“Good habits are not made on birthdays, nor Christian character at the new year. The workshop of character is everyday life. The uneventful and commonplace hour is where the battle is lost or won.” (Maltbie Babcock)

An American writer most well-known for his hymn, “This is My Father’s World,” Maltbie Babcock said that the workshop of character is everyday life. I first wrote about Babcock’s quote in my column about volunteering, however this quote rings true in every area of life.

There’s a reason more people go to the gym during the months of January and February.

There’s a reason Genesis is one of the most-read books in the Bible.

People often start off the new year with a resolution that they’re going to lose weight, exercise more, read the Bible through in a year, eat healthier, so on and so forth. So many people fail at their resolutions because they don’t practice them long enough to turn them into habits. To develop good character, you must practice good habits.

Good habits don’t happen on one day of the year, they’re practiced each and every day. The same goes for our character. It’s not how we “act” on Sundays, or what we do to get recognized, in fact it’s quite the opposite. Our character is who we are when no one’s watching. Aristotle once said that excellence is not an act but a habit, and the same can be said of our character. Your words are not your character; your actions are your character.

You may be familiar with the saying, “Watch your thoughts, they become words. Watch your words, they become actions. Watch your actions, they become habits. Watch your habits, they become your character. Watch your character, it becomes your destiny.”

The workshop of character is everyday life.

“Good habits are not made on birthdays, nor Christian character at the new year. The workshop of character is everyday life. The uneventful and commonplace hour is where the battle is lost or won.” (Maltbie Babcock)