With a new season approaching, the time to plan a different quiet time schedule can arrive as well. Whether changing jobs or experiencing a spouse changing jobs, deciding on a new school year plan, or just needing a change to prevent monotony, setting up a new quiet time routine can be challenging. Recently I was thinking through my personal quiet time routine and evaluating what is going to work well in the fall between Bible study time and prayer. Today I'm sharing a few of the questions I asked myself in that evaluation.
1. How much daily time do I want to spend in purposeful prayer?
Honestly, God and I have an ongoing conversation throughout the day. I'm sure some of what I say to him would make no sense to the average person if they overheard our conversation, because I have a tendency to jump around randomly from topic to topic. Sometimes that conversation is based on the experiences of the day and sometimes it's just based on what is going on in my head. But besides this ongoing conversation, I believe having a purposeful plan with time carved out to pray is so very important in our personal relationship. So I need to decide on a time or times to be purposeful about praying to the Lord.
2. What method of tracking prayer requests or prayer journaling would be good to use in this season?
In other words, who am I praying for and how do I want to be purposeful in those prayers? Just as an example, I want to be sure to pray for my husband daily. I've found many ways to do this, but one of my favorites is simply to have a phone reminder that pops up at the same time every day with his name.
3. How much time do I feel the Lord leading me to spend reading the Bible?
Reading God's Word is personal; it is his love letter to us. I love reading personal letters; don't you? If my hubby gives me a note or card, I keep it visible where I can read it over again sometime throughout the day. I've found that choosing a Bible reading plan keeps me focused on a daily reading.
4. What method of Bible reading or study is right for this season?
Many times I've felt a topic coming up over and over again in my life through sermons, conversations, or articles. When a Bible study came available on that topic, then I knew God was asking me to do it. There have been seasons of life where I could not participate in a community Bible study due to timing, etc. but I found an online Bible study, an individual Bible study or a Bible reading plan that would be practical for that particular season in my life.
No matter the reason for the need to set up a new quiet time routine or schedule, my hope is that the questions I've used to evaluate the change will help you in your walk with the Lord. I'd really love to read about what has helped you with making a change in your daily quiet time!
What has helped you the most in making a change in your personal daily time with God?
Rachel at RachelWojo.com
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