Time Alone With God

I should probably start by saying that I am not a morning person. This will come as no surprise to those who know me, but I felt that it was important to point it out.

I read Melissa's blog, and followed the link the the 5:00 am Club and was intrigued. I have been very rebellious regarding my quiet time with God and being in the Word aside from my Sunday School and bible study preparation. I have become so accustomed to either not having one at all, or just doing it when it seems convenient that I have completely forgotten what a blessing it is to start my day with real prayer and meditation.

I am ashamed to admit that the last time I really tried to commit myself to a regular quiet time was back in 2003. This is one area of my Christian walk where I am really weak, and I have been convicted of it in recent months. So, this morning I got up at 5:20am and prepared to have my quiet time before the kids rolled (leaped) out of bed. I felt like I needed something to guide me, so I pulled the Beth Moore book Whispers of Hope off the bookshelf, blew off the dust and dug in.

The book is intended to encourage prayer life (another area where I feel like I fail over and over again) and I was so excited to rediscover this tool that would help me stengthen my two weakest points. The devotional is broken up into 70 days of prayer and meditation and I was horrified that I only did 6 of them the last time.

Six.

Six measly days. That's as long as I could manage to stick with my quiet time.

Pathetic.

So, as you can imagine, I was excited about renewing my commitment to the Lord and to really dig into the Word and be more consistent with my prayer life. As I started to sit down at the table, I decided that I would rather have my shower and get dressed first so that I would be ready when the kids got up. Once I was dressed and ready for work, I went back to the kitchen for a cup of coffee before I sat down to begin.

I can't tell you how good it felt to unburden my heart to the Lord! I felt like a huge weight had been lifted..."Create in me a clean heart!" my soul cried, and God heard my prayer. I was refreshed and ready to dive into the Word, open to whatever He wanted me to see and understand.

I ended up reading the chapters that contained the verses I had committed to memorize earlier in the week, and I was overcome by the truth in what I was reading. I was really getting absorbed the Word, when Gracie came shuffling into the kitchen in her Pull-up. (I guess I'll do quiet time before the shower tomorrow!) My reading became a little sporadic as I dealt with all of her questions and needs as she got dressed. I had to keep reminding myself to be patient with her (it seemed wrong to yell and fuss while I was reading the bible....is there a lesson here?)When I told her to go put her shoes on, this is how she appeared.....


After a quick shoe change, I finally got her settled in the playroom with a DVD and was able to finish my reading. When I said my final "amen", I felt so good and ready to face the day. I can't wait for tomorrow morning and the chance to do it all over again.