self-denial- Self-denial is what it sounds like. It is denying yourself the temptations of this world. It is not giving into sin and evil. It is about focusing in heaven, and the glorious riches waiting there.
16. Worship- Worship is a show of your devotion and adoration to God. There are many ways to worship, but the most popular is through music. Other ways include obeying God, prayer, reading the bible, tithing, witnessing, serving others, and turning your entire life over to God.  
17. Spiritual Friendships- Having a spiritual friendship with someone means that you can go to that person and talk about spiritual things. It is incredibly amazing because it means you have friends around your age that you can ask for advice, and they can direct you to a certain passage in the bible, or they can pray for you. It is so amazing to have friends you can have fun with, but still be able to talk about religious things.
18. Singing from the Soul- This isn’t about how well you can sing. It is all about giving everything from the center of your soul over to God. You don’t have to sing well, you just have to sing loud and proud for all of heaven to hear. God gave you your voice, so you should not be afraid to use in for his glory.
19. Accountability Group- An accountability can make sure you are focusing on your walk with God. You tell them your goals and desires, and they help you make sure you are taking the proper steps towards that. They help you to follow through with your plans and remind you to walk with God.

There are so many other things you can do to show your loving devotion to God, but these ideas are a good starting point. There is no right or wrong way to do these things, all that matters is that God is at the center of everything you do.