StraightPathsPress

Think back to the time when you were engaged to be married. If you have not yet married, imagine for a moment the strength of the feelings you will have toward a future spouse for whom you may have been waiting for a very long time. What if war, or some other circumstance, separated you from all contact, except written. Envision how you would feel to receive a thick envelope in the mail from your fiance’, knowing it contained all his hopes and expectations, where he plans on meeting you next, and what it is going to be like when you are together again. You’d tear into it.

We who adore God, the bride of Christ, also passionately open up our mail from the Bridegroom, as we prepare, and help others prepare, for our life together with Him in eternity. And how does God feel about those who “open their mail”? He calls them “noble minded” (Acts 17:11). What a glorious thing-- to be called “noble-minded” by the Bridegroom Himself!

In contrast, can you imagine what life would look like if you did everything you were told to do by “the experts”? Your day would be filled to the brim with a flurry of hundreds of mundane activities from brushing your cat, to flossing your teeth, to squeegeeing your shower doors. Now I’m a big fan of flossing, but something’s got to give- and those whose hearts are fully His have determined- it’s not going to be God. You’ve realized that you were created in Christ Jesus for good works, not merely to oil your furnace.

Those who live for God become experts at “weeding” the needless things in life that the enemy has sown (Luke 8:7) to try to prevent them from fulfilling their purpose in life. In C.S Lewis’ Screwtape Letters, where we are invited to examine the fictional mail of our spiritual enemy, this enemy says, “It is funny how mortals always picture us putting things into their minds: in reality our best work is done by keeping things out.” Realize that when you have allowed weeds to take over your garden of life, the enemy knows you will be his, because spiritual life simply cannot be sustained apart from the life-giving Word. Instead, bring enough order and discipline to your life to devote at least an hour a day in spiritual endeavor. I think you will surprise yourself, not only in the amount of knowledge that you can build up an hour at a time, but more importantly, how useful you can become in the Master’s service.

Ideas for developing and maintaining quiet time with God:

Develop a healthy spiritual appetite for the word. Just like in life, the earlier you develop a palate for life giving nutrition, the better. Don’t become a spiritual anorexic, whose moments of ingesting the word are so few and far between, that your appetite for spiritual food has departed. Others eat so much sugar (that is, ingest unhealthy levels of fiction, magazines, video games, radio, and television, etc.) that they lose their appetite for spiritual nourishment. Have you ever taken an extended break from literal sugar? It is amazing how much energy returns, and how much better nutritious foods taste again. I highly recommend a going on a spiritual sugar fast. Kill your television for a predetermined period of time. Rediscover the wonder of reading eternally relevant material. Regular time with God will bring back your spiritual appetite, and you will soon be living “on every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” (Matt 4:4) To take the time to converse with God (Study and pray) will sharpen you like nothing else can. Ecclesiastes 10:10 “ If the axe is dull and he does not sharpen its edge, then he must exert more strength.” “Sharpening your ax” is never EVER a waste of time. It’s always been this way: Joshua 1:7-8 "This book of the law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it; for then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have success.” When you’ve taken the time to ask God to make fruitful your efforts, you will be working smarter, not harder. When you begin to meet with God on a daily basis, you will grow an appetite for spiritual food that is as intense as a newborn baby’s desire for his morning bottle.