A Place to Be…Still and Know I AM.

At the church where Princess plays soccer, there is this cool little spot in the trees for spending time with God.

A place to be still and know I AM.

When I was in college, one of the required classes was technical writing.  One of the assignments for the course was to write a “How to” paper.  I wrote on how to have a quiet time.  Now I realize that some of you reading this do not know the lingo for “quiet time.”  A quiet time is what Christians call the time they spend with God – a designated time to be still and know that he is God – a time to pray, to read His Word, and to listen for His voice.  Growing up going to church, we counted who attended, who gave, and whether or not they read their bible each day.  As part of our Sunday school class, we had to fill out an envelope with boxes to check if you completed each thing listed.  One the the boxes to check was “daily bible reading.”  Check.  Read it.  Did it.  They wanted to know if you read your bible every day.  Not that you did a daily bible reading once that week, but that you did it every single day that week.  It was tempting to check it off for a checkmark’s sake.  But a quiet time really is more than being able to check off that box that says I read my bible for the day every day.  A quiet time is time devoted solely to God.  Quiet time represents relationship.

Some get up and have coffee with God, like my friend, Nikol.  I would love for you to hear her story on how God began speaking to her just by doing that.  Another friend has a chair at her home in which she sits with God.  She even has a verse posted on the wall in front of her to remind her that God is speaking and that she should listen.  When I was younger, my place was my bedroom.  Then when I went to college, I added being outside to my list of places to listen.  Currently, my place is my bedroom sometimes before I get up in the morning.  If I don’t get my time with Him finished before one of my children gets up, then it is usually the couch in the living room.  Sometimes, my blog is my place to hear from God and process what He is trying to say.

There is a freedom in knowing that during this busy phase of life in which my children are always interrupting me, that my quiet time can be as I go about my day with them – the place – my heart.  A more mature sister in Christ reminded me early in this motherhood journey that I could have a quiet time while I read the Bible to the children.  I was a little bit disappointed in that thought because I treasure my time with Him and reading a children’s story is short and not lengthy or deep, but if you are a mom of young children, I want you to know that His Word still speaks even in the Toddler Bible, if that’s what you are reading.

If you want to dig deeper, to know Him better, however, you need to be intentional to find the time to spend just with Him.  I was reminded on a video testimony of Rachel Barkey (that you should definitely go watch) that you cannot know someone unless you spend quality time with them.  You can know about them, but to know them intimately, you must study them, spend time with them, and listen to them.  God already knows you more intimately than you know yourself.  Wouldn’t you like to spend time learning to know who He is?  If you need help knowing where to start, email me, and I will give you suggestions.

Where is the place you most like to spend with God?