Firm Foundations 

We all have rhythms in life, things that we do in life on a regular basis, things that help us to live and function. It could be having a daily wash (hopefully), eating set meals, going to work, taking the kids to school, doing your homework, going for exercise – all rhythms that when you put together, form the rhythm of your daily life.  

In our new series we are going to be looking at how we can put in place regular patterns for connecting with God. Daily rhythms that will help to sustain us in what can often feel like a chaotic and exhausting life. 

We’ll do this by journeying together through part of the Sermon on the Mount (mostly in Matthew 6 and 7). And looking at some of the rhythms that Jesus taught about and how we can practically either start or grow in these rhythms.  

Before we explore these rhythms though, three words of warning/caution/advice… 

1. Jesus’ teaching isn’t easy to follow 

If we want quick fixes in life, Jesus isn’t the answer. As we look through some of the rhythms that Jesus taught, we’ll be challenged, we’ll need to work hard to dig deep through things we learn. There might be some unlearning to do.  

If we’re going to build new rhythms, or grow in existing rhythms, there will be some sacrifice needed. We might have to give up some current rhythms to make room for new ones. 

2. We can’t do it in our own strength 

Creating rhythms in our lives that help us to connect with God won’t come easy, so we’ll need some help. Maybe that help and strength needs to come through joining a connect group, seeking some professional help from a counsellor, or journeying through the series with a couple of close friends.  

For all of us, we can ask the Holy Spirit to help guide us, bring challenge and correction where it’s needed, and to give us strength to grow in our connection with God.  

3. There’s always grace 

The danger in following Jesus is that we treat these rhythms/spiritual disciplines as rules or a checklist for how to connect with God, rather than having a heart desire to connect with God.  

When these rhythms act as a checklist, we see them as ‘a means to an end’, and we beat ourselves up when we haven’t done them. They become legalistic and we beat ourselves up when we fall short, or worse still, we beat up others with our judgement when they fall short.  

Jesus set the bar high because he was tired of empty religious acts that didn’t lead to a connection with the Father, but instead left people in a mess when life got difficult.  

With all these rhythms, we won’t always get it right, but we need to know that Jesus’ grace is always available to us all. This means we can take a deep breath, and say “help me God”, and then we go again. It’s about connection with God, not a glorified checklist.  

Questions: 

1. Some of the rhythms we will look at in the Sermon on the Mount are; Prayer, Forgiveness, Fasting, Financial Stewardship, overcoming worry and self-examination… which rhythms have you found hard over time and why do you think this is? 

2. Looking at Matthew 7:24-29, what things have you learn from the Wise and Foolish man? What is significant about the similarities and the differences between them? 

3. How important is it to keep coming back to God’s grace when trying to grow in these rhythms?