In the sermon 'Habits You Pass On,' Scott Brown emphasizes the critical role of habits in shaping a Christian life, especially in a society filled with negative influences. Drawing from Titus 2:7, he discusses the importance of developing patterns of good works and how these habits become a legacy, or inheritance, for future generations. Brown explores various types of habits, such as those of the heart, tongue, work, and godliness, noting that deliberate faithfulness and consistent effort over time are key. He mentions the impact of habits of speech on family interactions, advising against negative communication patterns. The sermon underscores the importance of morning habits, habits of thanksgiving, and daily worship, drawing from biblical teachings to guide these practices. Brown also highlights the significance of the Sabbath as a day for rest and worship, distinct from other days of the week. He closes by urging fathers to instill healthy habits in their homes and invites reflection on the sermon’s teachings.

Okay, open your Bibles to Titus chapter 2 verse 7. There's one phrase and really one word that I want us to focus in on here this morning and it's the word habits habits we were talking over breakfast this is not about the Roman Catholic nun attire this is about habits habits are very very important to develop and so I really want to focus in on that. So in Titus 2 verse 7, I preached on this last Sunday, showing yourself to be a pattern of good works, a pattern of good works. In other words, there are patterns of life that God calls his children to. Of course, Titus is all really about those who have received the grace of God, who've been redeemed, and how do they live now in the midst of a very corrupt society in Crete which the habits are bad because all Cretans are liars evil beasts and lazy gluttons bad habits you have to correct bad habits if you're a Christian and of course he gives six patterns of good works and and he he itemizes them and But I want to talk about particular habits, habits of the heart, habits of the tongue, habits of using time, habits with food, habits with media, all of your habits.

All of life is really contained in the habits that we have. I read this last week. If your family inherited only your habits, not your things or your money, which ones would be your richest gifts? So you as fathers, You have created habits for your family, for yourself that actually extend to affect everybody in your life. But if all you had to pass down were your habits, What would they be?

And let me suggest, this is part of the inheritance that Trent was talking about last night. Because every father leaves his children with an inheritance. One of those elements is an inheritance of habits. And it's very, very important. Somebody described habits as deliberate faithfulness.

Deliberate faithfulness. It's about working daily in the same direction over an extended period of time. When you're raising children, you have your children for an extended period of time, and then it's over. You've left them with something that was a manifestation of your family life. Habits are learned, and they are established by the use of hours.

We burn many hours. How do we burn the hours? That's really the question. Burning the hours in diligent and focused exemplary holy life is the best inheritance that you can give your children. Now, I just want to itemize various kinds of habits.

Deborah and I have done lots of marriage counseling over the years. Here's what we've learned. Many, many couples have very poor communication habits, Habits of speech. They don't know how to talk to each other. They don't know how to listen.

Habits of speech are very important. And you learn those in your family. Proverbs 10, verse 32. The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked what is perverse. Habits of speech, write that down.

What are your habits of speech? And that really begins at the top with a husband and a wife. How they talk to one another and how they talk to their children. If you're yelling at your children all the time, if you're yelling at one another, guess what? That habit is something that will be acquired by osmosis.

There's a certain culture of speech that you can create in your home. I never heard my father and mother yell at each other, not one time. That's a blessing. And you know what, I haven't yelled at my wife either. Why?

It's just not something that we do, okay? It was a healthy habit. There are habits of work. Habits of work. Actually, if you go to our church tomorrow, the whole sermon is right out of Titus 2, 9 and 10 about work.

Habits of work. What is a Christian work ethic? But habits of work are really critical. A family should be a working family. Luke 10, 16, 10, Whoever is faithful in very little is also faithful in much.

In a family, you learn faithfulness in the little things. And those things actually multiply. And it makes you more and more capable of carrying more weight in work. The meaning of life is work. I'll explain that tomorrow in my sermon.

But it's very, very important that we understand that God made us to take dominion. That means He made us to work. That's the meaning of life. Everybody wants to escape work today But that's not a godly habit and then there are habits of godliness This is matters of the Word of God and prayer and things like that. First Timothy 4.7, train yourself in godliness.

Train yourself in godliness. And then there are habits in the morning. Every child has a habit in the morning. Sometimes children wake up sour. They wake up mean as a snake.

If they do, it's your job to help them not live that way. You don't want them to live the rest of the day. You don't want them to wake up, you know, 10, 000 days with a sour disposition, because it doesn't have to be that way. Psalm 59 verse 16, but I will sing of your power, yes, I will sing aloud of your mercy in the morning." Did you know the Bible teaches you how to greet the morning? The Bible teaches you how to do everything.

For you have been my defense, a refuge in my day of trouble. Habits in the morning. We talk to our children about this because our children had different dispositions in the morning, but they had to be trained not to be mean as snakes when they got up in the morning. Then there are habits of thanksgiving. This is so critical.

Habits of thanksgiving. Psalm 92, 1 and 2. It is good to give thanks to the Lord, to sing praises to your name, O Moshe, to declare your loving kindness in the morning and your faithfulness every night. In other words, at the beginning of the day and all through the day to the end of the day you are a thankful person. You are giving thanks for what God has done in your life.

It's so harmful not to be thankful, because there are so many things to be thankful for. But if you're the kind of person that the glass is always half empty, well, I'm so sorry for you. I really am, because that's not the only way to live and God actually You know calls us to give thanks in the morning and at night Another another Psalm for the morning My voice shall you hear in the morning. In the morning I will direct it to you, O Lord, and look up. What if, by just automatic impulse, because of your habits, when you open your eyes, the first thing in your mind was oh Lord thank you thank you for a new day to be a thankful person throughout the day Psalm 50 The Bible talks about this all over the place.

Psalm 55-17. Evening and morning and at noon I will pray and cry aloud, and he shall hear my voice. In Psalm 141 verse 2, let my prayer be set before you as incense, lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice." The Puritans got the idea that worship in the family should be morning and evening. The evening and morning. That's why you have Spurgeon writing that book, Morning and Evening, because this is how the Jews operated their lives.

And then you have habits of worship. Exodus 29, 38, and 39. Now this is what you shall offer on the altar. Two lambs of the first year, day by day, continually. One lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer at twilight.

You just have this rhythmic pattern of the worship of God in the day, not just on the Lord's day, well that's next, but on every day, this habit of worship every day. There are habits of prayer, think about Daniel in Daniel 6, 10. He got down on his knees three times a day and prayed have you ever Thought of constructing your life like that many many people do this They they begin in the morning and they have a moment at noon and then they have a moment in the evening Where they're remembering these are just wonderful life giving habits. You know earlier in the morning some of us were talking about people that have mental problems so many of those mental problems can be solved really by filling your mind with the word of God. Filling your mind with the songs of deliverance, the truth about how you should live, what you should do, and things like that.

God is always delivering. If you're in the word of God, He's delivering you every day. He's saving you every day from yourself. It's such a wonderful thing. And then there are habits of rest.

This is communicated in the whole doctrine of the Sabbath, of the Lord's Day in Exodus 20 verse 8. Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy. In other words there is a particular holy day it's like no other day it's not like it's not like Monday it's not like Saturday it's not like Friday it's a day like no other day it's set aside really for for rest and really the worship of God with the people of God. So those are various kinds of habits. I was tempted to go through The habits of the Proverbs 31 woman, we do not have time for that, but you should go through there.

I have it on my notes. It might take me a couple hours to do it. But the habits of the Proverbs 31 woman should be the habits of every young lady in principle. Because every one of her habits contains a godly principle for how a woman should function. And you know what?

Guess what? I married a girl like that. And I'm so thankful. It's such a blessing to be married to somebody who has godly, holy habits, habits of speech, habits of worship, habits of rest, habits of the tongue, all this kind of, you know, right now you're growing these habits as a young girl. And fathers, you know, I'll look you in the eyeball and just say, make sure that you create really, really healthy habits in your home.

Okay. Habits. I've just itemized various kinds of habits that we exist with in this world. Now, I want to do two things. First of all, I want you and I want fathers and daughters to jump and give you three minutes just to share what stuck out and what was important.

Three minutes and then we're gonna have a more of a corporate just kind of sharing time of what we did. Okay. So over to you. I'll just give you a few minutes.