Slowing Down to Be With God

Do you ever feel there are not enough hours in the day? Family responsibilities, job stress, home repairs, long commutes, and evening meetings seem to take up every waking moment. At times the stress of it all invades our sleep, leaving us even more exhausted when the alarm tells us another day has started. We trade the important for the urgent, moving from crisis to crisis.

It is important to consider what we leave behind when the responsibilities of the day reach their peak. We cut back on, or drop altogether, the things that do not scream at us. Prayer is often the first thing we cut back on when it should be the last to ignore. In fact, a lack of prayer may well be the reason that our days are so stressful.

There is no activity in our day, no issue that we face, no troubles we encounter that cannot be made better bathed in prayer. We often say, “I am too busy to pray.” Bill Hybels urges us to change our mindset about prayer. He reminds us we truly are “Too Busy Not To Pray."

Begin by taking baby steps. Set the alarm for fifteen minutes earlier than you need to get up. Choose a Bible verse you remember. Start by making a list of all the things calling your name. Make your list no longer than five minutes will allow. Set your list aside. Using one word or short phrases jot down how you feel - physically, mentally, spiritually. Set this record aside as well. Spend the time you have left until you would typically arise being still, being quiet, being in the presence of God. Let anything that tries to crowd in on listening to the voice of the Holy Spirit slip away.

Now look at your five-minute-list and using your Bible verse as a guide, choose the two most important things you wrote and the one most urgent item calling your name. Do nothing else until you complete those three tasks. Delegate any other critical tasks to someone else or just let them go - leave busy-ness to take care of itself.

After one week, evaluate your Bible verse, your lists, your accomplishments, your time listening to God. Do you need to continue with the same fifteen minutes, or do you need to set your alarm five minutes earlier to add five minutes to think about the Bible verse you chose?

Pensiveness becomes a passion for slowing down to be with God.