Making Time, Any Time

I Struggle with Making Time

And that’s really bad because what I struggle with is making time for God, and that is inexcusable. God had no problem making time for me when He sent His only son to earth to save me! And He has no problem making time for me each and every day, hour, minute, and second of my life. Because He is always with me; I’m just not always with Him and that really does need to change.

And it is changing, albeit rather slowly. You see I know in my mind that making time for God should be my utmost priority. And I need to be better at recognizing His presence throughout my day. I need to be better at going to Him in prayer throughout my day and spending consistent time within His Word. Each of these things will strengthen my relationship with God and bring me a peace beyond understanding, and I know this.

But He Made Me a Weak Human

I’m weak because even though I recently closed my business and now have additional time on my hands, I still struggle with my ever-present self-inflicted daily to-do list. If it’s not on paper, it’s in my head. Those little check boxes that I use to measure my productivity for the day and even worse, my worth at times. This constant nagging need to be busy so that I somehow feel validated. But how silly is that? I only need God. So why do all of these distractions get in the way of my making time for God?

I Need to Focus

I recently began taking an online course (yep, something else to add to my daily to-do list). The course is on spiritual life and I learned something in one of the very first lessons about making God and His Word a priority. I learned that I needed to give myself some credit regarding my daily time spent in God’s Word. I’ve been beating myself up because I had previously tried to focus on my devotions and daily Bible study first thing in the morning. And I had failed!

I’ve always thought that if I was truly dedicated, first thing in the morning was the only acceptable time to get these tasks done. Did you catch that? I was considering this precious time a task! But that’s what it felt like to me because all of my other daily tasks were waiting for me. I found my mind constantly wandering to those other tasks while I was supposed to be focusing on my quiet time with God.

But It’s Time to Cut Myself Some Slack

I began a new approach. I still dedicated my quiet time to the morning hours, but after I had already gotten ready for the day, eaten my breakfast, unloaded the dishwasher, and started my daily load of clothes in the washer. Now that might sound like I made those tasks a priority over my time with God and you would be right. And I felt guilty, really guilty about that. But you know what? It helped me to be more focused on my time with God!

I felt as though I had already had some productive time in the morning and I could let go of that stupid to-do list for an uninterrupted period of time. It just worked better with my particular personality. The flawed personality given to me by my Creator. My annoying tendencies that always seem so counter-productive to what God wants me to be doing. But it’s who I am and I sometimes need to figure out what works best for me and those simpleton tendencies.

And Here’s What I’ve Learned

What I’ve learned from that course I’m taking is that it is not so much about when and where I spend my time with God. It’s about the dedication I make to having that time! I just need to be consistent. Spending consistent time with God is a good thing at any time and it’s okay for me to get a few things done in the morning to clear my mind and my heart in preparation for my time with God. As long as I’m consistent, God is good with that because you see, it is only the beginning.

There’s a Transition Coming

And here’s the deal. As I consistently dedicate my time to God and to my relationship with Him, something will begin to change in me to an even greater degree! I will begin to desire making time for God more and more. If I develop this spiritual discipline and commit to my daily time with God (without guilt as to what time of day it is), my relationship with God with deepen. And the love we share will become my only incentive to meet with Him. That incentive will drive me to the point where all I want to do when I get up in the morning is be in my quiet time with God. Those other distractions (and we all know who and what is responsible for those distractions),  will no longer have power over me. My tendencies will wane and I will grow spiritually.

So How Cool is That?

I’m so excited for my transition! And no more beating myself up! Do you struggle with finding time to be with God? Do you have too many things on your to-do list to quiet your mind regularly and open your heart to a deepened relationship with God?

I completely understand that I have a unique opportunity with my time now and many of you may not have that same luxury. Some of you may have small children that you tend to throughout the day and any amount of quiet time is a rarity. I get it. Or you may have a long commute to and from work each day that eats up a big chunk of your time and you’re out the door early and returning home late. I get that too.

But just think, if you can dedicate only 15 minutes at some time of the day, that is a start! Maybe it is first thing when your little ones go down for a nap or maybe it’s those last 15 minutes of your lunch break in a quiet place.

Only you can truly evaluate when you may be able to carve out a few minutes to get you started on your daily dedication.

Not a Struggle for You?

If you don’t struggle in this same way,  I would love to know that too! Would love to know how/when you are making time for God and how you were able to establish your routine! Because I am just starting to develop a more divine strength over human strength mindset and would love any additional input.

But if you are like me and struggling with this new mindset, then I hope this post has been of some help and you know you are not alone! We’re all lifelong learners in our faith journey. No one is ever perfect! Oh and if you want to know more about that course I am taking (it’s online, free, and there are a ton more faith building courses available), let me know in the comments! I’d love to share!

Thanks for reading and have a lovely God-centered day, hour, minute, or second! Any amount of time is a good time to start!

Blessings,
{Shelley}