One of the first expectations put on me as a new Christian was the " Quiet Time." Most of us know it as a designated period of time each day when we meet with God. I can't forget the many bromides offered up in defense of the "Quiet Time." One of the most memorable was, " The first day you skip your time you will know it, the second day your close friends will know it and the third day everyone will know it." This seems to indicate that a structured time with God each day is required for good behavior and attitude- And if you skip it, there is immediate slippage in attitude and conduct.
I was taught that being in my prayer closet early and often would pay off, it would change me, in fact, I shouldn't leave the Lord until He had spoken to me. I heard stories about Martin Luther who said something like, " I have so much work today that I must get up early and spend three hours in prayer-" Or those great Saints who would meet with God and tears would stain the pages of their bibles or notes. My question is this; if the "Quiet Time" is so crucial and the pay off is so big, and missing it is so disastrous , why do so many people struggle with it? What I mean is, if the results were so dramatic and immediate, wouldn't people make sure they never missed? It would be like taking a medication that would immediately make you feel good and if you stopped, would make you feel terrible. It would make sense that I would take the medication religiously.
It is my opinion that spending time with God doesn't usually pay immediate dividends for good or ill, but over a long period of time the habits of prayer, bible reading, listening to God and meditation do change us. Here is my take, so many people struggle with spending a structured time with God because they try to do it alone. And it was never meant to be an exclusively solitary activity. The first key to learning how to spend time with God is to do it with others in community. The solitary dimension of spending time with God then is helped by a communal energy. The second key is to think of spending time with God as a way of life. Jesus asked to come into out lives and spend time with us, Revelation 3:20. There are times when we pray, fast, listen, and wait on Him with others, sometimes it is alone, most of the time it is when we are living our ordinary lives. It is interacting with associates, walking the dog, weeding the garden, listening to music or during exercise. It is a continual conversation and sense of His presence.
Yes, there are days when we invest chunks of time in some formal procedure, that is essential. But to live under the stressful yoke of the daily "Quiet Time," no thanks, not even God told me to do that.
Hi bill,
I like the way u have presented the idea of communal energy helping the solitary dimension of devotional time w God; and having it as a way of life.
I do believe that we have the same passion as far as discipleship is concern.
check this out: http://ferdiecabiling.wordpress.com/
keep it up!
I thought the comment about a first century "quiet time" being a family or group sitting around the fire talking about the life of Jesus was helpful. Quiet does not always mean no words are spoken, the spirit of quiet is one in which we give up our tendency to control, over conceptualize, to be hyper-active or over dependent on self. But there are times to be in total quiet, at least as long as it would take Jesus to wash our feet.
1st Century Palestinian culture was only about 10% literate and there was no printing presses around, no TV, no radio, no iPod's, no internet. So when the sun went down, what was there to do except sit around eat a meal, and talk ... and more importantly, tell stories. All this begs the question: was it even really possible for their culture to have "quiet times" in the way that we think of "quiet times"?
My guess is that the "quiet times" of the early Jesus movements looked more like a family and friends sitting around a meal telling the stories of Jesus that formed their common identity.
That goes along with what your talking about: quiet times as a community. If we sat around the table and talked with each other, telling stories from the Bible about Jesus, how they impact us, and form our common identity, that would be the type of "quiet time" (or rather "not so quiet time") that I could get behind.
I thoroughly agree with the statement "that spending time with God doesn't usually pay immediate dividends for good or ill, but over a long period of time the habits of prayer, bible reading, listening to God and meditation do change us." I also think you have hit the nail on the head when it comes to the problem of doing it as a solitary activity - though I do believe there are times when it is necessary to be alone with God.
However, I can't help but wonder if our struggle to be consistent in our quiet time at times might reflect the poor quality of our relationship with God. I've noticed in my human relationships that I want to be with those people whom I love, and I want to be with them on a consistent basis. I will make time for them, share my heart with them, listen carefully to their counsel, and so on. It's the natural outcome of truly caring for someone. So, is it possible that our lackluster performance in the area of our "quiet time" might be reflective of a sturggling relationship with God? That we are not really loving God with our heart, soul, mind and strength?