Time With God

by

Psalm 5:3 Morning Routine

My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord; in the morning I will direct it to You, and I will look up. Psalm 5:3

Mornings are the time when most people get up from their sleep to begin their day. The majority of people have some type of morning routine that they go through in the process of getting up in the morning to prepare for their day. Some people take a longer time to prep themselves physically and psychologically, while others are up and out the door very quickly with very little prep.

David tells God that He will hear his voice in the morning directed to Him and that he will look up to God.

At a minimum the process of getting ready for the day includes getting up and getting dressed. Others will take time to clean themselves up, eat a good breakfast, drink some coffee and get dressed, along with a myriad of other possible things they might do before they hit the day of work or other requirements.

While none, or at least most, of these things are necessarily bad, they are not always what is best. The world, as a whole, will miss out on what is actually best–spending time with God.

While eating a good breakfast and getting dressed is good, taking time to talk with and listen to God is of much greater value. This talking with God is spending time in prayer with God and His word. It is taking one’s eyes off of the things and cares of this temporary, sin filled world and focusing them upon God and eternity. It is finding out what is important to God and what His plans are, rather than what self thinks.

Putting God first in the morning routine sets the day on the right path.

Every day that you get up you have some type of routine that you usually go through to prepare for you day. As you get yourself physically ready for your day, you must take time to get yourself ready spiritually for the day.

While going through your morning routine, take time to spend some time with God, both in prayer and in His word. Allow God to speak into your life and guide you, giving you strength for the day with what He has for you to do.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Lord and Savior; that you will put God first in your morning routine; that you will pray each day to God to hear what He has for you; and that you will focus your eyes and life upon God and heaven.

Picture by Aaron Burden under Unsplash

by

Luke 10:41-42 What Are You Choosing?

“Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, but few things are needed–or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41-42

Choices are made hundreds, even thousands of times every day by every person. Every choice will have either a negative or positive choice in the life of the person.

Most often the choice made by most people has to do with the here and now. They are usually about immediate gratification and pleasure, not about the long term future.

As Jesus was over for a visit to Mary and Martha’s place, Mary sat at Jesus feet, while Martha worked. Martha was upset that Mary was doing nothing. Jesus told her that Mary had chosen what was best.

In life, for every person, there are many things that need to be done each and every day. Thousands of choices have to be made as to what needs to be done. This has nothing to do with whether a person is a believer or not.

However, the believer must now add in to the list of things to be done–spending time with God. In the busyness of this world and all of its cares and concerns, spending time with God is often put on the back burner. It is only done at the end of the day, if there is still time.

As Jesus said in another spot, that the cares of this world overcome a believer and choke out his belief in God.

The number one priority of every believer must be to be closer to God and to learn from Him. Once this is done, all the rest will fall into place at the right time and the right way.

You are most likely most people, with many cares and concerns in your day-to-day living. There is a list of things that you must do just to survive and make it. Do not allow all of these things, that are temporary, distract you from what is the most important.

Take time every day and throughout every day to spend time with God. This is spending time reading and studying His word, and spending time talking and listening to Him in prayer.

As you put God and His word first in your life, everything else that is needed will be provided at the right time.

Today I pray that you will know Jesus as your Savior; that your first priority in life will be to know God more and more; that you will patter your life after that of Jesus; and that you will grow more like Jesus every day.

by

Song Of Solomon 1:4 Who Do You Want To Be With?

Time of devotion

Take me away with you–let us hurry! Let the king bring me into his chambers. We rejoice and delight in you; we will praise your love more than wine. How right they are to adore you! Song Of Solomon 1:4 

Most people have someone who they love to be around. They desire to be with that person all the time.

This is especially true of newly married couples. They want to be together. They hate being apart from each other and love to spend all their time together.

Young children often want to spend time with one of their parents, the dad or mom. They love their parent and cannot stand being away from the parent.

The reason that people love to spend time with someone is that they love that person.

Solomon shows a scene of a woman who is eager to be brought away by the king. She is in a hurry to have it happen. Her friends also realize the value of this relationship.

While this may be meant to be just a relationship between a man and woman, it can also represent the relationship between a person and God. God is always seen as the ultimate king. Jesus is called the King.

The believer in Jesus should have a desire to be with God in the most intimate of places, not just in the public open spaces. The intimate place shows the relationship at its highest level.

Often believers are content to be with God on Sunday in church, but ignore Him the rest of the week. Their heart is really not in the relationship, but just on getting out of hell.

When one realizes how much Jesus (The King) has done for him, he will also desire to be with God immediately. He will not want to wait for a later time, but wants to spend time getting to know God more and more. The relationship with God will take priority over any other relationship or action.

When you take a look at your life, who do you want to be around? Are you seeking friends on this earth and to have a good time, even though it is only temporary?

Or is your heart’s desire to be with God?

Seek to get to know God more and more in the intimate places. These are the private places of your life, in the quiet times of prayer and bible study. Get to know His great love for you.

I pray today that you will know Jesus as your Savior; that you will know God’s love for you; that you will seek to spend more time with God; and that God will be your one true love above all others. 

by

Psalm 42:1-2 Who Do You Want To Spend Time With?

Deer drinking water

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God? Psalm 42:1-2 

Most people have a special friend that they love to spend time with. They look forward to time together. The newly married couple are always seeking to be together. While one is at work, they are thinking constantly about each other and cannot be separated, unless it is absolutely necessary.

This can also be seen in the business world. There are certain business men or women that people would love to spend some time with. They want to learn from that person and gain their knowledge or experience. Some will spend thousands of dollars just to be able to spend a few minutes with a person.

The writer of this psalm talks about a panting desire to be with God. He is thirsting as a deer thirsts for water to spend time with God. He wants to be in God’s presence.

While spending time with people can be good, there is one who is better to spend time with. People can provide some temporary help or comfort, but God can provide for eternal help and comfort.

In church there are many people who believe in God, but He is not the center of their lives. He is not what they seek and want the most in their lives. They are busy with other things in their lives.

The picture of a deer panting for water is one of who is desperate for water. It is one of life and death. Without water, one will die, it is needed.

The same is with God. God should be the most important person in one’s life. So much so that without God, one would feel as if he would die.

There may be many things in your life that you would like to have. Some of which you may think you need to have. However, the most important thing to have is God in the center of your life.

Spending time with God should be your greatest concern in your life. Stopping the rest of life to be with God should be a common scene in your life. Without God, you will make poor choices, you will be weak, and you will lose the battles in this life.

With God you will have joy, peace, strength and comfort for everything. What are you desperate for today?

I pray today that you will know God personally; that you will desire to spend time with God; that you will know God’s presence in your life daily; and that God will be the center of your life. 

by

Job 29:4 A Longing Desire

Couple on a beach

Oh, for the days when I was in my prime, when God’s intimate friendship blessed my house, Job 39:4

It is very common to look back on days go by and desire to have them back. People often remember of good times in the past and want to go back to those days.

Those longings can be for going back to a home town, back to a high school, back to an old job, back to some old friendship, or something else that brings good memories. As much as one may long to go back to those ‘better’ times, it is usually not possible, and most often things have changed to the point it would not be the same.

One of the desires Job had was to go back to the time he felt God’s intimate friendship within his house. He is remembering of a time when God always seemed to be there and everything was working out just right. There were no problems or challenges. As he says this, Job is going through the trial of his life and God appears to have disappeared.

Longing for days long gone in which a believer felt an intimate time with God is very common for believers. This becomes very true during a trial in life. People want to go back to an old church, or a time when there seemed to be no challenges. They want to ‘feel’ God in their life.

Desiring God’s intimate relationship should be a high priority for every believer. However, that does not mean one is always on a high feeling that God is right there. It means that one is standing in faith that God is still there and is in control during a storm in life. It is holding on to faith in God.

Seek to have that intimate relationship with God at all times in your life. Make it your highest goal in life. That way when the trials of life come, you will remember that God is still with you, despite not feeling it.

Following and believing in God is more than just a feeling, but a matter of faith and the heart. It is knowing God is with you.

Take time every day and throughout each day to spend time with God. Build that intimate relationship with you. Read His word and spend time in prayer, talking to Him. God wants to spend time with you, are you spending time with Him?

I pray today that you will know personally know God; that your heart’s desire will be to be with God; that you will have an intimate relationship with God; and that you will know that God is with you at all times in life.