There are many wonderful and meaningful relationships in this beautiful world that the Lord has made. Every Relationship involves communication with each other in the form of sounds, actions, music, letters, signs, symbols, etc. God created every human being in his own image (Genesis 1:27) to relate with him and relate with one another (Genesis 2:19-22). Quiet time is meant to have a meaningful personal relationship with God (Isaiah 63:7).
INTRODUCTION:
Quiet time is
the personal time or an appointment with God for every genuine Believer (Mark
1:35). During our quiet time, we may sing praise songs, pray, read
Scripture or daily devotions, meditate on God's Word, or simply be still and
listen. Quiet time is hearing what the
Lord says us to obey/ follow and speaking to God.
NEED OF QUIET TIME:
All of us are born and brought up in different
situations. We have a different family background, financial background, social
background, cultural background, educational background, etc. that makes us
unique in our tastes and interests. And we all have some preconceived ideas
about many things around us because of the influence of our own environments
which may or may not be realistic and really satisfactory. In order to break
down the influences and differences, everyone needs some standard values in our
lives that could be given only by God (A Superior Personality), the Creator as
there is a manual for every machine from the manufacturer. In order to live an
orderly life without chaos and bias, we need to really know how the Lord wants
our lives to be (Romans 12:1,2). Only when we live according to the Word of
God, we could find a life of Joy, Peace, and Contentment in the midst of
sufferings and obstacles (Philippians 4:12). Also only when we depend on God
and remember his majesty and Sovereignty by praying to him and praising him, we
would be able to face and overcome the situations of the world in the best way
(James 5:15,16). The solution for everything in the world lies only with the source
of everything in the world (1Corinthians 8:6). Hearing from God and Speaking to
God helps us to enjoy all the things of the world that the Lord has made by
discerning between Right and wrong, as well as balance everything around us
knowing the purpose of God in our lives (1Timothy 4:4, 5).
HEARING FROM GOD:
Hearing from God should not sound
something very odd; it’s just reading, understanding, and following the Word of
God pronounced through the scriptures. Though God could speak to us through the
sounds, signs, symbols, situations, thoughts, etc., we need to recheck it with
the scriptures as he is unchanging and never contradicts what he has said in
the scriptures through the circumstances and teachings in the bible (Hebrews 4:12).
The best way to hear from the Lord is through the Scriptures and the values
inscribed in it. Hearing from God helps us to know about God, to know about
ourselves, to know what we are supposed to be and to know what we are supposed
to do. The values are so much approachable to our lives in the appropriate
situations that we can really confirm hearing from God by experiencing it. Only
when we hear rightly from God, we could really speak rightly to God (John 4:7-26).
One of the simplest methods to reflect on
a passage/chapter/book of the bible and hear some important aspects in it is “ASPECT
method”:
A- denotes
“ABOUT
GOD” (Proverbs 2:1-5)
S- denotes “SINS TO AVOID” (Psalms 119:9)
P- denotes “PROMISES TO CLAIM” (Psalms 119:148)
E- denotes “EXAMPLES TO FOLLOW & EXAMPLES NOT TO FOLLOW”
(Hebrews 11Ch)
C- denotes “COMMANDS TO OBEY” (James 1:22)
T- denotes “THEME” (For instance 1Corinthians 13Ch talks
about Love)
By noticing the words about God in the Passage/Chapter/Book,
we could praise and admire God while speaking to him. By noticing the Sins to
avoid we shall know what we need to correct in our lives and ask God’s help to
overcome it. By noticing the promises to claim, we shall claim the inheritance
that we have in our God which he has promised through the scriptures. By
noticing the Examples to follow & Examples not to follow, we shall know the
nature of human beings and thank/plead God for ourselves and people around us
in our lives. By noticing the commands to obey, we shall follow the
commandments were given by God with his strength and guidance. By noticing the Theme
of the Passage/Chapter/Book, we shall remember important things we learnt in
it.
SPEAKING TO GOD:
Speaking with God doesn’t mean something that
needs an extraordinary effort; it’s just simple as we talk to our beloved
friend or father with love and respect (Jonah 4:1-3). We can speak to God
through songs, letters, reflection, and Prayer, etc. Prayer is an action in
which we simply speak to God with our own words. Many times we utter words that
only state our needs as we only remember that God is loving and caring who
could provide all our needs and help us in our weaknesses. Most of the time we forget that he is omnipotent,
omniscient, omnipresent, and fails to utter words to praise him. Most of the
time we forget that he is faithful in providing our needs and fail to utter
words to thank him. And Most of the times we forget that he is Righteous,
Forgiving, concerning, and fail to utter words to confess before him.
One of the simplest methods to speak to God in
Prayer without forgetting some important aspects is through “ACTS method”:
A- denotes
“ADORATION”
(Psalms 13Ch)
C- denotes “CONFESSION” (2Samuel 12:13; Exodus 32:31,32)
T- denotes “THANKSGIVING” (Psalms 100:4,5)
S- denotes “SUPPLICATION” (Daniel 2:18; 1kings 3:9)
All the things we heard from God through the
Scripture (by ASPECT) can be spoken to God. We shall adore God for his
attributes. We shall confess the sins we want to avoid as an individual and
community. We shall thank God for the Commandments, Promises, and Examples he
had given us. We shall supplicate him for our needs and to overcome our limitations.
CONCLUSION:
QUIET TIME (Spending
time with God) is essential for every person in his life to know the Purpose of
his life (Ecclesiastes 12:13). It needs a lot of Discipline and regularity as
every other relationship to exist and survive. Some people spend time with God
in the early morning, some people spend time when they get up, some people
spend time in the evening and some people spend time in the night based on
their personal setup and convenience. The timing is not much important but hearing
from God especially through the Scriptures and Speaking to God regularly in
very important to be in the Will of God (Psalms 119:15). I would suggest spending
time with God in the early morning which is the best time as it is quieter and
our thoughts are fresh. Also, we could concentrate better in the morning as it
is the first action we do in a day. Hearing from God is as much as important as
Speaking to God because both compliment each other and our faith in God is strengthened.
It always helps us to become a fully functional human being.
“For Everything God created is good and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving, because it is consecrated by the WORD OF GOD AND PRAYER. – 1Timothy 4:4,5"
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