So how do you develop and feed your faith daily and weekly? What's your routine?
My routine changes over time. There will be a routine and emphasis that works great for a while (maybe 3 to 6 months) that then dries up. Decades ago, I viewed that as my fault and I would try to work harder and make it work, and it didn't. I finally learned that the way God has me wired is that I need to have a strong focus on something in one routine for a while, I get a lot out of it, and I then I need to move to something else. Having said that, I know some people that have been on the same routine for a decade or more and it is what they need to do.
Right now, my routine is focused around language learning and Bible reading. I usually read the Bible in Greek for about an hour when I wake up in the morning and then in Spanish for about 30 to 60 minutes before I go to sleep. Depending on my day, I might read or study more. For example, today I read the last half of Luke and first handful of chapters in Greek this morning. I finished reading the NVI a couple weeks ago and have started back through again. Over the years, I've read through the Bible in several English versions (KJV, ASV, NASV, RSV, NIV, TLB, TEV, and probably another couple I forget). It just has always seemed best for me to see the big picture and understand the core of the message more so than the exact words.
At different times, I've done different amounts of Bible reading. There was one 4 month period where I read the Bible once through per month. Then there've been times I was focused on other things and over a couple years was only reading particular books within the Bible. Bottom line is that I've read the Bible through dozens of times in different versions and different languages. It has come through extensive reading of entire books and the Bible as well as focusing on individual books and passages.
When I first became a Christian, I tried to memorize scripture. It just never really worked for me spiritually. Now, I was good at rote memorizing, at various points I had memorized the books of II Thessalonians (first book I ever memorized cause it was sort of short), Titus, Galatians, and I started Romans. I can still rattle off some sections as I get started. But it honestly never did much for me that I was aware of and took a lot of time and effort. I found that reading through a book of the Bible dozens of times in different versions and languages instead of spending the effort rote memorizing (and then reviewing periodically!!!) put the main core of the message and the ideas into me much better than focusing on repeating the same words over and over. I'm a person more focused on understanding concepts and ideas. I find that I can usually now pretty quickly pinpoint and paraphrase whatever I need in discussions or meditations due to just have read through the Bible so many times.
Now having said this, I know some people that get a lot out of doing their devotional reading in one particular version and memorizing various verses and passages in that version. It keeps their reading and memorizing in the same words. I've personally known people that use the KJV, NIV, NASV, and ESV as their main Bible for reading and memorizing. I do think this is a long term investment so it's good to choose a version wisely before locking into one for years and decades.
At other times in my life, I've had other routines and focuses. There've been lengths of time where I'd be up at 5AM every morning to pray and meditate for a few hours. There've been times that I spent hours a day studying (and reading a lot of Bible reference books and other devotional and academic books). There've been times that I spent an hour or two a day largely meditating and just thinking.
Overall, I've found that my walk with God goes through definite seasons and changes. I've learned to just embrace it and enjoy it. I used to feel guilty that I was "neglecting" particular things, but then I realized it was not so much neglect as pouring time and energy into building a particular part of a spiritual foundation and then building on that foundation. I've just learned to follow God's direction as I walk with Him. Right now, a focus on Bible reading in Greek and Spanish is awesome, fun, and it's a habit that's hard to break. However, I know that at some point, it will dry up and become a burden. At that point, it will be time to move on and focus on something else.
My prayer and meditation time now is at a lull compared to other times in my life as is my study of other books and authors. But I find that I often am stopping as I read to think or pray about things, and I find myself meditating and praying about things during the day.
I've also been putting in perhaps an hour or so a day to read, meditate, and respond to various posts on this forum and others. It's a time of learning, pondering things, ministry, and sharing experiences and testimonies for me. I run across questions that force me to think deeply about some things.
We've got a class at church we go to on Wednesday nights. Our weekend schedule has been weird for the past 6 months so we've often listened to church online (either live or recorded) instead of being there. This is an anomaly since most of our married lives we've been at church most of the time plus other services. At various times, we've also been part of small groups.
Anyway, a long and somewhat disorganized response that I'm not going to go back and clean up. I've been a Christian since 1975. The main piece of advice I'd give is this. You are a unique creation of God and He wants you to walk with Him in a way unique to you. How your daily walk with God looks will be different than most of the rest of us and it may change over time. I think the OP has some good questions and I look forward to hearing what other people do.
