This week hit me hard. I know you know. The politics. The division. The opinions. The noise. My heart has been aching and needing space to process.
In times like this, my heart sends one clear message to my brain (or maybe the other way around).
I must draw nearer to God. The Prince of Peace. The ONE who knows. The ONE worthy of my thoughts, my worship, my life. It’s a craving that can’t be denied.
Drawing near, slowing down, digging the roots of my life into what lasts– the eternal word and Spirit of God.
Slowing down and spending time with God is a vital, and glorious part of growing in our relationship with Him, in hard times and good times, in times of clarity and peace and on those cloudy days when nothing makes sense. In fact, living from a place of intimately experiencing God is the only way to walk straight on the crooked roads we face in our lives.
But still, in the midst of exhaustion, packed schedules, and our noisy “news-feed” saturated lives, it can be hard to create space to experience God and be changed in His presence.
I’ve found that when I am stuck in a spiritual rut, or craving encouragement as I try to walk with Jesus in this world, I need to remind myself the benefits of time set aside for God. And then do it….get aligned and get filled as I turn down my news feed and turn up my worship.
7 Reasons to Slow Down And Meet With God
- The more we behold Him in the secret place of prayer, the more we reflect Him in the public places of life. (2 Cor. 3:18).
- Spending time with God slows us down and allows us to experience the gift of rest and the peace of God through Christ. (Psalm 62:5-8; Colossians 3:15).
- The more we experience the presence of God, the hungrier we become for more of him. (Psalm 34:8)
- Spending time with God gives a fresh and biblically oriented perspective on our circumstances, our lives and world. When we meditate on it, God’s word works deep in our minds to renew us, aligning our beliefs with His heart. (Romans 12:2)
- God designed us for intimate communion and deep relationship with Himself- and time set aside is one of the most irreplaceable ways we build this relationship. (Mark 1:35)
- When we come to God, it’s as though he sits with us and feeds our hungry spirits. Without getting fed in His presence, we walk around malnourished. Time set apart to encounter God produces health and stamina in the heart of a believer. (Isa. 55:2)
- Those who “wait on the Lord”, their strength will be renewed. He strengthens us from the inside-out as we spend time with Him. (Isa. 40:31)
Grab one of these for your day, and make it yours as you set a meeting with God today. As you meet with Him, remember this: God is near, and eager to reveal His heart to you.
In the midst of life’s turmoil, God is our unchanging Rock. And we must spend time climbing on and discovering that Rock in order to be able to stand upon it with confidence when the winds of life blow.
The noise and opinions will always be changing and interrupting and clashing. But One unchanging thing I know, is that the presence of God is our refuge. And our strength. And our only lasting source of love for all times and all people.
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On another note, I am working on a FREE EBOOK that will offer you fresh and creative ways of experiencing God in the midst of your busy life. It will (hopefully) be ready to be a gift to you with the launch of my new website in a few weeks. Pretty excited about that.
Know that I am praying for you and asking God to lead and inspire as I give this space to Him! I trust that He will meet with us in special ways as together we seek Him and His kingdom.