In Habit: Habitude of Gratitude

3:33 - Welcome back into the room…

Let’s be honest—we all want a better 2026. And it really doesn’t matter what 2025 was like. When we turn the pages on the calendar, we usually start with the same kinds of questions we asked last year:

Can this year be different? Can I have more margin…more hope…more joy? Can I have less anxiety…less pressure…less fear?

These are great questions—important ones. They’re worth pondering as we prepare for the next 12 months. But too often, we look back and realize we didn’t actually arrive anywhere. We just survived. Tired. Stretched thin. Still longing.

So what if we started 2026 by asking for a different kind of “more” or “less”? Not more activity. Not more achievement. or Less stress But more Presence— to learn to be in the habit of inhabiting the presence of God.

In the Habit of inhabiting the presence of God

What if we began this year by honestly examining our HABITS, our schedules, our distractions, and our direction—and fine-tuning them? Not for perfection, but for alignment. To build habits that actually stick. Habits that shape us into people who live aware of God, grounded in Him, and formed by His presence.

Disclaimer - If you want to read more about how habits work or why they are so important in a general sense - Charles Duhigg wrote a great book simply called the POWER OF HABIT. I lean a lot on his research for this series - its a great read.

What if we started the year with this 21 days of Prayer Fasting and examining our habits to see where we can make adjustments. What kind of year could 2026 be if our first priority wasn’t doing more for God ­– but inhabiting more with Him? I think we would all sign up for that. I wish there was a snap of a finger or a 1, 2, 3 step process to a new and better you…there isn’t BUT BUT BUT there is a process, a pathway, there are habits that will put us in a place to inhabit the presence of God…

I want that for you, you want that for you, I want that for me…So where do we start?

Habitude of Gratitude

I’m gonna be honest for a second. I thought I just made up a silly word to make a point, but it turns out Habitude is actually a word. What clued me in, my spell check didn’t tell me to fix it! HA - Habitude

Habitude is a noun that means - “a habitual tendency or way of behaving”

Habitude: “a habitual tendency or way of behaving”

In other words - living - day to day from a habit - a habit of living as a person who is grateful.

Some of you might be thinking - of sure PC easy for you to say - you are the guy who doesn’t see a glass as half empty or half-full - you see only see the Free Refills.

Right - AND I get discouraged just like you, I have hard days just like you, I see trouble around the corner, I recognize the struggle of the day-to-day, I have experienced great and sudden loss, slow and painful loss…Just like you, just like the you next to you - I am not immune to the reality of life.

BUT! What if, what if you and I developed a habit that moved us closer to living with a habitude of gratitude? If we changed a routine we already have in place - if a small fine tuning to the first thing we do everyday. What if we could make a small adjustment that has the potential to lead to greater gratitude? I’m not talking about ignoring relating but what if there is a small shift in our daily habit that opens our lives up to a habitude of gratitude?

So here’s what I want to do today. I want to help us develop the habit. I have it doesn’t have to be something that is overly complicated, or hard to do part. As a matter fact, if you want to start a new habit, the key is allowing it to be part of a regular rhythm of your life already. Not making a wild crazy adjustment. Those don’t last. But a small fine-tuning of sorts.

You will hear this throughout the series I am sure - but every habit has three basic elements - Cue - Routine - Reward.

CUE - Routine - Reward

Cue - a little nicer language than a trigger. Trigger and you think Trauma - Cue isn’t a triggering event its just that moment. I feel hungry - I find food - I am refueled CUE/Routine/Reward

Cue - Getting into the driver’s seat of the car / Seatbelt mirrors music steering wheel heater / Reward the alarm doesn’t buzz over and over, the steering wheel isn’t like grabbing an ice block.

Cue - The alarm goes off / the watch vibrates to wake you up / the Hatch alarm starts to glow and mimic the new dawn to allow to to gently arise from your slumber - Actually - This is the cue I want to focus on for a bit

We all have this same cue - I don’t know about the Hatch alarm…I hear they are great but…

The first CUE is one we all have - everyday - maybe different times of the day - but all of us have this exact same cue at some point of every day

Cue - Simple you wake up

…here’s the thing you have something you do thats almost automatic when you wake up - its already a cue in your daily life. The cue is there - its the routine we want to address. Remember we are looking to roll into 2026 with a habitude of gratitude - and the best place to make it a reality begins when you begin your day. Small Change - with the potential for big results…

Start each day with a song, a thought, or a word of gratitude -or even a Psalm of praise

Psalm 100 (CSB) A psalm of thanksgiving. Let the whole earth shout triumphantly to the Lord! Serve the Lord with gladness; come before him with joyful songs.

Acknowledge that the Lord is God. He made us, and we are his— his people, the sheep of his pasture. Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise.

Give thanks to him and bless his name. For the Lord is good, and his faithful love endures forever; his faithfulness, through all generations.

He made us and we are His! The sheep of his pasture - The sheep under the care of the Shepherd Jesus… We get to come before him with Thanksgiving and Praise.

What would it look like for you, that if the first thing you did, the first move you made, the first thought you had, the first moment you had with the Lord was before your feet even hit the floor. What if you and I took the next 21 days of prayer and fasting to build a better habit - one that would help us have a Habitude of Gratitude by starting each day like the People of God did when they entered into God’s presence.

Cool thing about this Psalm. It was often attributed as one of the entry Psalms for the people, the procession of Israelites as they made their way to the Tabernacle or the Temple for sacrifices. The song of praise they would sing as they literally walked up to His Gates, His Courts with praise.

They entered singing how they desired to feel - thankful and full of Praise

The beautiful thing for you and I today, we don’t have to go anywhere to enter into His presence. We don’t have to Walk up to his presence…we Wake up to His presence

We don’t have to Walk up to his presence…we Wake up to His presence

I get it, there are days you are not so sure if God would let you into His space. You had a rough week, you have been doing great but the last few months you’ve gotten off track - you allowed that sin, you allowed those thoughts, those actions, those things you thought you kicked - well they made it back into your day-to-day.

And now you’re wondering if God even wants you around Him. Let me just put that to rest for you. The answer is YES. The evidence…you are here. The evidence…you long for a deeper connection to Jesus…the evidence is you. And YES you are not only wanted - you are designed to be in the presence of God. What Jesus did on the cross for you, for those next to you, for me is real, its effective, and it means you don’t ever need to hide in shame - you can run to the Shepherd.

So wake up with gratitude on your hearts and praise on your lips…

Maybe for you its like the Psalmist said

….Come before Him with Joyful Songs - (Psa 100:2)

As you prepare a day of service ahead - start with a joyful song of praise. Instead of grabbing your celly - Thats what these Aussie guys on youtube call a cell phone - instead of grabbing the celly - hit the morning worship playlist.

Or, maybe you are like some of my kiddos and you just wake up and your volume is already to 10 - fine Psalm 95 - another one of the Temple worship psalms has you covered…

Psalm 95:1–2 (CSB) Come, let’s shout joyfully to the Lord, shout triumphantly to the rock of our salvation! Let’s enter his presence with thanksgiving; let’s shout triumphantly to him in song.

Just shout Thank you Lord - Wanna combine the first two - no problem - right this down “THANKFUL” by Forest Frank - he will list em out for you, and you can sing as loud as your roommates, your neighbors, or your family will let you.

Not a high energy morning person…no problem…you don’t need to be high energy to start with a heart of gratitiude.

Be still, stay quiet, cover your face if you need to, roll onto your knees if that helps…just posture yourself before the Lord of creation with a heart of gratitude before anything else. Take 30 seconds or 3 trips around the snooze bar.

Want a little more intellectual approach? Find a psalm or a passage and write it down, memorize it - change it up every so often - but for the next 21 days pick a psalm of praise and thanksgiving. It could be:

Psalm 92:1–2 (CSB) It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praise to your name, Most High, to declare your faithful love in the morning and your faithfulness at night,

Or

Psalm 95:6–7 (CSB) Come, let’s worship and bow down; let’s kneel before the Lord our Maker. For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, the sheep under his care.

Start the day with that Psalm as the first thing you think about. CUE wake up - Routine - recall the psalm of praise and begin each day with a sense of Gratitude for all the Lord has and is doing for you.

Do you know what I love about this adjustment to our habitude - it has deep roots in the scripture. Imagine the walk up to the Temple…like church sure..but you are walking up to the place where you believe the Spirit of the Lord resides. The God who rescued your people from trouble time and time again - rescued from Egypt when the Pharaoh had enslaved and was killing your people.

The same God who provided the food in the wilderness, and was with you in battle as you moved into the place He promised. This concept of starting day with gratitude - not to the universe or some arbitrary being - gratitiude to the one and only YHWH was even outlined by the chronicler as an important part of each day…

1 Chronicles 23:30 (CSB) They are also to stand every morning to give thanks and praise to the Lord, and likewise in the evening.

Morning and Evening - Beginning and ending with Gratitiude to our Lord and Savior. That is what we need to be about as a church. We no longer have to walk up to the place of His presence - We Wake up to His presence.

Wanna have a new year filled with a renewed sense of hope and gratitude - to have a habitude of gratitiude - be in IN a Habit to better inhabit the presence of God.

Start with Gratitiude every single day…

Okay, so let’s say I start this - I adjust the routine following the wake up cue

What happens if I Start with Gratitude for God and the relationship we have with him.

Here’s what’s gonna happen. Seriously if we start every day by thinking about how good God is and how amazing it is that he calls us his own. I’m telling you Church, you will see goodness of God throughout the day.

Our Awareness Shapes our Attention…

A couple of years ago I was finally in need of a new vehicle. The truck I had for 10 years was finally going to cost me more than I wanted to spend to fix it. I also needed something with a little better gas milage - 15 mpg just didn’t work great when I was driving all over the area down here.

So I end up getting my first Subaru - think what you will of Subaru’s or those who drive them, but it was a cool little car. the story behind me buying was interesting - but thats a different story for a different sermon. But I roll out of there with a used Subaru Crosstrek - one that was Cool Grey Khaki.

And it was cool - I traded it in last year because we just had too many kids and needed a bigger car…booo…it was paid for. But when I bought it, I was stoked because A it was a cool car and the color lived up to the name - Cool Grey Khaki But do you know what happened next…everywhere I drove I saw another car just like my car - the same color.

I also noticed that the people driving them close to my house where mostly older ladies with very white hair…So I guess I know my people! hahaha

But here’s the principle to apply to the message today

Awareness Shapes Attention and Attention shapes Experience

You wanna have a 2026 filled with more things to be grateful for - a year of gratitiude - “In Habit” the habitude of gratitiude.

Start your day - with a moment - a breath - a second - a song - a prayer - a posture of gratitiude. Here’s what I believe will happen.

Within no time he will start seeing more things that you were grateful for. You will recognize that even in the middle of a terrible diagnosis there’s something to be grateful for. You see the people around you willing to support you and pray for you and walk with you and cry with you. That’s something to be grateful for. You will see your God nurture you and comfort you and love you that’s something to be grateful for.

Or like me the other day - fixing the stupid kitchen sink clog - buying the snake and getting soaked in the process all to no avail. BUT BUT you know what - I have a home and a family, and I have some resources to get it fixed..I am grateful to the Lord of all provision even when the silly things of life try to rob me of it.

Begnning and Ending our day with Gratitude - Just like the People of God have done since the time of David - To allow ourselves the blessing of counting those blessings with purpose and intention. I promise - just like everyone seemed to have rushed out and bought a cool grey khaki Subaru Crosstrek -

What if we saw all the things God is doing in our lives and we recognized it. Live lives of gratitude…

In Habit begin with Gratitude = Habitude of Gratitude

IN HABIT of starting with Gratitude you will see countless things to say thank you to God for each day…Let’s do it church.

Over the next 21 days we are entering into a season of prayer and fasting. I commit a lot of different things for you or for the people around you. If you’re looking for a way to fast. Maybe it’s fasting lunch for the next 21 days. Or maybe it’s fasting soda or the sugary desserts or the things that you know you don’t need anyway.

Maybe you are feeling led for more than that - Sun up to Sun down fasting - or 20 hrs a day for 21 days - or you get it. Fasting is always food. Fasting from your phone is not fasting that abstaining - and its a good thing to take distractions away during this season too. BUT for the next 21 days will you join my family and I, the staff and I, as we fast for 21 days. To lean in and listen up for the direction, the peace, the blessings God has for us in the coming year.

Like I mentioned earlier, over the next few weeks, we’re gonna continue to talk about habits that we can add to our day-to-day life. Things that we can incorporate into what we’re already doing to help us be, in the habit of inhabiting the presence of God more readily. To be present with him. So the help on that journey, you each have access to grabbing a journal today. The family and I were able to get these ready for you. And I’m pretty excited actually.

This is a great way to Make note of your daily blessings, to help you have a habitude of Gratitude - to kick start it over the next 21 days. As a church we will launch into the new reading plan - there are bookmarks already in the journals on the tables - grab one on your way out - there are complete plans available as well, so you don’t have to wait for the next one to come out, you have it.

QR code for a Summit Church Bible Reading plan group.

There is a QR code for a Summit Church Bible Reading plan group. We might have to work out some bugs along the way, but I am confident it is going to be a great experience if you want that online connection. - Use these journals to kick start the year - to develop some important habits to inhabit the presence of God daily.

That is a guaranteed way to stay aware of God’s presence - Awareness shapes attention, attention shapes experience.

Love you all! See you Wednesday night for Midweek, Alpha and All Pray, Kids Min, Youth Group - food. If you are looking to grow in connections, and your faith - Midweek is a must! See you then - If not Next Sunday I’ll have another helpful habit for us!

See you soon!