Tag: Devotion

Spending Time with God

time-with-god

In the past, I would spend a lot of time trying to figure out the “proper” way to spend time with God. I would wonder if my quiet time with God lasted long enough, if I was reading the correct devotional for the day, if I was praying long enough, etc.  I wanted my quiet time with God to be just right. However, it became more of a burden because I was consumed with all these questions instead of just enjoying the time spent. Over the years, God has taught me that there is no specific formula to spending time with him.  There aren’t any special guidelines you have to follow.  There is no specific length of time that’s required.  It’s more about the quality of time than the quantity of time. The key is to just be present in His presence.

Carve out time in your day for just you and God, away from any and all distractions.  Allow the Lord to lead you in what He wants you to do during your quiet time.  I ask God what He wants me to do and I do whatever I feel like I’m being led to do.  My quiet time now differs from day to day. I don’t have a set amount of time and I don’t have a step by step guide that I follow.  I just allow the time to be led by the Holy Spirit.  One day I may be led to listen to a sermon, the next day I may be led to put on some worship music and write a gratitude prayer, the day after that I may be led to blog, and the day after that I may be led to study a particular verse.  I’ve learned to just follow the Holy Spirit’s leading and I get so much more out of my quiet time with God.

My advice to anyone who may struggle with their quiet time routine is to just be led by God.  God will meet you wherever you are.  He just wants time with you.  So don’t get caught up on all of the specifics and particulars.  Just show up with an open heart and He will surely guide you.

With Gallons of Love,

Javashea

Dinner and Devotion Date Night

dinner-clipart

For the past month and a half, my husband and I have started a new tradition of having a Dinner & Devotion Date Night!  One night per week we sit down to a candle lit dinner that we have prepared together.  Well actually I usually prepare dinner on these nights and hubby will help if I ask for assistance lol.  We eat and talk about our day and afterwards we have devotion!  It’s nothing fancy, we just pick a devotion out of one of my daily devotion books.  We pray, read the scripture and the author’s explanation, then we have a discussion.  We discuss important points that were made, lessons learned, and how we will apply it to our lives.  We then pray and ask God to help us put into practice what we have learned.  Afterwards, we usually just hang out at home and watch movies/t.v. together.

I look forward to our Dinner & Devotion Date Night every week.  It’s a chance for me to spend quality time with My God and My Guy at the same time.  I enjoy my devotion time everyday but it’s extra special when I get a chance to share it with my husband!  We are learning a lot and we feel as though we are growing individually and as a couple.  It is my prayer that we always keep God at the center of our relationship because a three-stranded cord is not easily broken Ecc 4:12.

So, I encourage wives and husbands to start having a Dinner & Devotion Date Night with your significant other once per week.  It will be a wonderful time spent with the two most important people in your life…Your God and Your Spouse!

With Gallons of Love,

Javashea