Spending Time With God Each Day...Is It Opitional?

“He makes me to lie down in green pastures:

he leads me beside the still waters.

He restores my soul:

He leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.”
Psalm 23:2-3 NIV

Is spending time with God each day optional? Of course it’s optional! God doesn’t force himself on anyone. Is it wise to start your day without greeting God and saying hello? Well no, not really. I have personally found that when I hurry through my day without connecting with God in a significant way I seem to loose my focus. I become more focused on myself, my work, and my desires. My emotions are open for attack from others and my feelings seem to get hurt easier. As the day moves along I find myself becoming more stressed and more dissatisfied with life and others, and on a scale of one to ten I give myself about a nine and a half in the irritability and crabbiness categories! Now mind you I said that’s me, not you! Satan is also very aware when I have become distracted and have lost sight of my spiritual focus. He desires that my thoughts would be self centered instead of Christ centered.

For me meeting with God early in the morning is best. You see I’m old and the memory is going! I’ve got to hit it while my mind is clear and I can still think. When my children were small this was not a good option for me. During that time of my life it was quick prayers on the fly with a more intentional time with God during their naps, if I even tried at all! If you are a male or female in the work arena you may need to find another solution. Perhaps going into work a bit earlier, closing your office door, sitting alone in your cubical, or sitting in your car a bit longer before rushing into work. You might try listening to praise music on the way to work and shooting up a prayer to God as you worship him through music. There are many devotional books that take just a very few minutes to read or a flip calendar for your desk that has a scripture with an inspiring thought. Or you might try eating your lunch in a quiet place while you have a time alone with God. Of course, there is evening. You may find that evening may be your best option for plugging in to God, but in reality the day is already over and you have missed out on the jump start of God’s strength that you could have drawn from all during your day.

Guilt is the last thing that any of us need but encouragement to raise the bar in our life to include God is beneficial. One of the biggest misconceptions about spending time alone with God daily is that it must be done at a particular time and place. The amount of time is up to you and if you miss a day that okay. Just keep trying. God knows your heart. I am sure that God would rather have a few moments of your pure worship opposed to you being a self-righteous person setting down for an hour out of duty. Our time alone with God is a personal goal to be aspired to and improved upon as we live out our life here on earth.

The longer I live the more I treasure my time alone with God. There is something to be said about being able to shut out the noise of life and to separate myself from other people and go one-on-One with God. It is in this the time that I am carried to a higher level of intimacy with God. It is a time of comfort and encouragement. It is a time that I can love on God and he can love on me. It is a time when I can learn more about God and his incredible ways.

I have many tools at my disposal to help me grow in the Lord and all are good and have a purpose. However, I have found that at some point I still have to turn off the minister on the radio, put away my Bible study lesson, stop reading that highly recommend Christian book, turn off my praise and worship music, and though it pains me to say this, turn off the computer and skip reading blogs. I have found that it is so important for me to make an effort to shut out the Christian world and spend one-on-One time alone with God simply reading the Bible and praying without distraction. I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God wants all of us to lie down in a green pasture, and sit beside the still waters while we allow him to restore our soul. God wants to be the One to lead us and redirect our path. He wants to restore our focus to his righteousness because he loves you and me and wants us to be the best we can be. Yes, spending quality time alone with God is optional. But in order for us to have the spiritual growth that we desire – it is necessary!



Questions:

Do you have regular time alone with God?

Do you desire to have a regular time alone with God but keep allowing your busy schedule to crowd time alone with God out of your life?

Do you agree that for personal spiritual growth spending time alone with God each day it is not an option but rather a necessary activity?

Can you find a personal solution to finding time to be alone with only God?


Prayer:

Dear God,

I do see that choosing to not to spend time with you is indeed an option, but choosing to avoid personal time with you is not a good idea. Please replace the guilt I feel regarding this choice with a deep desire to spend time alone time with you. Please show me how I can fit this one-on-One time with you into my already busy day. God I admit that sometimes I am better at this than other times. Show me how to sit aside good things for greater things. More than anything else, I pray that you would fan the flame of desire in my spirit so that I will want to be with you, not out of obligation, but rather out of love. God I want my days to run smoother, I want to live less stressed, I desire to be less irritable, I want my life to reflect you as I go through my day. God, I need the power in my life that only comes from spending time alone with you.

In Your Son’s Name I Pray. Amen.

Cared for by Jesus

“…Come and have breakfast.” John 21:12a NIV

When was the last time when someone cooked breakfast for you? If you are like me, I’m the cook! Young mothers are so busy that often they don’t even get to eat breakfast. I would imagine that many of you are rushing out of the house and into your car with only a food bar in your hand. Some of you will simply skip breakfast because you overslept and didn’t have time to eat.

It was again during my time alone with Jesus in the garden that he stirred my heart with the truth of yet another scripture. It was the story found in John 21:1-14. This is an amazing story. Jesus had been crucified and laid in the tomb. Jesus had risen and was making some unexpected appearances here and there to the disciples. The fact was the disciples were out of work and it seemed that their boss had closed up shop. What else was there to do but go back to fishing?

It was night time and several of the disciples (including Peter) went out to fish. They fished all night and in the early morning someone from the shore called out, “Friends haven’t you any fish?” At this point they did not recognize Jesus and probably didn’t appreciate the fact that this man was rubbing it in that they didn’t have any fish! Jesus then said, “Throw your net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.” This story further reveals that when they did, the catch was so great (153 fish to be exact) that they were unable to haul the net into the boat. At this point John recognized Jesus. Then Peter (the one who had denied Jesus three times,) jumped into the water and ran to meet Jesus! Peter was in such a hurry that he left the others to drag in the fish. How appropriate! Some work and some socialize.

Now here is the good part. When they all got to shore they realized that Jesus had laid a fire of burning coals and there was some fish on it and some bread. Jesus simply said, “Come and have breakfast.” Jesus took the bread and fish and gave it to his friends.

I am stirred deep within my heart and moved to unbelievable tears of joy when I realize that Jesus would cook breakfast for me. Just as Jesus provided for the physical needs of his loved ones, he has and will continue to provide for my physical needs a well. The second amazing thing is that no matter how many times I may fail Jesus, he never fails me. I am so glad that he allowed Peter to eat because I know that even in my failures Jesus loves me so much he would never deny me an opportunity to eat with him. He is the bread of life and there is plenty to go around.

Questions:

Do you remember a time when Jesus was this personal with you?

How do you feel about the fact that even in your failure Jesus is always
faithful to you?

Prayer:

Dear Jesus,

Today I am so thankful for your amazing love to me. I am blessed to know that even when I am not faithful, you are. Thank you Lord that you love me in such a personal way that you would cook breakfast for me! That kind of personal care and attention to my physical need is mind boggling! I pray that this knowledge will enable me to trust you more and that it will challenge me to seek you and spend more time alone with you.

In Your Name I pray. Amen.

Visiting the Secret Garden

“Then the man and his wife heard the sound of the Lord God as he was walking in the garden in the cool of the day…the Lord God called to the man, “Where are you?”

Genesis 3:8 – 9a NIV

Very early this morning I wrapped myself in an afghan, poured a cup of coffee and walked out on my back porch. The sky was still dark. I sat silently listening to God’s creation. Insects chirped their symphony of praise while the birds still slept in their nests. As I entered my heart’s secret garden I attempted to clear my mind of all clutter. I waited silently for Jesus to speak. Even though I could not see him or feel him, my faith told me he was there. I was comforted to be in his presence.

After a bit of time had passed my Master Gardner, Jesus Christ began to teach me. As he often did in scripture, he began with a question. “Paula, what do you think needs to come out of your garden?” My reply was, “nothing Lord; I love it just as it is!”

Jesus began his silent teaching through whispering A thought into my mind. He spoke only one word “resentment.” He said you have made progress in forgiveness and in acceptance, yet you still need to deal with this deep rooted weed of resentment.

I determined this morning that even though I may be able to forgive and accept the ones who offend me, I still resent them critiquing me and my values. I feel hurt when I am ignored and I resent that I am not valued by the offender. Rejection is hard to accept.

It was in the garden that Jesus began in love to teach me. Jesus spoke to me in kindness and he assured me that if I would allow him to uproot the resentment weed I would become a more effective Christian. Down deep in my heart I so want to be a person of godly influence. I realized that in that moment I was not strong enough to remove that deeply rooted weed of resentment that was entangled in my heart. A weed of this size would require a powerful tiller. The divine tool I needed here was the Holy Spirit. So on that day I gave God permission to excavate the deep root of resentment. He assured me, as he always does, that I would not miss this weed of resentment because he is all that I need and he is more than enough!

Today I am reminded that Jesus was ignored. Still today, Jesus is not valued by those he loves. He faces rejection everyday. Yet he continues to love humanity. Jesus stayed focused on the Father and the reason that he came to this earth. He had no time for pity parties. He moved on doing the work God had given him to do. Jesus saw the bigger picture and he knew that it was for the eternal good of all humanity to walk away and not waste one a minute on resentment. For my eternal good I want to choose to say good-bye to resentment. Resentment does not belong in the garden of my heart and when it tries to return I will definitely need to call for divine help.

Questions:

Have you ever waited and listened for God to whisper his truth to your heart?

What did he say?

Is the noise of the day so loud that you cannot hear God speak?

Will you today make a place where you can be alone with God and listen to his voice?


Prayer:

Heavenly Father,

I admit my life is so busy that I am greatly challenged by finding not only time but “quiet” time to be alone with you. Help me to find a creative way to carve out that special time to meet you in the garden. Lord, I desire to meet you in the secret garden of my heart.

In Your Name I pray. Amen.

Speaking to God as Friend to Friend

“A man of many companions may come to ruin,
but there is a friend that sticks closer than a brother.”
Proverbs 18:24 NIV

I have to admit that in the past I have had butterflies in my stomach when the thought of trying to develop an intimate personal relationship with Jesus would be discussed. Some of us avoid intimacy and others are not good conversationalists. Some of us do all the talking and never listen when others speak.

I have found that the very best teachers and ministers are those who are real. I also love a minister or teacher who has the ability to speak spiritual truth and show you what it looks like in the real world. I for one need examples and word pictures. I need to know how to apply spiritual truth at the grocery store, the shopping mall, at my dinner table, in the car, on the job, and at family functions. I need to know what the truth is and what it is not.

You may find the idea of meeting God in your heart’s garden to be both beautiful and comforting, or this scenario may make you feel like you are stepping into a fantasy world and greatly uncomfortable. At first I was not comfortable spending time with Jesus. My life was complicated, cluttered, and busy. It was stressful for me to sit down when there is so much to be done. I admit that many times in my life it has been hard for me to focus for more than five minutes on spiritual things and praying for longer than two minutes was out of the question. Unless I was in trouble, I simply did not have that much to say to God. God seemed to be far away and aloof.

The truth is that God welcomes us into his presence. He knows we are frail and unaccustomed to being in his presence. God is patient, kind and loving as we attempt to learn how to move into a deeper relationship with him. I continue to be amazed that the God of the universe desires that I know him intimately. He wants all of us to speak to him everyday and all through the day as friend to friend.

So when I became intentional about developing a daily friendship with Jesus I tried to think of him as my very best friend. I asked myself, how do I treat my very best friend? I then began to implement those same acts of friendship with Jesus. I now speak to him as a friend who cares about all aspects of my life and understands my concerns. Figuratively speaking, we chat over morning coffee and we share secrets over a cup of afternoon tea. As I talk to Jesus I express my frustrations and I admit my fears. I tell him of my challenges. I tell him of my joys. I confess my sin and shortcomings. I tell him often what his friendship means to me. I thank him for being in my life and for all that he has done for me. I ask him for his advice, help, and guidance. I then practice listening to the voice of my friend. Shhhhh…I must be still…be quiet… what does Jesus have to say to me?

What scripture will he remind me of today and what thoughts will he place in my mind. This kind of simplicity and honesty is prayer in its purest form. My friendship with Jesus begins early in the day in a private place set apart for just my friend and me, and it continues throughout my busy day. It even continues as I sleep. Jesus is becoming my first thought in the morning when I get up. Together we begin our day, ready to do it all over again. Jesus is my dearest friend!

Questions:

Who is your best friend?

How do you treat that friend?

How would you feel if you no longer had that friendship?

Are you in a relationship with Jesus?

Are you willing to try to treat Jesus like your best friend?

Prayer:

Dear Lord,

Help me to desire a special friendship with you. Help me to start simple and build on that simple beginning. Give me the faith to believe that you care about me and want to be in a personal relationship with me. Lord, I pray that our friendship will continue to grow stronger every day. Thank you for being a friend that sticks closer than a sibling, a parent, or a spouse.

In Your Name I pray. Amen.

Acquaintance vs. Friend

“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love,
for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go,
for to you I lift up my soul.”
Psalm 143:8 NIV

During my life I have had many opportunities to meet new people. Those opportunities have come when I have started a new job, and moved into a new neighborhood, and changed churches. The greatest opportunities to meet new people have come when we have relocated to a new state.

I must admit that I make intimate friends cautiously. Before I spill my guts to a new neighbor I want to be sure I can trust them. Before I invite someone to dinner I want to be sure they are not going to take home the silver. Frankly, in a close friendship I am looking for someone to share my hopes, my dreams, my fears, and my concerns. I am looking for a confidant. I have come to realize that my very best friends have also been those individuals with whom I also share my faith.

Acquaintances aren’t so bad either. There is always the chance that they will become a really good friend if given half a chance. Acquaintances are people that you can know and share casual details of life with and enjoy fellowship. In meeting people I have learned to not only look for those God has sent my way for me to help and encourage, but also to look for those has God sent to help and encourage me. I don’t want to miss knowing that special person that God has placed in my life weather they are a one time encounter, an acquaintance, or an intimate friend.

Today I am remembering that when I invited Jesus Christ to come into my life there was much I did not know about him. We really started out together as acquaintances. Yes, he had called me first and invited me to be his friend and I had accepted, but now I was faced with, where was this friendship going? I must admit that early in my acquaintance with Jesus I moved with great caution. How did I know I could trust him? Did he really care about the little details of my life? Why did he want me to obey him and why should I? What was this “serve me” business all about? Over and over again I wondered how could I believe in what I could not see and how could I trust a guy that I couldn’t see to handle my life? Satan loved to dazzle me with all of those questions!

I hardly know how or when it happened. It was gradual. It was exciting. It has become precious! Jesus moved from an acquaintance in my life to a precious friend. For me trust seemed to be the real issue. Most of the trust issues came to rest as I spent time alone with him in the garden of my heart learning about him and his love for me. If you have not experienced your Savior as a friend, I encourage you to move forward in trust.

Every morning when I wake up I am anxious to sit with my friend, Jesus Christ. I can’t wait to hear the word he has for me that day that will tell me of his unfailing love. Jesus is a friend that I can trust. He shows me the way I should go and he lifts up my soul


Questions:

Has Jesus become your friend or is he just an acquaintance?

Do you trust God with your life?

Do you trust him for your future both now and in eternity?

Do you trust him with those you love?

If you can’t trust him, why do you think that is? Is it fear? Is it control? Is it a lack of understanding as to who God really is, or is it your surface relationship with God that is affecting your trust?

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father,

I am this day in need of your friendship. I desire to know who you are and understand your love, your power, your grace. Help me to know that you do know my name and that you are waiting for me to move closer to you. Show me how I can learn to trust you more to handle every detail of my life.

In your Son’s Name I pray. Amen.

The Blue Chair

Special Note: Today’s blog is a little longer than usual but I think that you will enjoy it because it describes how I learned to form the habit of a regular “Quite Time” with the Lord. The Blue Chair is another setting whereby I enter “The Garden of My Heart.”

“Come near to God and he will come near to you.” James 4:8 NIV

As a child, I was raised knowing that it was important to read the Bible everyday. As a teenager I thought that reading the Bible was boring, when I became a young adult I was too busy, and after becoming a mother it was impossible! Nevertheless, all of these empty excuses heaped tons of guilt onto my shoulders. As a young mother I asked, “God, how can I possibly have time to read the Bible and spend time alone with you everyday?” This was a question that repeatedly haunted me, and then it happened, the blue chair!

The blue chair was a comfortable, cozy chair. It was one of the two pieces of furniture that my husband and I purchased when we first set up housekeeping. The blue chair sat in a corner of our family room. It fit my body perfectly. I loved it! One day, I got the bright idea to make a spot in our home where I could have a “Quiet Time.” My eyes went straight to my favorite blue chair. Next to the chair I placed a small table to hold a lamp, my Bible, and still leave enough room to set my favorite morning beverage, coffee. During the winter months I added a comfy afghan to the back of the blue chair. The picture was perfect; this was my little corner of the world. At last, a place to read my Bible and pray.

I would love to say that this was a perfect plan that was flawless and worked immediately, but that’s just not the way it played out. When I first purposed in my heart to set up an area in our home for a “Quite Time” retreat, I would often fail to sit down in the blue chair. Everyday I would look at the blue chair, and I knew in my heart that the blue chair was intended to offer me a place to read my Bible and to pray. Sadly, I would often pass by the blue chair and promise myself that I would get in the chair as soon as I finished whatever important chore I was currently doing. Some days I would make it to the blue chair and other days it would seem less of a priority.

No matter what the desire of my heart was, the busyness of life had a way of pulling me away from the very thing that in my heart I really wanted to do. There were still many days that I missed my appointment with God in the blue chair. The blue chair also became a very present and annoying reminder to me that I should have been in a place where I was not!

Over the years, I became more intentional and I frequently made time for sitting in the blue chair. I actually looked forward to this personal encounter with God and I couldn’t wait to wake up, pour myself a cup of coffee, and sit in the blue chair. On the days that I absolutely couldn’t make it I began to feel cheated. When I climbed into bed at night, I regretted that I had missed a very special time that day with my Lord.

As my time in the blue chair increased, so did my need for a more organized space. I brought in a small basket and placed it on the floor next to the blue chair to hold my Bible, a journal, a pen and a devotional book. I then progressed to a larger sized basket, to hold even more study materials. Over the years the need for more space continued to grow as I accumulated even more of the same! Before I knew it, I had to move a small bookcase into the family room and sit it next to the blue chair for the exclusive purpose of holding my ever growing collection of reading and study materials.

As time passed, my appointment with God in the blue chair became a regular habit. I was finding that the time I spent alone with God was indeed sweet and enjoyable. It was also comforting, and encouraging. The blue chair became the regular place where I found peace and strength. It was a place where I could pour out my pain and frustration, a place to leave my guilt, a place to praise and worship God, and a place to say thank you to God for all of the many blessings in my life.

One of the bonuses of the blue chair was that my children expected me to be in the blue chair. When they came downstairs before leaving for school, they would often stop by and ask me to pray about their needs for that day. If I wasn’t in the blue chair, they wanted to know why not.

My children no longer live at home. I am now in yet another stage of life. In the past few years I have been known to let things in the house go undone, because I enjoy my time in the blue chair so much. What started as a twenty minute “Quiet Time,” many years ago has at times grown out of control! I now find that I would rather be having my “Quiet Time” instead doing laundry, cooking, or housework. Imagine that!

Over the years, I became acutely aware that I didn’t spend time in the blue chair because I was a person who had finally gotten it all together. No, it really was and still is quite the opposite! The truth is I need to be in the blue chair because that is where I meet with God; I have found God to be my source of strength, my teacher, and my friend. My “Quiet Time” is where I can redirect my focus to God and not my circumstances. The fact of the matter is, my blue chair will need to go to the garbage dump long before I will ever out grow my personal need to be sitting in it each and every day of my life.

At times the enemy tries to lure me away from the blue chair, and sadly to say, sometimes he does. But God is so faithful. Everyday His spirit draws me to Himself and to the blue chair. I now know deep within my soul, that it is in those few minutes of solitude each day that I am able to enter into a sweet personal relationship with my Lord. Of course, God goes with me many places through out the day, but for me it begins in the blue chair.

What God has taught me is that my “Quiet Time,” with Him is and has been an ongoing process. I had to start somewhere and for me it was the blue chair. Each season of my life has brought about many different responsibilities inside and outside of the home. I worked, then I became a stay at home mom, and then I again re-entered the work arena, and now God has provided a time of solitude that I believe is designed for my spiritual submission and refinement. I am so thankful that I followed God’s prompting in my heart many years ago, to set aside a time and a place to gradually form the habit of meeting with Him every day.

Spending time alone with God is a precious time. It is the best source of help, wisdom, love and encouragement that I am able to receive on any given day. The blue chair has been the icon that has daily drawn me to God. It is the place where God meets me where I am, He listens to me, He teaches me, and He pours into my heart His abundant and never ending love for me.

I now try to encourage others to find their own personal “blue chair,” whenever they can, wherever it may be, whatever it may look like. If you already have a special place for your “Quiet Time,” that is wonderful. In that case I would like to encourage you to “raise the bar” by beginning to spend a little more time with God each day. Explore new ways to study, spend more time reading his Word, and spend more time in prayer. Try memorizing some scripture; and learn what God has promised you in his word. You might even try your hand at journaling. One thing for sure, God will already be there in your special spot waiting for your arrival.

Questions:

Have you ever been able to form the habit of having a “Quiet Time” with God most every day?

If not, what is hindering you from having a “Quiet Time?”

Would you like to try again to form this habit?

What will you do to begin forming the habit?

If you already have a regular “Quiet Time” what will you do to “raise the bar” during your “Quiet Time?”

Prayer:

Dear Lord,

“Quiet Time” with you seems to always elude me. God, I have a simple desire to form this habit and I know that you understand all that I have to do in my life. Help me Lord to make a place and start simple. I pray that Satan will not defeat me in this effort because of my inconsistency. During times of inconsistency, I pray Lord that you will help me to simply start back right where I left off. May I not view my inconsistency as a failure. Help me to see that you are with me in this effort. I know that as I mature in my faith you will help me succeed. I know that there will always be opportunity for me to “raise the bar” a little higher in the time that I spend with you.

In Your Name I pray. Amen.