Manna Monday- Revamp Your Quiet Time

The Daily Dilemma

Ughhh! Why do we battle with spending time with God? Shouldn't we want to set aside time to converse and hang on to the Words of the God of the Universe, our Creator, Redeemer and King every morning? Sounds commendable on paper but in reality, its a real conflict.

 

The Root of Our Quiet Time Struggle

The Flesh

Daily, our flesh wages war against the Spirit of God inside us. The apostle Paul said, "For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out (Romans 7:18)."While we are here on this earth, we will struggle with our flesh that procrastinates and rebels against spending time with God. But take heart, dear one. We have  help through Jesus Christ- the Holy Spirit, "...the Spirit helps us in our weakness...(Romans 8:26).

Unconfessed Sin

The other piece of our quiet time struggle is unconfessed sin. Flashback to the Garden of Eden. Remember the famous scene where the first couple veiled themselves with degrading fig leaves (Genesis 3:8-11)? They tried to deal with their own sin and hide from God. In actuality, they broke fellowship with their heavenly Father. Yet God found them. He longed to be close to them again. And He asked them to confess why they were hiding. Truth is, we don't like confessing our sin. It's hard and painful. But the reward is unity with God! Stop hiding under your own kind of fig leaves and come back to your tender heavenly Father. He is waiting.

Three Ways To Revamp Your Quiet Time Today

1. Change Your Mindset
Say "so long" to boring and purposeless quiet times. Adopt a new mindset that believes the most High God who wants to talk to you and desires for you to talk to Him. You are not "doing" something to check off on your "to-do" list. Simply come before God and ask, "I want to love you more. Help me love You more." He wants to have a conversation with you. So talk to Him. Begin the conversation.

2. Take Inventory of Your Questions

When you want to get to know someone more, you ask questions. Start asking God to teach you truths you don't know in His Word (Memorize Psalm 25:4 and pray it back to God). Take a notebook and label it "Questions for God." Make a list of every question you have for God. Maybe it's about His character, attributes, a life story in the Bible, a topic in life that you are unsure about. Then seek it out in the Bible first. Once you have searched the scriptures and prayed about it, then purchase a book from your local Christian bookstore, https//www.lifeway.com or online at https://www.christianbook.com on what you are desiring to learn more about. Read all you can from real pastors and Christian authors. God uses other people to teach us too. It's amazing what insight you will gain by searching scripture first, praying about it, and then reading from other believers. A whole new world of exciting knowledge and truth about God will begin to infiltrate your heart and overflow into your daily life.

3. Make A Quiet Time Place
Just like you have a place for your makeup and kitchen utensils, make a place for your quiet time materials. Decorate the inside of a drawer and make it appealing to the eyes when you open it. Keep the items in a special basket or storage container in your den, kitchen or living room. Purchase your favorite color journal or CD to play. Use praise music to get your mind off of the world and onto Jesus. Buy a coffee mug that you only use during quiet times. Carve out a nook in your home where you go and make it as special as you can. Make it a place you love to go to!!Most importantly, keep your schedule away from the quiet place because your mind will start  to wander.

Take the Joy Treasure Challenge

There is no time like today to get started conversing with the God of the Universe.

He loves you. He longs for you to know Him (Psalm 139). 

 

Attempt one of these three things today. 

Complete all by the end of the week. 

 

I would love to hear how this post encouraged you!