So you’re cozy on your favourite first thing in the morning. You’re ready to start your quiet time. You’ve got your Bible open and your heart ready to hear from God. You start reading His Word. You read and read and read. But ten verses in and you find yourself skimming through scripture. Has this ever happened to you?
If you’re the type of person that struggles with your quiet time often, congratulations. You’re a normal Christian! Getting deep into God’s presence and Word on a daily basis is essential to growth. But often it’s more like a bitter pill that we’d rather shove down our throats than an open feast we can enjoy.
It can be a challenge to find a consistent rhythm of hearing from God, but it is possible!
Job once said, “…I have treasured the words of his mouth more than my portion of food…” (Job 23:12) It can be a challenge to find a consistent rhythm of hearing from God, but it is possible! Here are five ways that you can start to recharge your quiet time when it starts getting stale.
Don’t rush
The temptation when meditating on God’s Word is to rush through it. And don’t feel bad if you’re guilty of this. We’ve all been there. It’s so easy to get caught up with all the things we need to get done right after we spend time with God. The temptation is always to rush. But God is patient with us. He waits on us and thus we too are to wait on Him.
Focus on what God wants to say to you
Have we read a verse with a correction and thought, “Yes, Lord, my boss definitely needs to hear this”? I know I’ve made that mistake before. But we need to realize that our time with God is our time with God. Don’t focus on what God wants to say to the gossiping churchmate, the bully or the difficult clients. Focus on what God wants to speak to you, whether it’s a gentle rebuke or a thundering encouragement. Let God speak to you.
Unplug During Your Quiet Time
Here’s something practical. When it’s your time with the Lord, try to limit- if not- remove all distractions possible. Turn off the wifi on your phone. Close your laptop. Even get inside an empty room in your home or an open field if you live with others. The lesser distractions, the more intimate your time with God will be.
Spend time with God all day
Spending fifteen, thirty, sixty minutes with God a day is essential. But that short moment is not the only time we are to talk with God. We should make every waking moment possible a conversation with God. The more we talk with God the other times of the day, the more sensitive we will be to His voice behind closed doors.
Focus on Christ
As the kind of person who loves to get deep into God’s Word and look into the context, background, word studies and details, I have also often found myself missing Christ in my quest for knowledge. Your personal time with God is not about gaining Bible knowledge. It’s about knowing Christ more. That’s why it’s crucial that in every moment we spend with God, our goal is to find Him.
