I just finished our "Quiet Time". I say "our" instead of "my" because that is part of my problem, and maybe yours, too. When we speak of time set aside to be with God, we can still be self-focused. This isn't "my" quiet time if my purpose is to ease into God's presence and linger there awhile. To quote the famous theologian Jeff Spicolli, "If you're here and I'm here, doesn't that make it our time?" (FYI - No. He is not a real theologian, but a character in a movie. There. Disclaimer completed.)
Lately I have been trying to spend more time just being silent and truly entering God's presence as opposed to taking a deep breath, closing my eyes and launching into a monologue (monologue verses dialogue is another issue). Don't misunderstand. I sincerely focus on talking to God and not in vain repetition. My heart of thankfulness will not allow me to ask a thing without first offering a sincere prayer of thankfulness for His goodness. But I still find that I can sometimes come to him more like a son coming home for a visit from college. You know, barging in with my baggage (yes, full of "dirty laundry"), shouting, "Here I am!" and flopping on the couch to start rattling off the events of my life. Even if I offer a heart-felt peck on the cheek to mom and a quick fist-bump to dad, I didn't enter into the moment with the adoration and respect they deserve.
We can do the same when we enter into a time with our Heavenly Father, can't we? Wouldn't parents experience a sense of a child's love and adoration if they entered the room and just held one another for a few moments first? When we enter God's presence, we should take our time. We need to take in the awe of His presence and the wonder of being in the midst of His holiness and power. That is what my attention was drawn to this morning.
When I make a deliberate effort to swipe away every thought, other than being in God's presence, I am just so aware of how difficult it can be to keep my mind from detaching from the moment. I don't mean sleepily nodding in and out, but being wide awake and still having to "pull" my thoughts back towards God. Our minds are like spastic, little Chihuahuas darting to and fro while the owner is tugging on the leash yelling, "Heel!"
This is more of an observation than anything else. These random, cameo appearances of thought are not always negative or even sinful, but they are not on God. When this happens, we need to tug on the leash and say, "Heel!" and re-focus our mind on God.
May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing in your sight,
O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer. - Ps. 19:14
Though we cannot always control what thoughts enter our mind, God has given us the ability to choose which ones we allow to linger and which thoughts we decide to nurture. To meditate on God, putting what matters over the mind, takes some effort and discipline, but the conversation that follows is much sweeter when we enter the room and make the effort to stay in his arms awhile.
