Do you struggle to read God’s Word? Does it seem more like a chore rather than a longing for more? Today’s blog is more for me than for you. It’s about something that I need to hear.
You see…I had high expectations for this New Year. She has rolled in with a bang of thunder and honestly, I don’t know how to calm her down. My days are long. I find myself chasing after time. There are so many things I feel that need to get done.
And I run out the door.
With my to-do list in tow.
I hurry my relationships along.
And I find myself feeling sad about it.
But worse yet…I cut Jesus short.
So, tonight, as I sit here at Chikfila at 8:00 pm with my little dude and we, the one and onlies in the playground (because all the good moms have taken their kiddos home for bathtime and bedtime routines AND I don’t even want to start comparing my life to what appears to be their perfect Lil’ worlds!)…BUT I AM STILL HERE BECAUSE MY 12 YEAR OLD IS AT BASKETBALL PRACTICE!
I think to myself when will life calm down?
To be honest, most of us living in the United States cannot escape the fact that we live in a fast-paced, multitasking, frenzied fast-food eating world. We barely sit down (if we sit down at all) for family dinners and relaxed get-togethers. And when we do, we hear the texts dinging and the phones ringing. We are tuned into the war overseas, terrorism tactics, Hollywood’s who’s who and what’s not…and to homework that just has to get done.
It’s the little things that grab at our heartstrings.
Maybe you’ve heard of this thing called an idol. The very thing that steals your attention away from God so that you don’t have time to read God’s Word. The thing that consumes your thoughts because it is what you love to do…or to read…or to spend time with..or to waste your mula on. Or maybe you are sitting there right now and absolutely nothing comes to your mind. If I were to ask you, “Do you love the Lord?” You might respond, “Yes, with all of my heart.“But yet…deep, deep down…you know (like me) you struggle to squeeze in the time.
“If you don’t feel strong desires for the manifestation of the glory of God, it is not because you have drunk deeply and are satisfied. It is because you have nibbled so long at the table of the world. Your soul is stuffed with small things, and there is no room for the great.”
-John Piper, A Hunger for God
Small things.
Petty things.
The very things that consume all of our time.
When we add up all the small things in our lives we quickly discover that they zap our time and energy. They drive our destiny. They take our eyes off of the Lord.
Let’s refocus our time and energy and get back to doing what we know we need to do. We can spend time reading God’s Word daily. And we can find time to pray, ask others to hold us accountable and squeeze Jesus in when we blow-dry our hair. Most importantly, we can boldly go to the throne room and ask Jesus to change us.
And we can start today!
Any creative ideas to squeeze in more time to read God’s Word? I would love to hear what you have to say!
Reblogged this on Praying for the millennials.
i know what happened to me today was that i was going to read something else – but then i ended up reading God’s Word… 🙂
Hi Sue! I can so relate to being ‘owned’ by the schedule. For about 5 years straight my nights were filled with soccer and baseball practices for 4 of our 5 children. There were many late nights and lots of travel and I sometimes resented that I could not even spend one night at home. Then I began to use the times of waiting at games and practices. I kept an extra bible in the car and my prayer journal. Even though sitting in the parking lot of a soccer field was not my typical quiet time place, I loved that God could use these waiting times to meet with me and I needed it. Through each of my kids stages I have had to be flexible and sometimes unconventional with my time with Him. I like routine and I am not a fan of change, so it has been out of my comfort zone. Sometimes I need to be uncomfortable so I can focus more on Him and less on me.
And your schedule will change. With 3 now in college, 1 in high school and a 5th grader, my schedule has changed again and slowed down.
I can relate. Idols. Satan sneaks them in disguised as a busy schedule, long to do list, social media etc. I must stop and make the time to rest and reenergize at Jesus’ feet.
I can relate to this, I use to struggle finding time with the Lord because I was so tired or my kids woke up before I had the chance. But over the past year I’ve been waking up, giving my sweet kids breakfast, and going back to my room to have quiet time. I once had a wise woman tell me, it didn’t matter how long quiet time was, just that i take the time to do it!
I think that is wonderful advice. God knows our hearts. He sees that we want to. And your time of busyness may be just for a season.
AMEN!!! I love this dear mom. So true. So true. Man–satan is a sneaky one–constantly trying to take our attention away from Jesus in very clever ways. I sneak in time throughout the day when I do dishes or run the bath or when I’m driving, but the biggest way that I give Jesus my time is by taking a Sabbath. Over the last 40 weeks, I have obediently shut off my computer and enjoy the entire day being quiet, playing with my kids, reading the bible at night, praying, journaling, and just giving Him my full (when almost full–I have 3 kids, you know! 🙂 ) But I take away as many distractions as possible, and it has been so rewarding listening to the Father, having conversations with Him and allowing Him to teach me. Praying for you to find more pockets of time too! It’s not impossible! 🙂
I bring Jesus with me. I listen to sermons, worship with music, talk to him as I go. I make time. Not always, but I try!