How to Seek God Daily — Part 2
The three essentials for meeting with God are:
- The Bible
- Rising early
- Setting aside a time of solitude with Him
The Bible records what God has said and is the Christian’s source of spiritual food. With it, God speaks to our hearts and enables us to better understand His ways. Through it, we also obtain His guidance.
2 Timothy 3: 16, 17 — “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”
Psalm 119:15 — “I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.”
Waking up early
This is the price we must pay to have precious time with God. You need to rise earlier than your usual waking time by about half an hour. Be diligent and disciplined.
Make it your priority to meet with God first thing in the morning before you start the rest of your day. Any disruptions are likely to be minimal at the beginning of the day—it is a relatively peaceful time of solace that is very precious. Ask God to give you a willing heart to offer up this time to Him.
Quiet Time
A Time of Solitude with God: Moses met God alone in the tent of meeting. Where is your tent of meeting with God?
It could be a room to yourself, a corner in a student hostel or under a tree in a courtyard. As long as you set aside a period of uninterrupted time with God, it could be anywhere.
How to meet with God
It is the beginning of a new day! You have risen earlier than your usual waking time by half an hour. Freshen up and bring your Bible to a quiet place (your tent of meeting with Him).
Do note that your time of solitude with God for the next morning actually begins the night before—you must prepare yourself to sleep early so that you can wake up early (otherwise prepare an alarm clock to wake yourself up).
Prepare your heart (3-5 minutes)
Pray for 3-5 minutes to prepare your heart to meet with Him. Thank God for blessing you with a new day and ask Him to quieten your heart to listen to Him as He speaks to you using His Word.
Meditate on God’s Word: Silently Pondering Over the Scriptures (15 minutes)
Once you open the Bible to your Quiet Time passage of the day, use 15 minutes to read a portion of the Scripture, pondering over the words as well as praying over them.
Take special note of the verse(s) that resonate(s) with you, or serve(s) as a reminder, or direct(s) your attention to something. These are some of the ways God can speak to you through the Scriptures.
You may like to use the following acronym to ponder over the Scriptures: S. P. E. C. K
Sin: Is there any sin for me to avoid?
Promise: Is there any promise from God I can claim?
Example: Is there any example I can emulate?
Command: Is there any command I should obey and follow?
Knowledge: Is there any knowledge about God I have learned through the Scriptures?
After reading some verses, give careful thought to them in your heart. Then respond to God from your heart through prayer by way of adoration, confession, and thanksgiving. You may also like to petition (supplication) for His help to submit to His will. This prayer time is also when you pour out your heart to God. Then once you are done, continue reading the Scriptures.
If you are moved again at another juncture to respond back to God in prayer, do so. Repeat this process till you have finished reading the portion of scripture passage for the day’s Quiet Time with God.
Write Down What You’ve Learned (3 minutes)
It is helpful to conclude your time of meditation on God’s Word. Note the special verse(s) that spoke to your heart for the day, then record your observations about it/them.
Most importantly, specify how you will go on to live out the verse(s) and apply it/them in your life. You may like to refer to the following format as a sample:
Date:
Time:
Scripture passage:
Special verse(s):
Context of observation:
Application for the day:
In Matthew 7: 24-27, Jesus says,
“Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the rock. But everyone who hears these words of mine and does not put them into practice is like a foolish man who built his house on sand. The rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell with a great crash.”
When our hearts are touched and inspired by the Lord during our Quiet Time with Him, we ought to translate it into action. Only by doing so will the spiritual practice of Quiet Time achieve its real purpose and have a real effect on our lives.
Thus, it can be said that we can be truly considered to be wise by the Lord; our confidence can be rock solid, like the foundation of rock that holds up a house, able to withstand rain and floods. We need not fear the rain, flash floods and gales in life that confront us. We can still stand firm in this dark and sinful world.
The application of God’s word for obedience in our lives stem from our inspired time with God’s word. It needs to be specific, clear, and actionable.
For example, God’s word may remind me of the need to forgive someone and this may make me think of someone who has offended me. As such, the Quiet Time application of the day for me would be to take the initiative to reconcile with that person.
Again, God’s word may remind me that I should love others as I love myself. This in turn may make me think of a friend who is facing some trouble. So, it made me decide to visit him on the very same day to see how he is doing or to give him a phone call to show my concern to him.
Below is a Quiet Time sample:
Scripture passage: John 1: 1-5
Prepare your heart with a prayer:
“Lord, thank you for giving me some rest the night before. Now I have come before you to commune with you. Please help me to be focused on reading and pondering over what you are saying in your word. Please speak to my heart and lead me in my response back to you. I want to know you more. In Jesus’ name, Amen.”
Scripture Reading
Read verses 1 – 5 once.
Read the Scriptures again: This time, ponder over His word and pray over it at the same time.
1. Read the first and second verses of the Scriptures and meditate over them.
Prayer:
“Lord, I know you are the everlasting God who transcends time. You have always been existent. You are the origin of everything. I praise you for being so great and awesome. Despite this, you still give me the privilege to draw near to you and to know you.”
2. Read the third verse, then meditate over it.
Prayer:
“O Lord, I know you were the one who created all things. I admire your works of creation because they reflect your wise and creative powers. You truly are the great engineer who determined all the laws of the natural world. This is something that is way beyond what I can ever understand or imagine. I praise you and adore you.”
3. Read the fourth verse, then meditate over it.
Prayer:
“O Lord, you are the source of life. My life is in your hands. I do not really understand what 'that life was the light of men' means, but I know that in our lives, light is very important. It is the presence of light that enables me to see. Since I have received Jesus as my Lord and Saviour, I feel as if I have a new pair of eyes to see the world. Life has taken on a new meaning and I have received a profound peace in my heart. Thank you. With you by my side, I need not live in darkness and you lead me on a firm and stable path in life.”
4. Read the fifth verse, then meditate over it.
Prayer:
“O Lord, this world indeed is full of darkness, full of sins and wickedness. This is because the world denies your existence and does not know you, believe in you, or acknowledge you. It has turned against you and does not respect you or revere your name. How I wish my family and friends could walk out of the darkness, to know you as their Lord and Saviour.”
Read the Scriptures again: This time, pick out the verses that specially moved your heart or verses that hold a special meaning.
Identify them as your special verse(s) for the day.
Consider how you can go on to live it out in your life on the same day in a specific, practical and concrete way.
Write Down What You’ve Learned
Date: 2023-01-01
Time: 06:45am
Scripture passage: John 1:1-5
Special verse(s): verse 3
Context of observation:
God is full of wisdom; He was the One who created this wondrous universe. The blue sky, the sun, each and every flower with its radiant hue. I am also His creation. Surely He cares for all my affairs.
Application for the day:
Today, I want to pay attention to my surroundings, to be aware of each beautiful flower and to remember God’s creative powers, praising Him. When I see the beauty of the sunset’s glory, I want to praise Him too.
Another believer (who may have believed in the Lord for some time) may have different thoughts about the same scripture passage. For him, this passage may be God’s reminder to him to help his fellow colleagues come to know Jesus, the light of life.
The following are his Quiet Time notes:
Date: 2023-01-01
Time: 06:45
Scripture passage: John 1:1-5
Special verse(s): verse 4
Context of observation:
Jesus is the light of life. He teaches me how I should live and gives me the wisdom to solve problems as well as to make sound decisions. I used to have a restless heart, devoid of peace. After I have believed in Jesus, my heart is guarded by stability and there is joy.
Application for the day:
I very much desire for my colleagues to know Jesus, I want to bring Jesus the light of life into their lives. As such, my thoughts turn especially to Lee. He has recently met with some unpleasant things in life and has been saying that life is meaningless. I want to lunch with him today. After lunch, I want to share my testimony with him, to help him to know more about Jesus. Lord, please prepare his heart and please give me the confidence to seize the opportunity. Grant me the wisdom and tact to share the good news with him!
Thus, it can be seen quite clearly that Quiet Time is not the same as Bible study. Quiet Time is a time of communing with God, listening to Him, discerning His will for how I should be living my life daily.
God can very well use the same scripture passage and guide different individuals in a different, yet, personal way. Once we cultivate the habit of meeting God daily, we will be able to have a close and intimate fellowship with Him, to recognise His voice and His ways. This will better aid us in seeking and discerning His will.
Why not start now?
You can now go on to start your spiritual practice of seeking God daily through Quiet Time. Prepare for your next morning’s appointment with God the night before. Place your Bible and your spiritual journal on your desk. Set your alarm to ready yourself to wake up to meet with the Lord.
The Quiet Time schedule below has a list of scripture passages you can refer to daily for the next 30 days.
If you are still unsure of how to have your daily Quiet Time with God, follow the sample given above. Remember to jot down notes!
| Day 1 | John 1: 6 - 13 |
| Day 2 | John 1:14 - 18 |
| Day 3 | John 1: 19 - 28 |
| Day 4 | John 1: 29 - 42 |
| Day 5 | John 1: 43 - 51 |
| Day 6 | John 2: 1 - 12 |
| Day 7 | John 2: 13 - 25 |
| Day 8 | John 3: 1 - 15 |
| Day 9 | John 3: 16 - 21 |
| Day 10 | John 3: 22 - 36 |
| Day 11 | Psalm 1 |
| Day 12 | Psalm 5 |
| Day 13 | Psalm 15 |
| Day 14 | Psalm 23 |
| Day 15 | Psalm 34 |
| Day 16 | Psalm 63 |
| Day 17 | Psalm 84 |
| Day 18 | Psalm 96 |
| Day 19 | Psalm 111 |
| Day 20 | Psalm 119: 1 - 8 |
| Day 21 | Psalm 146 |
| Day 22 | Matthew 6: 5 - 15 |
| Day 23 | Matthew 6: 19 - 24 |
| Day 24 | Matthew 6: 25 - 33 |
| Day 25 | Ephesians 1: 1 - 14 |
| Day 26 | Ephesians 1: 15 - 23 |
| Day 27 | Ephesians 2: 1 - 10 |
| Day 28 | Ephesians 2: 11 - 22 |
| Day 29 | Ephesians 3: 1 - 13 |
| Day 30 | Ephesians 3: 14 - 21 |
Please follow and complete the thirty days of your Quiet Time with God based on the given schedule above before you move on to other scripture passages.
Quiet Time notes
Date:
Time:
Scripture passage:
Special verse(s)
Context of observation:
Application for the day:
(Stay tuned for Part 3!)