Christian Prayer Room

[Ranb2khz]

Getting the Most Out of Your Time Alone with God

As much as I’d love to be a person that can consistently do something simply because I “should,” I need to know why it matters to me specifically to take an action at all. I am aperson driven by the why. I need to know that my time and energy are going towards something that will bear fruit. I need to know that something meaningful will happen because of what I’m doing.

I went a long time in life with time alone with God neatly nestled into the “should” category. I’d do it for a few days after a conference, retreat, or really good sermon, but I was never able to do it consistently. I’d pick up my Bible, journal, or devotional book and always be surprised at how long it had been since I last met with God. Most of my journal entries fell on Sundays or Wednesdays and consisted of musings bouncing around my head while listening to a sermon. A lot of my prayers were apologies for not being consistent enough.

Even in that season I could have regurgitated why others had told me spending time alone with God mattered. I could have spoken on its power and my need. I could have encouraged others to do it. But I had yet to discover my own “why.”

My “why” came when I hit rock bottom. I remember I was sitting on the front pew of Second Baptist Church in Arkadelphia, Arkansas, when the Holy Spirit spoke to my heart. I had filled my life with every good work I could think of, but I wasn’t spending any time alone with God. I was much more focused on doing worship rather than being worship. And in that moment when everything seemed to be falling apart I opened my heart and cried out for God’s help. He responded, “It needs to just be me and you for a while.”

I realized in that moment that I had attempted to fill my life with the external, and I needed to make space for the internal. I needed to devote myself to my relationship with the King instead of spending all my time trying to advance his kingdom. And in that process of learning how to spend time alone with God I discovered my “why.” My “why” was simply this:

I was created for time alone with God.

I discovered that my identity, my righteousness, my self-worth, my calling, God’s plans for my future, and the power to accomplish his plans are meant to be built on the foundation of spending time alone with God. Every part of the abundant life Jesus died to give me is meant to stem from spending time in God’s presence, because it’s what I was made for.

Your “why” might be a little different from mine, or it might be the same. Maybe you’re in desperate need of emotional healing. Maybe you need freedom from a particular sin. Maybe you need peace. Know that God has a “why” for you, and discovering that “why” is the key to consistently spending time alone with God.

Think About It:

Take a moment alone with God right now to ask him to reveal your why.

• What does he have in store for you if you’ll make space to meet with him?

• Why does time alone with him matter to your life specifically?
________________

~ by Craig Denison (https://content.app-us1.com/dYE6j/2022/07/18/653d4afb-0cc2-403e-9974-f7064c988d08.pdf)

First15 Prayerful Music:

•