it takes a rhythm
to create healthy habits
to remain in sync
Ramona is our host this month for Spiritual Journey Thursday (SJT), and she invites us to reflect on rhythm. You can read her post here.
When I think of rhythm, I think of cycles associated with biorhythms, seasons and times, and cycles of nature. This verse from Genesis comes to mind:
Genesis 1:14 ESV
And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years….
I think of things having an appointed time in the rhythm of life when I consider the verses in Ecclesiastes that are so iconic to seasons and turning.
Ecclesiastes 3:1 ESV
For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven:
Rhythms and cycles play an important role in balance and harmony of living. Having a rhythm to each day, each week, each month is an important part of life, whether we are working or retired – rhythms are like schedules, habits, and time management. One of the first things I had to do in retirement was create new routines. A new prayer time topped my list, since my prayer chamber used to be my drive in to work and now that I’m not going there anymore, I needed a new designated time that would be consistent. I chose coffee time since there is a rhythm to that regularity and, to some degree, a consistent morning time frame – – and, like coffee, I need prayer at the top of the day. I have discovered in this new routine that I like to see steam rising from my mug as I say prayers, as if what is coming from my lips is swirling in a steam mist upwards to heaven in the quiet, relaxed rhythms of the morning.
HELLO! and HELP!
someone stranded
on a desert island
sends smoke signals
I send prayers
from the porch
fresh from my lips
vapors rising
to heaven
A special thanks to Ramona for hosting this month and inspiring us to think of the rhythms in our spiritual lives.
Common Threads 
Kim, I love that image of you enjoying your morning coffee while sending your prayers swirling heavenward. It seems like a lovely rhythm for beginning the day. I used to pray on my way to school too.
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Ramona, my prayer chamber habit has to be a habit…..shower, porch, coffee….something daily. I’m still struggling with the timing and forget sometimes. Take care!
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Kim, I love the idea of your prayers being carried on the steam rising from your coffee. It reminds me incense being used to carry the prayers of the congregation to Heaven. These rhythms, routines, you mention are so important in keeping the world turning. If they get out of whack, so does the world. Bob
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Yes, out of whack is a good way to put it. Sometimes my world tilts on the wrong axis if I get my nose out of joint. I need prayer all day, every day……
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Kim, I love thinking of prayer as smoke signals to heaven 🙂 and imagining a God who waits to receive them.
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Patricia, I’m with you…..I always add, “and give Mom and Dad a hug from me….” hoping they’ll get that message.
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Kim, your Bible verses are filled with thoughts of creation and time. It is amazing how the Bible offers us solace when we need it. Your rhythms have changed and I must say coffee time is an ideal time to pray. I have had a difficult time staying in prayer due to grief that likes to interrupt my thoughts but I am trying to alter that. I also like your thought, “vapors rising/to heaven”. Now that it is perfect way for prayers to find their journey to heaven.
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Carol, I’m having some hiccups with the timing of the inconsistent schedule of retirement. It’s true what they say – – I am busier than I’ve ever been! I need to find the prayerful pauses on a consistent schedule.
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