How to Spend Quiet Time With God….

 

When was the last time you actually heard God talk to you? Today we have cell phones, cable TV, cars, girl/boy problems, sexual tension, peer pressure, drugs, work issues, and many others that I am sure we can come up with that distract us. So how do we cope with these things? One of the ways that I have seen from friends and have learned is finding time to spend with God quietly. Jesus gave us examples in the Gospels where He stepped away from the followers, the work, and even all the troubles that came with the ones trying to discredit and even kill Him; retreating to a quiet place to commune with His Father. These quiet times spent with God gave Him, and can give us, a chance to let go of all the problems in our lives. The way He did this had some very important elements in common.
Jesus understood the importance of truly knowing the Father. The elements of how to spend quiet time with God have three parts to it: The place is free of distractions, use of prayer and thanksgiving, and use of God’s Word.

• An Area Free of Distraction – Each time Jesus wanted to spend time with His Father, He always retreated to a secluded area free from distractions. He could talk with God, and listen to Him as well. The same is true of us. Our quiet times with God should be in a place where we are alone with no TV or phone. It can be outside under a tree or even indoors in a room with nothing in it -- only God and us.
• Prayer and Thanksgiving - Jesus’ prayers were not always for Himself, but for others. In our quiet time spent with God, we use Jesus’ example by offering prayers for others such as friends and those that hurt us; and thanksgiving to God for all that He has done for us. These prayers should also include a time of reflection, thinking of what we have received, how we can do good with it, and on how God has seen us through the good and bad times.
• God’s Word - Just as our bodies need food to keep it going, we need to spend quality time with God to feed our souls. Jesus often quoted from God’s Word in His quiet times. Quiet time with God is also a time to read God’s Word and meditate on it. If we don’t understand a certain passage of Scripture, we can ask God to help us understand it. This is how God can speak to us and tells us what He wants us to do. It is through daily prayer and reading God’s Word that we will grow in our walk with God.

These are elements of spending quiet time alone with God. The importance is setting time aside each day to talk with God, because this is the best way to draw close to Him. We are flawed and just like little children we need our Father to take care of us and give us direction. When things are rough go and be quiet and alone with God. When things are good also go and spend time and thank God for what he is doing in our lives. This is how to spend some quiet time with God.