Saturday 28 April 2007

Quiet times

Hi. Remember me??
Sorry I have not posted anything recently. I had noticed I had just been copying things from Girltalk so decided to stop being such a thief. Also I read Josh Harris's post about 'cheating your blog'...he warns about how addictive this all is and you are always cheating something of your time if you are giving your attention to something else (go read his full version, im sure i dont make much sense..go into Garys blog and theres a link there). Since creation of this blog I was worried some days I would devote more time to it than feeding myself spiritually so somedays time is so short and i need to stay close to my Jesus. But on the plus, it does hold me a little accountable and I do end up reading really encouraging stuff on other blogs.
Anyway here is something from Girltalk but really they stole it from Piper...I know you will enjoy. Quiet times are often neglected but perhaps the most important. So here is a word of encouragement...

Dr. Piper says: "Many good things do not happen in our lives for the simple lack of planning.... Most Christians neglect their Bibles not out of conscious disloyalty to Jesus, but because of failure to plan a time and place and method to read it".
Regarding time:
"I earnestly recommend that it be in the early morning, unless there are some extenuating circumstances. Entering the day without a serious meeting with God, over his Word and in prayer, is like entering the battle without tending to your weapons. It’s like taking a trip without filling the tires with air or the tank with gas. The human heart does not replenish itself with sleep. The body does, but not the heart. The spiritual air leaks from our tires, and the gas is consumed in the day. We replenish our hearts not with sleep, but with the Word of God and prayer."
Regarding place:
"Pick a place of seclusion…. It needs to be secluded so that you are not distracted, and so that you can speak out loud and sing and cry. If your family situation or home does not have such a place, then create it, not by space, but by rule.... One saintly mother with a large brood of children would use her apron to make a tent for her head and her Bible at the kitchen table and the children were taught, when mother is in her tent, make no noise."
Regarding method:
"There are many ways to read the Bible. Any is better than none. Coming to the appointed place and time with no plan for how to read the Bible usually results in a hit-and-miss approach that leave you feeling weak, unreal, and discouraged. For many years I have read through the Bible once each year following 'The Discipleship Journal Bible Reading Plan'.... The design is to read daily from two Old Testament and two New Testament books. I find this variety helpful. Others don’t, and would rather use some other approach. That’s fine."

Wise words from the man himself. Anyway back to the revision for me (Daniel if you are reading this i know u r wondering why Im writing at all when i have so much work to do...but il just publically declare now how wonderful daniel is in his patience with me, his loving attitudes and servant heart...may i quote Winston Churchill...My dearest you are very precious to me and I rejoice indeed to have won and kept your loving heart. May it never cool towards me is my prayer and that I may deserve your love my resolve)

toodles

1 comment:

Boaly said...

I totally agree with what you were saying at the start of this post! Blogging can take up so much time that would be best spent on other things! We must remember that our blog posts come as a result of seeking after God and reading good, inspirational, devout stuff and from our minds being bent by the Word and hearts of love for Jesus rather than the 'addictive writing and posting' that we can fall into!
As for the quiet time aspect of this post a huge AMEN!
Quiet/devotional times are of huge importance to our lives!
What use is it if we can talk about Jesus, discuss doctrine, evangelize to the lost if we do not first and foremost 'know Him'?
May we all begin to talk of daily experiences with Jesus and His word & Spirit!
Knowing, Loving, Following Jesus and spending time with Him is the starting point for missions, for service etc.
May Christ fill us with a deep desire to know Him, to intimately read and understand His word, not as the text book we so often use it as, but as a personal letter from our King, our God, our Saviour, our Husband, (Its hard for me, a guy to call Him husband, feels weird, but truth is truth).
May we desire ever more the greatest commandment, to love the LORD our God with all our heart, soul and mind.