Calling Cadence in the New Year
At one time, I wanted to serve in the military. A mix of vintage NASA documentaries, airshow performances at Wright-Patt, and too many movies in the vein of Top Gun fueled in me a deep desire to fly jets for Uncle Sam.
This desire stayed with me from about third grade all the way into high school. Toward this goal, I joined the OH-771st Squadron of the JROTC program my freshman year. God interrupted my plans by calling me into pastoral ministry about halfway through high school. But I stuck with the program through my senior year and gained a passing glance at life in the armed services.
One of the things drilled into me was the need to march and run in line with everyone around me. This isn’t as easy as it sounds, though. The military has known this for centuries and came up with the brilliant aid of calling cadence. As far back as the Revolutionary War, this may have been done with drums or pipes. But in more modern times, it’s been with associated rhyming verses always connected to the words “left, right, left.”
This practice started with, and continues to be especially helpful for, long hikes. It’s easy to get tired and worn out when you’ve got miles to cover. But hearing someone call cadence, helps you maintain a good pace to get you where you need to go. And it’s more than just rhythm. There is a shared experience in military cadence that many soldiers find encouraging. They feel like they are part of something bigger than themselves.
When we think about long marches and the struggle to stay in step and formation, the Christian life is not much different. We don’t usually run in short sprints of spiritual growth. The Christian life is more about being faithful over the long haul. It’s about putting one foot in front of the over, day-in and day-out, in the right direction until someone puts our body in the ground and we see our Savior face-to-face (Heb 12:1–2).
But we struggle with this. The winds of culture and the pull of our own imperfect hearts call us away from the march. We get out of step. We get tired and sit down. We trip and sometimes fall. We even take our eyes and ears away from what we are supposed to be doing and wander off in the wrong direction. The result is more than spiritual decline. It’s a failure to live in God and for God.
So, what can we do? We can call cadence to ourselves. Or, better put, listen to the cadence being called to us by God. We do this by the basic, perennial spiritual activities of reading the Bible, praying to God, and spending time with the Church.
We listen to God’s voice he displays his glory, recounts his promises and their fulfillment, and gives us direction for our lives in Christ as we read Scripture. Then, in prayer, we tell God how much we love him, how sorry we are for failing to live well, and how much we need him for what we face in this world. Finally, we get together with other believers and talk about all of these things with one another.
It seems so simple. But we often fail to do it. Yet, at our disposal—at virtually any waking hour—are these essential resources. They serve as the spiritual encouragement we need to stay in step with God, moving in the right direction as we love and serve him. They help motivate us to turn away from sin, find joy in God, and obey him in all things. They give us a bigger view of the world and all God plans to do in and through his people so we don’t feel alone.
Pastor Jason is going to follow up in a few days with another post giving you some specific resource to help with all of these things. I have just one if you struggle with these disciples--Habits of Grace by David Mathis.
Today, though, I urge you to plan to listen to the rhythmic cadence of Scripture, prayer, and fellowship. Literally, make a plan for these things and put it on your calendar. Don’t neglect the daily encouragement God holds out to you.
Let’s form up and walk well in 2021.
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