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by Bill Seng

What do you enjoy most about your day? And I mean daily. I can think of a bunch of things I enjoy routinely: warm showers after work, a good movie before going to bed, and the daily conversations I have with my wife. But my favorite time of day is when all of the other distractions have been put aside and I have a moment by myself with my Creator.

Now, my quiet time with God has changed significantly since I graduated from college. In college I would start my day off with Scripture and prayer, and I would end my day with Scripture and prayer. Back then I could wake up between 9 and 10 o’clock and go to bed at 1 or 2 in the morning. There was a lot less responsibility, and my immediate sphere of influence encouraged me to invest at least a half hour into quiet time every time. Today, I don't have the flexibility with time that I used to. One day, I would love to develop a routine that allows me to have quiet time twice a day for extended lengths of time, but for now I have had to invest a good portion of that time into those closest to me. Let this post be an encouragement for those of you who feel that you can never quite get quiet time right.

Deuteronomy 6:6-7 reads, “These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” Boy oh boy, do we all fail at this. I know I do. And yet, Ravi Zacharias says that he is convinced that we fail to effectively share the Gospel because our testimony lacks a substantial devotional life. Let me make a suggestion for you busy people out there especially those with kids: don't be so hard on yourself.

I went from two devotions a day to not knowing when or how to squeeze any quiet time into my schedule. I'm not going to detail the challenges I have faced, but I'm sure if you examine your life, you could probably figure it out. What I have learned, through much frustration, is that as a parent and husband part of my “quiet time” has to be reading and praying with my wife and son, even when I feel like we are too flustered from the insanity of our daily routines to do so. This time does not need to take an hour and it does not need to be pretty. For us, getting a two-year-old to sit still and focus just for 5 minutes is difficult enough, but we have had some blessings through it. For instance, my son really likes animals. I read Genesis chapter one and he noticed that I was reading to him about animals and started repeating some of the words I was saying. Small success, but success. He was listening to God's Word!

Ultimately, the way this has affected my personal quiet time is it has enhanced it with the satisfaction of knowing that I have contributed to another’s faith walk in a very meaningful way. I have learned to value the time I have alone with God and to make the most of it, even when I am tired. There are times I don’t know what to pray about. In those cases, I take the advice of Jesus and pray, “Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done one earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power, and the glory forever and ever. Amen.

Quiet time should be meaningful and productive, but it won’t always be perfect. Nonetheless, we always say that faith in God is a relationship with Jesus. I think we have forgotten that relationships are messy and unpredictable. When we remember this, our devotional lives might take a turn for the best.

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