One of the key statements of the conference I attended in September was, “Soul care is never a selfish act.” This has given me more impetus to have a richer quiet time with my Lord. Getting away to a beautiful environment and having time to sit and be still with God is one thing; but how do you translate that into daily life? As I considered this, I realized that I spend time with my work, my wife and my kids, but I begrudge my God the time I spend with him. I’m always looking to do the next thing, getting into “go mode” rather than simply pausing and enjoying his presence.

As such I have chosen to make some changes in my quiet time. First, I no longer do it right when I get up as I am usually quite muzzy-headed and my thoughts are not clear. After a good breakfast, I make time to sit down and begin by listening to a worship song to get my thoughts off of the daily grind and onto my Lord. I make it a point to actually read out of a print Bible rather than using my smartphone (though I still use the reading plan that the smartphone provides), because the very interface of my Bible app can be distracting. When my mind wanders, I talk to the Lord about it, apologize to him for my lack of focus and try to get my mind back on what he’s trying to teach me.

That is perhaps the hardest part of having a quiet time: actually getting my active mind to be still and focus on the task at hand. After He casts down all of those rising against Him, the Three-in-One says, “Be still, and know that I am God.” (Ps. 46:10a) Stillness is where strength and peace lie. Stillness is where the preparation for the day comes and even though it is a struggle for an active mind like mine to be still, I find it brings strength and peace for the day that allows me to cope with whatever may come.