The following is an article I wrote back in 2005 (according to the file's date stamp):
It’s That Time of the Day by Shearn Sya
Quiet time… The ever-elusive ingredient to healthy Christian living almost all Christians struggle with. What makes it so difficult for us to set aside a mere slice of our entire day to devote to our Almighty Father?
Almost every Christian knows that quiet time is required of us. Indeed, it is not forced down our throats, but it IS something we should be doing every day without fail, and we know that. Before we go further into the matter, however, let us first have a look at the question of the hour: What is quiet time?
There is no specific guideline to quiet time. The Bible does not say ‘Thou shalt doeth quiet timeth before thy head hitteth thy pillow’ or something. However, a fairly common definition of quiet time would be: setting a certain period of your time each day to personally spend with God, usually accompanied with prayer and meditating upon His word. This time is up to the individual. Some do it in the morning, before they even brush their teeth, some do it while brushing their teeth, and some even do it while driving (though this is not advisable. Driving + Closed Eyes = Bye Bye). King David did his quiet time before he went to bed at night - When I remember Thee on my bed, I meditate on Thee in the night watches. - Psalms 63:6.
There is also no specific time limit for quiet time. The author of Psalms 119:97 meditated on God’s word all day long. Most of us do not do that, however. We usually need a specific time to allocate, turning it into a slot in our busy, busy schedule. How long each individual dwells and meditates on God and His word each day varies from person to person. Some may have so many responsibilities to fulfill that they have perhaps only ten to fifteen minutes per day to spend in God’s presence, when everything is still, before they have to jump back into their worker bee’s suit and buzz around as usual.
The activities undertaken during quiet time also vary. Some prefer to follow a specific study guide to the Bible, others would use a daily devotional, such as Our Daily Bread, while some just read the Bible from cover to cover. Prayer is often an axiomatic ingredient in the quiet time recipe. It may be favorable to simply be still and meditate upon the Lord and His word, while some prefer turning on some soft music to help them worship at the same time, and a few turn up some rocking praise songs to jump about to (Note: This is not very conducive for being still….. obviously). Whatever works for the person coming before the Lord; it’s a personal choice.
Why is quiet time so difficult to be consistent in, then? Many people tend to allow it to fall into the ‘routine’ category. When the same thing is done day in, day out, at the same time, in the same posture, wearing the same clothes, etc., the mortal body will almost certainly try to go into self-automated mode. Can you imagine quiet time reduced to a three second prayer of ‘ThankyouforthisdaypleasseforgiveoursinsandblesstomorrowinJesusnameweprayamen.’ every single day at 9:23 p.m. , on the floor, 14th tile from the door of the room, head bent over at a 23ยบ angle, clothed in a creased pair of Smurf pyjamas? Though the situation may not be so extreme in most cases, it isn’t particularly far from ridiculous. Those who find they are able to do quiet time consistently and meaningfully have found it helpful to keep it fresh with new material, new ways of worshiping God, etc. It does not hurt to have accountability in your spiritual life, either. Though it may not reach the scope of someone doing quiet time with their spouse, it is still possible to have a prayer partner to start off the daily devotional, then have your own personal meditations and so on, and wrapping it up with a prayer with your partner. United, we stand. Divided, we make excuses.
However, fear of routine is not the only excuse for quiet time shirkers. A common excuse people use would be that they are too busy. A day is divided into 24 hours. An hour is broken down into 60 minutes. A minute is comprised of 60 seconds. Of the 86400 seconds per day, how many of those are spent unconscious? How many fly past when watching a half hour (1800 seconds) TV program? How many disappear in a 2 hour chat session with people you will probably see the next day in school/college? When you come right down to it, how busy can you be to not afford a slice of your 86400 second day to devote to the one who created you? The one who gave you the ability to sleep? The one who created the actors in the TV show you follow so religiously? The one who created topics to talk about for 2 hours?
Laziness is often another excuse. Or forgetfulness. Or exhaustion. Or opportunity. The excuses just go on and on, but that’s all they are – excuses. When there’s a will, there’s a way. When there’s God’s will, there’s a road map, BMW convertible, and an adorable puppy to accessorize your passenger seat.
God bless your time with Him.
