ways to spend more time with God
one ///// reading my Bible
Reading the Bible is the most important thing you can do. It may not always seem intriguing, but I can promise you that you will gain something from it, even if it doesn't seem like it at the time. I'm currently reading through the Old Testament which is not always fun and exciting. I don't always feel as though I'm learning anything or growing closer to God as I read about the many failures of Israel.
But the thing is, our relationship with God isn't based on how we feel about Him or His word each day.
Reading the Bible is reading the inerrant word of God. If you want to hear from Him or learn about Him, the best way to do that is to read His word. Knowing what the Bible says is so important in our walk with God, especially as Christianity becomes more and more offensive and hated by our culture. I wrote an entire post on why we need to read the Bible, so go check that out too if you haven't read it already.
two ///// listening to worship music
I listen to a lot of music during the day and I can definitely tell a difference in my mood and thoughts when I listen to worldly music rather than or more than I listen to Christian music. Whenever I first begin to recognize these changes in myself, I think back to how I've been spending my time and what I've been filling my mind with. More times than not, I narrow the cause down to the music I've been listening to. It's not even that I listen to bad music, but sometimes a song that seems innocent, like a catchy country or indie song, when listened to too frequently, can cause me to make idols of things that aren't God and see things in ways that don't align with Scripture. Listening to Christian music not only brings my focus back to God, but it also is a way to meditate on Truth, worship Him, and spend time in His presence.
Some of my favorites:
three ///// reading Christian books
If you know me, you know that I'm always reading a book, so naturally, reading a Christian book is one of my favorite ways to spend time with God and learn more about Him. Some of you may feel closest to God when you spend time in nature, when you're worshipping Him with music, when you're praying, or when you're listening to a sermon, but for me, I feel closest to God when I'm reading. I don't know why. Maybe it's just because I'm such a big reader in general, but I always feel like I learn so much more and get so much more excited about Him when I'm reading about Him. I totally understand that not everybody is a reader, so this tip may not help you at all, but it's one of my favorite ways to spend time with God on a daily basis.
some of my recent favorites:
Why isn't a Pretty Girl Like You Married? by Nancy Wilson
Virtuous: A Study for Ladies of Every Age by Nancy Wilson
A Cloud by Day, a Fire by Night: Finding and Following God's Will For You by A.W. Tozer
The Best Yes: Making Wise Decisions in the Midst of Endless Demands by Lysa TerKeurst
Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis
four ///// listening to podcasts or sermons
This is another one of my favorite ways to learn about and spend time with God. I love hearing about God and certain topics from other people because they always give a great perspective, have great knowledge, and explain things in ways that make so much sense. Of course this is also the case for me for books as well, but I love how quick listening to a sermon or podcast can be compared to reading a whole book. Recently, I've been putting podcasts on 2x the speed on spotify and listening to them whenever I drive anywhere or do anything that doesn't require my full attention (like dishes, cleaning, or laundry). I can get through so many and can learn so much about so many different things just in one day.
some of my favorites:
The Briefing with Albert Mohler
Just Thinking Podcast with Darrell Harrison and Virgil Walker
As For Me and My House with Jordan and Milena Ciciotti
Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey
five ///// praying
Prayer. One of the most important aspects to a relationship with God, but also one of the hardest, at least for me. If I'm being completely honest, I've never been very good at praying. I get too distracted, and a lot of times when I'm praying at night I end up falling asleep before I even finish. So, needless to say, this is one area of my life that I'm working on and giving a lot of attention to. Kaci Nicole said recently in this video that you should pray to God like you would talk to your husband or wife. You sit down and dedicate time during your day to talk to them about specific things that are on your mind, but you also text or call them throughout the day to tell them about little things that happened to you. The same is true with talking to God. We should sit down and dedicate time to talk and listen to Him, but we should also go to Him throughout the day whenever He nudges us or places little things on our hearts. I also see such huge growth in my relationship with God whenever my prayer life is strong, so I know that this is one of the best things we can do to spend time with Him everyday.
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