How To Spend Quiet Time With God

QUESTION: Can you tell me how to spend quiet time with God?

ANSWER:

From the Bible, we understand how to spend quiet time with God. Jesus gave us examples in the Gospels where He stepped away from the limelight, retreating to a quiet place to commune with His Father. These quiet times spent with God had some very important elements in common.

Jesus understood the importance of truly knowing the Father. The elements of how to spend quiet time with God are threefold: The place is free of distractions, use of prayer and thanksgiving, and use of God’s Word.

• An Area Free of Distraction – Each time Jesus wanted to spend time with His Father, He always retreated to a secluded area free from distractions. He could talk with God, and listen to Him as well. The same is true of us. Our quiet times with God should be in a place where we are alone with no TV or phone -- only God and us.
  
  
• Prayer and Thanksgiving - Jesus’ prayers were not always for Himself, but for others. In our quiet time spent with God, we use Jesus’ example by offering prayers for others and thanksgiving to God for what He has done for us. These prayers should also include a time of reflection on how God has seen us through the good and bad times.
  
  
• God’s Word - Just as our bodies need food to keep it going, we need to spend quality time with God to feed our souls. Jesus often quoted from God’s Word in His quiet times. Quiet time with God is also a time to read God’s Word. If we don’t understand a certain passage of Scripture, we can ask God to help us understand it. It is through daily prayer and reading God’s Word that we will grow in our walk with God.

These are elements of spending quiet time alone with God. The importance is setting time aside each day to talk with God, because this is the best way to draw close to Him.