devotion(s)

Some people who've been Christians for a while use the word "devotions" to refer to their times of Bible reading, prayer, meditation, or whatever they do to set aside time just for God. I've always been intrigued by this word.

When someone is devoted to something, you can always tell. Over time and with a lot of repetition that thing shapes her/his life. If someone is devoted to cooking, s/he will read magazines and books about cooking, buy cooking gadgets and gear, wear cooking apparel, and get joy out of tasting foods or developing a menu.

Am I devoted to God? What effect do my "devotions" have on me? Do they shape me? Maybe the things that really shape me are my true "devotions". And if my life is to be "conformed to the image of Christ" (Rom. 8:29) then I may need to get rid of some of these other devotions.

I was thinking about this as I considered how to fast during this Advent season (see the previous post for my reason for fasting for Advent). I could fast from food one day a week, which would be fairly traditional. But I want to fast in such a way that I'm reminded daily of the fact that I'm fasting. I want to set aside something that I'm devoted to and give that intentionally created space to God. The purpose is not to prove my devotion to God. The purpose is to give God a chance to shape me.