Tip#6 on Quiet Times: Keep it up, maintain it and put it into practice!

In this, our final devotion about meaningful personal devotions, or quiet times, lets encourage each other to maintain this valuable source of Spiritual motivation and growth. Lets always continue to do this, not forgetting what we heard from God, but while keeping it up, also put into practice what we learn from our God.

James puts it in these words:
James1:23-25: 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But the man who looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues to do this, not forgetting what he has heard, but doing it--he will be blessed in what he does.

Its easy to deal with our fellowship with God in the same way as someone who looks into a mirror, only to immediately forget what he or she looks like, because we (hopefully) never had the intention to live our lives according to that mirror image. But when we look into God’s mirror during our personal devotions, we need to apply what we see during our daily “spiritual make over”, our quiet times.

1) What we have learned from God about whom we are, what we should be and where we should go, by looking intently into his perfect will for our lives, we must do and apply. This will be the source of our blessings and of accomplishing God’s purpose for us.

2) All relationships have an impact on us. It either makes us depressed and anxious or it motivates us, brings us joy and provides us with the emotional energy with which to continue our lives. As relationships grow and become more intimate and important to us, we depend more and more on them, learn from then and are motivated by them.

Our quiet times bring about a closer and more meaningful relationship with our God. As we worship, listen, pray and learn, we become more dependent on God to live purposeful and satisfying lives. We become dependent on our special, personal time with God. Eventually we will not be able to imagine taking on life’s challenges and our calling, without our exceptional times of fellowship with God.

3) But then we must understand the importance of concentration, discipline and perseverance. We must in a disciplined way, intently, look into the mirror of God’s will and plan every day, and not be sidetracked or tempted to neglect our relationship with our Saviour. Even under pressure of daily responsibilities, we have to persevere in seeking communion, yes communication, with our God!

Tip#6 on quiet times is then, prayerfully depend on the power of the Holy Spirit to maintain your quiet times and to put into practice what you learn during these personal devotions.

If you resolve to do this, and prayerfully expect God to help you to do so, you will enrich your life, grow in your love-relationship with God, find meaning and purpose, serve God better and with more fruit and live a life that brings glory to his Name. We will be blessed in whatever we do.

May God help us to seek his face, do his will and live in an intimate, personal relationship with him!