The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction

by Justin Whitmel Earley

Habits form us more than we form them.

The modern world is a machine of a thousand invisible habits, forming us into anxious, busy, and depressed people. We yearn for the freedom and peace of the gospel, but remain addicted to our technology, shackled by our screens, and exhausted by our routines. But because our habits are the water we swim in, they are almost invisible to us. What can we do about it?

The answer to our contemporary chaos is to practice a rule of life that aligns our habits to our beliefs. The Common Rule offers four daily and four weekly habits, designed to help us create new routines and transform frazzled days into lives of love for God and neighbor. Justin Earley provides concrete, doable practices, such as a daily hour of phoneless presence or a weekly conversation with a friend.

These habits are “common” not only because they are ordinary, but also because they can be practiced in community. They have been lived out by people across all walks of life—businesspeople, professionals, parents, students, retirees—who have discovered new hope and purpose. As you embark on these life-giving practices, you will find the freedom and rest for your soul that comes from aligning belief in Jesus with the practices of Jesus.

Genres: Christian, Nonfiction, Christian Living, Self Help, Faith, Christianity, Theology

204 pages, Paperback

First published February 19, 2019

About the author

Justin Whitmel Earley (JD, Georgetown University) is the creator of The Common Rule, a program of habits designed to form us in the love of God and neighbor. He is also a mergers and acquisitions lawyer in Richmond, Virginia. He previously spent several years in China as the founder and general editor of The Urbanity Project and as the director of Thought and Culture Shapers, a nonprofit organization dedicated to serving the community through arts. He and his wife, Lauren, have four sons and live in Richmond, Virginia.

Reviews

[Laura Silvey · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the realist’s guide to living out the Ruthless Elimination Of Hurry by John Mark Comer. It is a great follow up to that book (having read that two years ago). It is convicting but also offers a path forward that feels feasible. I was encouraged, not shamed, exhorted, not overwhelmed. I would definitely recommend this to anyone looking to cultivate a life of discipline and devotion.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: Offers an alternative to the habits of our technological world that make us busy, distracted, anxious, and isolated by proposing a set of habits enabling us to live into loving God and neighbor, and into freedom and rest.

Justin Earley was a well-intentioned, missional Christian with ambitious goals who found himself having panic attacks and self-medicating with pills and alcohol and other destructive habits. A life of busyness shaped increasingly by technology was undermining his health and relationships. He recognized that he was being shaped by a set of cultural habits, ways of being that left him busy, distracted, anxious, and isolated. He saw that these habits were not only shaping his schedule; they were forming his heart. Along with some friends, he identified an alternate set of daily and weekly habits that they thought were consonant with their shared faith. He began sharing these with others, and eventually, in conversation with a pastor, realized that he and his friends had rediscovered an ancient practice going back to Augustine and Benedict of living under a rule of life, hence the name they adopted, The Common Rule.

The Common Rule Consists of four daily and four weekly habits. Two of each of these focus on loving God, and two on loving neighbor. Also two of each focus on embracing the good in God's world, and two of each focus on resisting destructive cultural practices, even as we pursue a life of love. The eight are:

Daily: 

Kneeling Prayer morning, midday, and bedtime (Love God/embrace)
One meal with others. (Love neighbor/embrace)
One hour with phone off (Love neighbor/resist)
Scripture before phone (Love God/resist)

Weekly:

One hour of conversation with a friend (Love neighbor/embrace)
Curate media to four hours (Love neighbor/resist)
Fast from something for twenty-four hours (Love God/resist)
Sabbath (Love God/embrace)

After introductory chapters explaining the rule, one chapter of the book is devoted to each habit, explaining the rationale for each habit and concluding with practical instructions for practicing the habit. He concludes the book with the observation of art critic Michael Kimmelman that the greatest work of art is the "curating of all of life as a single witness to something grand" (p. 162). Earley then applies this to the work of habits in our lives. He writes:

"I believe that paying attention to the work of habit is similar. It is best thought of as giving attention to the art of habit. It isn't about trying to live right; it's about curating a life. It is the art of living beautifully" (p. 163).

The book concludes with an extremely helpful set of resources for individuals or groups (Earley believes it is especially helpful to practice these disciplines with others who voluntarily enter in so that individuals can encourage each other). The resources include the habits in a nutshell, a guide to trying one habit a week, trying the whole Common Rule for a week or a month, ways congregations can use the Common Rule, prayers for those trying the Common Rule, and ways the Common Rule might be used in different walks of life for skeptics, parents, at work, for artists and creatives, entrepreneurs, addicts, and those with mental illnesses.

It may be a small thing, but I appreciated the typography of the book. The medium blue of the cover is used for titles, subtitles, diagrams, quote grabs, and headers, setting this book off from most mono-chromatic texts. More substantively, the practical application of James K. A. Smith's ideas of cultural liturgies and the early fathers practice of rule of life makes for an inviting book grounded in rigorous thought and tested practice. Couple this with his own vulnerable example, and you have a winsome exposition of the practices that makes you want to start right away. The practices of scripture before phone, shutting off the phone for at least an hour, and curating media were both challenging and helpful for this reader whose life is too dominated by the smartphone. Whether you embrace the full rule, or substitute other practices, Earley's Common Rule offers an important alternative for people of faith to the ways our technological culture may lure us into frantic busyness, distraction, anxiety, and isolation instead of helping us curate beautiful lives of love for God and neighbor.

________________________________

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.

[Claudia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Other than the Bible, this could very well be the most important non-fiction book you read this year! I have already begun a list of people that I want to gift this book to, not because I think they or their lives need to be “fixed,” but because I believe they too will relish the truths between its covers. Justin Earley offers new perspectives on the role of habits in our lives, and demonstrates ways in which we can become intentional in how they help form us in a way that helps us to live out Romans 12:2.

I don't review non-fiction books nearly as often as fiction, but having watched and listened to the author on a YouTube video after reading a description of this book, I knew that I had to read and review it. Earley is quite open about his struggles and failures, not claiming that developing these habits will bring about perfection, but rather comparing them to building a trellis on which our lives may be trained to grow upward rather than sprawling outward in ways we weren't meant to, twisting into something that slowly dies and hurts those growing around us. It is a book about thriving in a culture that is pervaded with distractions.

I am grateful to have received a copy of The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose in an Age of Distraction from InterVarsity Press via NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion. I was under no obligation to provide a positive review and received no monetary compensation.

[Olivia | Liv's Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

This read much like “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry”, but I preferred that one much more! It was more impactful & memorable in my opinion but I still wouldn’t hesitate to pick this one up. So many great truths to start off my year!

[Elaine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend The Common Rule by Justin Whitmel Earley. I just finished listening to the audiobook, and I've been putting the habits into practice as I read. His website has great information, especially for Lent. I don't generally do well just listening to non-fiction audiobooks, but this one was easy to process without reading a physical book.

This is a more accessible, modern take on the same principles in Celebration of Discipline. The author shares many personal stories but doesn't necessarily tie the habits in with the historical church or other believers' stories. This made it an easy read, which I believe is its strength. I need easy reads that encouraged me towards Godliness in the season of life I'm in now. I really appreciated that the eight habit chapters were all about 30 minutes long!

Now to start Habits of the Household: Practicing the Story of God in Everyday Family Rhythms!

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of good things to commend in this book, that I have a few qualms with as well. I like the basic idea: adapting the concept of a common rule to build good formational spiritual habits into one’s life in the contemporary world. There are some great ideas on how to limit ones use of technology and social media in helpful ways. The diagram/chart that brings everything together on one page is excellent. On the negative side, and in more than one place, the author inadvertently makes big theological mistakes. (For example, the wording of one prayer falls into the Trinitarian heresy of modalism, though I feel certain that the author is not actually a modalist). At points, the author is too self-referential. I also think some of the material on scripture and prayer is pretty thin – good ideas, but without much substance. Finally, this book is so “in the moment,” that I think it will have a short shelf life. Negatives aside, I think it is worth reading, especially for anyone wrestling with the encroachment of technology into their personal lives and families, or anyone interested in the role of habits in spiritual formation.

[Sam Norris · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The most ordinary habits of limitation create the most extraordinary lives of meaning.”

This is a book about knowing your limits and understanding the freedom that comes from that knowledge.

Thankful for this read as it gives such tangible practices and habits to better follow the lifestyle of Jesus. Think we can often get down on ourselves in frustration of feeling “distant” from God or wondering why we feel so inwardly out of whack when our day to day lifestyle provides no opportunity to slow down, to rest, or to do things we enjoy —> “our souls need more than to do nothing; they need to restful things.”

Would greatly recommend to anyone seeking out practical changes to live a healthier life and to pursue a more fulfilling walk with Christ.

[Lily · Rating 5 out of 5]

at first, it felt like a fire hose of information on things to change or prioritize in my life. I had to switch my mindset and see this as more than just a checklist of habits to follow. especially since several of the daily practices are easier for me to naturally incorporate bc of my job.

I really loved it and want to buy the physical copy so I can highlight and make notes in it!

[Hope · Rating 3 out of 5]

3. 5 stars

There are lots of books about spiritual disciplines, but this one is unique because it addresses the use of digital media head on. When our phones take up so much of our time, how do we, as Christians, create healthy habits around them?
Justin Whitmel Earley encourages four daily habits and four weekly habits that are designed to draw us closer to God and wean us away from dependence on social media for affirmation and dopamine hits.

The chapter on Daily Habit #3 (Turn of your phone for one hour a day) was the most important chapter in the book for me, not because I don’t already limit my cell phone use, but because it gave good theological reasons for continuing to do so.

Although I appreciated this book very much, I found parts of it to be annoying (Earley’s bragging about how good he is at speaking Chinese was one example). Also, the subtitle of this book could have been “Spiritual Disciplines for Social Justice Warriors” because of the many times he tacked on social justice issues to each discipline. Don’t get me wrong. I LOVED his emphasis on spiritual disciplines that are rooted in the two commandments to “Love God and love your neighbor.” What better motivation can you have for getting off your phone than to be fully present to those around you and to pursue the goals that God has put on your heart to fulfill His purposes?

But some of the ways he prescribes to do that are just plain odd. In the chapter on curating your media time, he strongly suggests that you watch things that show the injustice in the world so that you can feel miserable about it. But feeling bad about injustice is not biblical justice. (See Voddie Baucham's explanation of the difference on YouTube.) Anyway, this book stretched me in a lot of ways and I'm glad I read it.

[Liesl Back · Rating 4 out of 5]

This author came up with some rules of life after suffering a major anxiety attack. Rules can appear to be restricting but he found that discipline actually gave him freedom to live a more abundant life. I thought it was a really neat book with practical ideas for a healthier life. I think it's easy to change the daily and weekly rules to fit your needs. There are 8 rules. Some examples would be Scripture Before Phone (daily); One Meal With Others (daily); and Fast from Something 24 hours (weekly).

One thing I appreciated is that he mentions that these formational habits helped him gain strength and stability to combat mental illness, as opposed to drugs as therapy. I think, for a book marketed as Christian, it would have been nice to see more emphasis on biblical salvation as a starting point for mental health, and biblical teaching as a stepping stone. That being said, there are some good tips in here that I benefited from.

[Mia Floriani · Rating 5 out of 5]

so so good. if you liked ruthless elimination of hurry, i would argue this is even better. so detailed and logical, and there is such a scripture based why behind every single part. very highly recommend!!

[Jason Williamson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really great book on not just the mental and spiritual power of habits, but also with practical steps to live them out in both daily and weekly rhythms. Will definitely be working on starting some of these habits going forward

[Tony Villatoro · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very practical book with a solid foundation. I appreciate that. It balances out the principle and practice well. With 4 daily habits and 4 weekly habits, this creates a Rule of Life; for Justin Earley, it’s called the Common Rule. Each chapter ends with ways to practice each habit and I found that helpful. These habits include daily scripture reading, meals, phone off, and prayer, and weekly conversation, less media, fasting food, and Sabbath.

My favorite sentence:
“We will never build lives of love out of anything except ordinary days—simple, extraordinarily beautiful, but still ordinary days.” -165

First Sentence:
“It was twelve on an ordinary Saturday night when I woke suddenly in a dreadful panic, sweating and shaking.” -1

Last Sentence:
“They become the days to become a life spent looking at the beautiful one, the one named Jesus, who at a glance can catch the heart off guard—and blow it open.” -167

Here are some highlights I made while reading:


First Sentence:
It was twelve on an ordinary Saturday night when I woke suddenly in a dreadful panic, sweating and shaking. -1

I had lived my whole life thinking that all limits ruined freedom, when all along, it’s been the opposite: the right limits create freedom. -11

By surrendering his freedom, for the sake of love, Christ saved the world. By surrendering our freedom to him, we participate in that love. We find our true freedom in the constraint of divine love. -12

We, for our own sake, tried to become limitless, and the world was ruined. Jesus, for our sake, became limited, and the world was saved. -13

The rule of life is intended to pattern, communal life in the direction of purpose and love, instead of chaos and decay. -14

It’s high time that this ancient, spiritual wisdom become modern common sense. -15

It’s really important to learn the right theological truths about God and neighbor, but it’s equally necessary to put that theology into practice via a rule of life. You can’t believe truth without practicing truth, and vice versa. -16

By ignoring the ways habits shape us, we’ve assimilated to a hidden rule of life: the American rule of life. This rigorous program of habits forms us, and all the anxiety, depression, consumerism, injustice, and vanity that are so typical in the contemporary American life. -17

Talking about Jesus, while ignoring the way of Jesus, has created an American Christianity that is far more American than it is Christian. -17

You’ll find that once new common rule habits are established, by definition, they don’t take up time and mental space. They work in the background. They’re designed to free up your time, create meaningful space for relationships, turn your energy towards good work, and focus your presence on the God, who made you and loves you. That is not constricting; that is liberating. You were made for it. -24

We all desire to somehow shape our chaotic days into lives with meaning. That begins with punctuating our days with words: the words of prayer. -32

The world began with words. -32

You say your prayers until your prayers say you. That’s the goal. -43

Because of the centrality of the table in our daily schedule, our lives were calibrated for relationship instead of for loneliness and busyness. -52

The schedule now revolves around the table, not the table around at the schedule. -53

The table is where life happens. It’s where a household learned to love. -54

Ken Myers argues that the kind of atheism we experience in America today is not a conclusion, but a mood. This is an incredible important observation. If secularism is not a conclusion, but a mood, we cannot disrupt it with an argument. We must disrupt it with a presence. -58

Madeleine, L’Engle once wrote, “We draw people to Christ not by loudly discrediting what they believe… But by showing them a light that is so lovely that they want with all their hearts to know the source of it.” -58

The central promise of salvation is that because of the death and resurrection of Jesus, God and people will eat again. The end of the world culminates not in the clouds and harps, but in a feast. At the wedding supper of the lamb, the divine presence is restored to us over a table of food. -59

If we do nothing, we’re sure to live a life of fractured presence. That’s not much of a life at all, because presence is the essence of life itself. -64

Sin has turned a people meant for presence into a people of absence, but fortunately, the story of the Bible doesn’t and there. -65

When we try to be present everywhere, we end up being present nowhere. When we try to free ourselves from the limitations of our presence, we always become enslaved to absence. But when we embrace our m reality of being able to be present, only in one place, we find the deep joy of being present some place. -66

If we turn our phones off, that means we cut off the possibility of our presence from others. We can’t reach or be reached. This is exactly what is scary, and it’s exactly why we should be turning our phones off every day as a habit. -68

The goal is to regularly cut off the ability to be reached by everyone and anyone, so that in those limits we can be fully present to someone. -68

Silence begins as a personal practice, but it always ends as a public virtue. -74

The moments of waking are powerful moments of formation. -80

My head was asking my phone a very practical question: what do I need to do today? But in the same moments, under the radar, my heart was asking my phone a much more profound question: who do I need to become today? -80

And once you know who you are in God, you can turn to the world in love. But if you don’t, you’ll turn to the world looking for love. So much of our identity hinges on this ordering. -84

Resistance needs to be paired with embrace. -84

When we are citizens of heaven first, we finally become loving critics of country next—which is the truest kind of patriotism. -86

First, I try to open a media site only one I have a need to post or respond. I don’t open it because I’m bored or have a spare moment. -88

I try to treat social media like work. I go to it once in the morning, once in the early afternoon, and once in the evening, to put out content that I think will help someone or to engage with someone who is responding in a healthy way. -88

Second, I avoid unplanned scrolling. -89

If you carefully curate, what is in your feed, and when you will grow, the dynamic radically shifts. -89

Third, I turn off notifications. -89

Fourth, I don’t use social media in bed. -89

Fifth, when I come across mean things said about me or someone I love, I employ the timeless strategy of any veteran parent: ignore the temper tantrum. -89

The weekly habit of an hour of conversation is meant to cultivate this kind of life, where you know, and are known by those closest to you. -96

Vulnerability and time turn to people who have a relationship into people who have a friendship. That’s what friendship is: vulnerability across time. The practice of conversation is the basis of friendship because it’s in conversation that we become exposed to each other. -98

To be vulnerable is precisely the point of conversation, because in the vulnerability, we are finally truly known. -99

How do we create a life of friendship when we have neither the courage and all the time to talk? The answer is to practice courage, and prioritize time. -100

The darkness rages in us, but honest conversation is a practice of light. And the incredible thing about light in the dark is that the light always wins. -103

We don’t use our stories, nearly as much as they choose us. Should we do nothing, someone else’s stories will curate our lives for us. If we don’t cut off their options; they will cut off our options. -116

Every story is trying to make us feel busted up about something and makes us fall in love with a solution. The problem is when they stir up fear over the wrong things or stir up love for broken solutions. -120

When everything is a crisis, nothing is. We think we’re becoming informed, but actually, we’re becoming numb. -122

We must resist becoming people who talk of justice out of rage, and work on becoming people who talk of justice out of love. -122

Curating stories is not just about reallocating your time. It’s also about reminding yourself that there is one true story. It’s about restrain yourself to see that any good story will reflect the one true story and some fundamental way. -124

There was food in the world before there was emptiness in the world, and that’s an important fact. -129

We were made to feast. Not in order to become full, but because we are full. We are to celebrate the fullness by feasting. Feasting to fill the emptiness is not feasting; it is coping. -128

We have bodies that will die, unless they’re fed, and the first murder came because of jealousy over food. What was meant to be the culmination of the celebration of life with God, became the mark of our inevitable suffering, and death. -129

In fasting, what begins with experiencing the emptiness of our stomach ends in experiencing the emptiness of the world -129

When we fast, we become more attuned to the stubborn reality of the worlds suffering. -136

Fasting is a way to lean past our own emptiness and into someone else’s. It’s a practice of empathy, of willingly walking into paying for someone else. It’s an imitation of Christ, limiting ourselves for the sake of someone else. -137

The paradox of good work seems to be this: anything worth doing requires bending your whole life toward it. On the other hand, nothing is worth bending your life until it breaks. I never seem to know where the point is until after a break. -144

None of us like our limits. Like Adam and Eve in the garden, we are not content to be like God; we want to be God. The weekly habit of Sabbath is to remind us that God is God and we are not. -146

We seem to have come to a point as a culture, where we praise the acts of being inhuman, as acts of being a great human. The consequences, of course, are dreadful. -147

This is why we live in a culture that can’t accept Sabbath; we do not believe that work is from God and for our neighbor. Instead, we believe that work is from us and for us. It’s something we pursue to become who we want to become. -148

The rest beneath the rest is the knowledge that in Jesus, all the work is finished. -148

One of the first things we learned was that proper Sabbathing is much more about doing than not doing. It’s about doing restful things. -149

The rest I needed was not only more sleep, but it was also the rest that comes with unfolding in good friendships or sitting still in God’s creation. -149

Practicing Sabbath is supposed to make us feel like we can’t get it all done because that is the way reality is. We can’t do it all. -152

Please have it before love, and you will be full of legalism, but Place loved before habits, and you will be full of the gospel. -155

God’s love for us really can change the way we live, but the way we live will never change God’s love for us. -155

Failure is not the enemy of formation; it is the liturgy of formation. How we deal with a failure says volumes about who we really believe we are. Who we really believe God is. When we trip on failure, do we fall into ourselves? Or do we fall into grace? -162

Failure is the path; beauty is the destination. We walk toward beauty on the path of failure. Which is to say that formation occurs at the interplay of failure and beauty. -162

We long to be an integer, to be whole; instead, we are fractions of contradictory selves. -162

This vision—of a whole and coherent life— is the goal of a life curated by habit. -163

We will never build lives of love out of anything except ordinary days—simple, extraordinarily beautiful, but still ordinary days.-165

If you stand next to me and look where I’m looking, then we’ll both see Jesus. He’s the life we want. He’s the life given for us. And the gold of the Resurrection inlays all our fault lines. He is the one who lived the beautiful life. He is the one redeeming ours. -167

Even when the imitation of Christ is a sorry echo of the real thing, it’s worth doing, because something worth doing is worth doing badly. -167

Last Sentence:
They become the days to become a life spent looking at the beautiful one, the one named Jesus, who at a glance can catch the heart off guard—and blow it open. -167

[Ivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a balm for weary Christians, offering an array of “rules” (or habits) that can be life-giving—individually and to those around us. While much of this deeply resonated with me, I wish the gospel had been made more clear. (For example, “[Jesus] lived the good life we are all trying to live. He did it all. He sacrificed everything. . . . He finished the work on the cross so you could rest. He let the world break him so it doesn’t have to break you. He rose from the grave so all your aspirations won’t end in the grave.”) Devoid of an explicit gospel foundation (of substitutionary sacrifice), I’d be concerned that the fruit of Christian living would eclipse the root that nourishes and gives it life. Still, the practicality of these habits—e.g., one meal with others, Scripture before phone, curate media to four hours, sabbath—have the potential to form us into the kind of people who are alive to God and present to each other. In a word, a beautiful Christian. And it’s that kind of Christian whom the Lord can use quietly but mightily.

[Glen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here is one of my favorite reads in 2020. It poignantly confronts the tangible ways that secularism encroaches on the Christian worldview with its insistence on attaching our identity to our productivity. The familiar cultural realities of frenetic schedules and overcommitted lifestyles are exposed through Earley’s personal experiences with burn out and anxiety attacks.

There is a palpable hunger for truth and a refreshing candor about brokenness in the pages of this work. Earley balances adeptly his challenging speech about surrender with his vibrant hope that Christ will be there to help us in our frailties.

Ample anecdotal examples and an abundance of practical advice offer interested readers eight concrete ways to establish sacred rhythms in their lives. The goals are high but the pastoral voice of the book makes them seem more attainable. As I completed the last pages, there was a sense of gratitude for the way one writer’s heart was on fire for Jesus. Any book that achieves that is worth the reading.

[Samuel James · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a helpful, practical, hopeful book! In a time where many books on forming virtues stay in the theoretical or else veer into self-help banality, this book plants theological seeds of transformation and gives them practices to cling to as they grow. Justin is a compelling writer, and I was grateful for the simple, accessible style that befits a book that really can change your life. If I have one complaint, it's that the book doesn't always dive deep enough into the Bible. The texts are there, but there's a holistic vision of flourishing to the glory of God that is left unexplored. A small critique in a very valuable book.

[Trevor Hoffman · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book was fine. Another book that should have remained a blogpost / article / podcast. Some helpful insights - the habits themselves are really helpful - but there’s not enough substance to warrant a book. The book is weakest when trying to provide some substance in offering theological underpinnings for these habits. Just read the table of contents and you’ll have what you need.

[Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Common Rule is both visionary and practical. Most of his rule I want to implement or at least experiment with. A few that I already do but can make better, and a couple I’ve committed to in the past but have gotten away from.

I am also left wondering what set of rules I would come up with if I was starting from scratch.

[Joanna Jennings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Similar to John Mark Comer’s work.

4 daily habits:
Kneeling prayer 3x’s a day
Meal with others
Turn phone off for an hour
Scripture before phone

4 weekly habits:
One hour conversation with a friend
Curate media for four hours
Fast from something for 24 hours
Sabbath

“Habits form us more than we form them.“

[Robin Langford · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recommend reading the epilogue first! I look forward to figuring out how to employ some of these practices. The spiritual power of habit in our spiritual formation seems common sense, but often overlooked. This book has helped me look again and evaluate.

[Parker Primrose · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic book. The purpose isn’t behavior modification, but cultivating a life that focuses your heart on loving God and neighbor. Strong recommendation from me.

[Jared Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

My biggest takeaway from the book was an admonition to accept my human finitude by curating the narratives and habits which constitute my life.
What sets this book apart from other books discussing the seemingly over emphasized liturgies and habits of the good life (Covey’s seven habits for example) were the theological underpinnings present throughout. I found them quite compelling.
I’m excited to implement a few of these rules.

[Chalice · Rating 4 out of 5]

*reads book*
*looks at life*
I think I needed this.
I think everyone needs this.
So yeah, that's my review. XD

[Lily Wallaker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super helpful! Even if you don't plan on/can't follow all of the habits, this book gives you some things to think about. <3

[Alexandra Frank · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will definitely be shaping my life around the wisdom in this book. I read this book at a time in my life when I really needed it, and was receptive to the habit-changing direction it supplies. I’m looking forward to shifting my priorities as I start grad school, and this book’s wisdom will certainly feature in my new life layout. I typically have trouble with contemporary Christian books, but Justin Earley engaged me by his eloquent writing and concrete examples. Highly recommend!

[Harrison Guetzko · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took some time, but I read this book as much as I could at a chapter by chapter pace. It was really convicting in moments. Definitely don’t think my approach is to implement everything the books recommends as far as habits go at once, but I’m absolutely considering what it would look like to incorporate a few.

If you’re looking for a compelling dude who has some banger quotes and (seems like) he practices what he writes about, this is a great book. This 4-star is realistically like a 4.3 on my new scale for 2024!

[Nan Blair · Rating 5 out of 5]

Much like Habits of the Household, I loved this book! I kept my pace slower just to let the ideas/habits sink in, but the book is super to the point which I appreciated. Highly recommend!

[Leslie]

Many readers who have encountered Earley's website https://www.thecommonrule.org/ may wonder why they need to read the book The Common Rule when the information is available online for free. There are several reasons this book by Justin Whitmel Earley is an important investment. I personally found that the website provides just the basic what of Earley's habits. However, his book does a marvelous job of fleshing out the why behind the daily and weekly habits as well as how to incorporate the habits into your life. The chapter on each habit provides some background information on why the habit is important both from a research standpoint and via stories from Earley's own experiences.. Earley does not sugar coat his experiences but honestly shares how these habits became a core part of his life and what his life was like before he developed this rule of life. Earley then provides suggestions on making the habit a part of your life including examples on various ways the habit could be implemented. Several books are also listed for further reading. Earley also provides several suggestions to help various individuals such as parents, full time workers, and creative implement the rule and suggestions for how small groups may utilize the rule together.

In summary, The Common Rule is an interesting mix of part Christian spiritual disciplines/self-help and part spiritual memoir. Individuals or small groups who desire to add structure to their lives will find this a helpful book to do so.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received the book The Common Rule from IVP via NetGalley. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

How to live an intentional, transformation producing Christian life in this era of media distraction is a challenge. Earley shares his experiences and the life changing habits he developed.

The idea of a rule of life goes back centuries. Christians have developed a set of habits to grow in the love of God and neighbor. Such practices may be more familiar in liturgical churches than evangelical ones.

Earley developed eight habits. Four of them are daily while the other four are weekly. They can be arranged in a diagram with each having a specific designation.

Love of God: Sabbath, fasting, prayer, Scripture before phone.
Love of neighbor: meals, conversation, phone off, curate media
Embrace: Sabbath, prayer, meals, conversation.
Resist: fasting, Scripture before phone, phone off, curate media.

Each of the practices is reviewed with suggestions for implementation and further reading. He includes his own philosophical thoughts and the experiences leading him to the practice. I particularly liked his thoughts on the use of (or lack of scrolling on) social media. He also has good insights into the benefits of curating media. “Limits are where freedom is found.” (117)

The strength of this book in not the specific practices but rather the philosophy behind them. Readers may not want to implement the specific habits Earley did but reading this book will provide a good platform for thinking about and establishing one's own “rule.” There are many resources within the book as well as online to make this a good book for personal reflection or for use in a small group.

[Megan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Super. This book gives a good argument for why we all HAVE habits, therefore, why it’s important to have GOOD ones.

The chapters roll through 4 daily habits:
1.) Scripture before phone
2.) Phone off for 1 hr/day
3.) One meal with others
4.) Kneeling prayer morning, midday, & bedtime

And 4 weekly habits:
1.) Sabbath
2.) Curate media to 4 hrs/wk
3.) One hour convo w a friend
4.) Fast from something for 24 hours

I have started to incorporate a lot of these, and it has been both helpful and necessary to create such rhythms in my life. Obviously that’s more subjective, but I would venture to say that most of us would benefit from incorporating better habits into our lives. This book and its ideas are a good place to start, or at least a breeding ground for creating good habits of your own.