Some Thoughts on Quiet Time

The two challenges I have most often heard women speak of about their own personal quiet time are

1. Being Consistent
2. What do I do?

It’s not that we don’t know we should have a quiet time (we do!). It’s that it’s hard to figure out how it works, specifically and practically, in our own lives. Here are some things I have read or found helpful.

Scripture/Study

Set aside time every day to build this habit. For me, this means waking up ahead of my husband and children.

Leave your phone in a different spot if you will be distracted by it. If you fear you may miss someone who needs you, turn your ringer up and your notifications off (people will go ahead and call if it is an actual emergency. If they text, they can, perhaps, wait 15 minutes).

Don’t stress that you aren’t having an hour each day communing with God. Start by trying to be consistent about 10 minutes. Increase accordingly.

When (not if) you have distractions/setbacks, start up again as soon as you can. I used to think that I couldn’t ever have quiet time if there were other people in the room. Yet often small children sense when their mothers are awake without them! So, accept (gracefully and graciously) their awake presence and still have your quiet time. Let them have a journal/pens themselves to draw and explain, “Mommy needs to have some time with Jesus.” Sometimes they will go ahead and play and you will get some (not as quiet but still helpful) time with Jesus.

If they want to be involved, this is a wonderful teaching tool. Read aloud a short segment. Then have a prayer and sing a song. Is that part of your daily reading plan? Maybe not. Was that what you had planned? Probably not. Will that stay with them for years to come? Hopefully so.

Another thing I have found to be helpful is using nursing/feeding time as a way to be “purposeful.” Perhaps you are not tempted with this, but when I was nursing a baby to sleep, I would often take my phone… and get sucked down the rabbit hole… Instead, determine to make the habit of feeding yourself spiritually as you feed that sweet baby physically. Keep your Bible or a devotional book next to your glider (or wherever you nurse).

Praying

Go outside, when possible. If not possible, sit by a window where you can see things that God has made.

Prime the pump. Read a psalm, and pray it back. Sing a hymn, and say the words in prayer. It’s not cheating. It deepens your prayer life.

Read prayers in the Bible (Hannah, Miriam, Mary, etc).

Read books about prayer during your study time. Jennifer Gerhardt and Charles Hodge both have excellent and practical books on prayer.

Set a “timer” on yourself. For instance, pray all the way through your cup of coffee and then start your Bible study portion.

Write out your prayer. Or make a list that you refer to. Keep a gratitude journal.

Keep a scratch pad handy (any kind of notepad or recycled paper will do). When you are distracted by remembering a responsibility or thought about something that needs to be done later today, write it down so you don’t keep obsessing over that thought while trying to pray. You can refer to your list after!

Conscientiously tell yourself not to hurry. Savor this moment with the Lord. Sometimes, the best time spent is in companionable silence.

Directions to Take

• Read through the Bible in a year (or two years). There are many plans out there
• Choose a Bible book to read through. Go about 10 verses at a time. Read it several times (even in different translations). Take notes about your questions and observations. Or use my dad’s helpful categories: Find the promises to keep (God’s promises/rewards to us), commands to obey (what should I be doing from these verses?), and warnings to heed (what things or consequences am I trying to avoid?).
• Study for Bible classes. This is true of classes you attend and classes you teach. You will find your study more enriched if you read and study ahead of time.
• Read good study books. Make sure they are heavy in scripture and not in man’s words.

Several older women in my life have the habit of posting scriptures around their house. I think they started the habit when there were littles around, for precisely the challenges you and I now face! Don’t give up. Keep feeding yourself!

Photo by Sixteen Miles Out on Unsplash