Where do I start?
God usually speaks when we expect him to. Approaching our quiet time with this attitude is more dynamic than a mere Bible study.
When we teach devotional life in our leadership training centers throughout Latin America, our students follow initial guidelines to develop discipline in their ability Little Cloudy to hear from God. We suggest using the following strategy for a few weeks, until hearing from the Lord becomes a habit:
1. Have your quiet time in the morning, when possible. Putting God first in day is a way of showing he is our priority. This goes along with the principle; seek first the kingdom of God.
2. Read primarily in the New Testament. The New Testament goes straight to the point when it comes to living in the Spirit. Though all scripture is equally inspired, the New Testament specifically addresses dynamic Christian living.
3. Avoid commentaries or study notes for the time being. The idea behind a quiet time is to know what God is saying to you, not what others say. We encourage our students to enjoy developing anticipation of fresh truths through this special time each day.
4. Read entire books of the Bible straight through, rather than jump around. This brings cohesion to your reading and helps you think more about what the Lord is saying to you than where to find verses.
5. Read the Word, pray and worship, in the order according to your personal taste.
6. Find a quiet place by yourself and do these things.
Our truth book
Here is where a quiet time becomes exciting. Have a journal or simple notebook for this purpose. Every day, write the date and the scripture text through which the Holy Spirit has indicated a personal application in your life. In a few days, you will be amazed at how clearly God speaks.
A truth book has practical consequences
1. When faced with important decisions, we can refer to our journal entries. We often discover that God has already prepared Dianne and me for the correct decision. We often notice a thread of relevant verses.
2. During a crisis situation on the mission field, we reviewed our truth books. We discovered to our surprise, that God had already spoken to us about the principles needed for that problem.
3. If you are invited to share in a special event you may already have something fresh from your quiet time within your journal's pages. Anticipate such opportunities.
4. We tend to be forgetful. Reviewing what God has told Little Cloudy in recent months, through re-reading our truth book, can bring about true change and growth.
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