Practice, Practice, Practice

I have been playing guitar since I was 19. While I enjoy playing I find it difficult to make time to practice. So I keep a chord book close when playing with the band at church to get familiar with chords I am not accustom to playing. I also keep a capo close by when a song is in a key that is hard for me to play I can move it to another key that is much easier. Several years ago when I first purchased my Ovation I took some lessons and I saw a big improvement in my playing. But since that time while my playing is better I lost some of the items I learned in those lessons. Today I still play chords with some proficiency but I can not TABs as well as I did while taking lessons and while still being able to remember some riffs in my mind, my fingers will not move fast enough to play them. In order to play guitar well I need to practice at playing and not just pick it up and expect to play well. Once a week just does not do it for me. While I can fake my way through most songs I have the potential to be better with some practice.
The same holds true when it comes to living out the faith. A good number of people believe showing up to church once a week is enough to live the Christian life but I do not think it is enough. There are some basic practices which will enhance our faith. For example to practice faith we need to put it into action in some way when we are away from church. It could be in a study in which we talk about faith issues. It could be in serving as a result of our faith. Praying for someone. Helping the stranger. Engaging in a random act of kindness. When these acts are motivated by our faith they are ways in which we practice serving God.