How to Develop a Consistent Quiet Time Habit That Actually Works
My husband is an alarm guy. He has alarms and reminders set up on his phone for everything. Almost daily I hear the words “Hey Siri, set a 37-minute timer.” He has an alarm for exercise, an alarm for when to go to sleep, and an alarm for Bible study. What I’ve learned about my lovely husband, is that these alarms mean absolutely nothing. If he’s still working on a task past the 37 minutes, the timer gets extended. When the retched bells go off for exercise midday, he ends it and continues as he was. I love him, but he doesn’t go to bed at a reasonable time no matter how much he desires it. And I’m sure you can imagine what that means for Bible study too. I realize I am totally throwing him under the bus right now, but I did ask him permission before writing this, so I’m in the clear! I say all of this because I know he’s not the only one. We’re all familiar with the snooze button. Some of us a little more familiar with it than others. Over time, it’s easy to become desensitized to the sound of an alarm (is that you?). However, when it comes to setting aside time for Bible study and prayer, this habit of hitting snooze can get in the way of truly connecting with God. So let’s discuss what you can do instead to make the most out of this important spiritual practice.
Personalize Your Why
Do you want to know God more deeply? Do you want to understand why it is you believe what you believe? Would you like to be able to quote scripture to encourage a friend or to lift God up in prayer? Maybe you keep hearing about the Book of John, and want to stop the excuses and finally go through it. Whatever your ‘why’ is, write it down and make it personal. Yes, we all know as Christians spending a quiet time with God is something we ‘should’ do, but try to go a little deeper than that.
Get Clear on Your How
Okay, so you want to build a more consistent quiet time habit, cool. How does that look for you? Will you go read a chapter a day? Will you do PVAT and PRISM? Do you have a devotional that’s been collecting dust on your shelf? Maybe you want to freestyle it and do a combination of those things depending on the day. Create a loose plan ahead of time, so when you’re ready to show up you’re not spinning your wheels on what exactly to do next.
Be For Real
If you are rarely picking up the Bible, maybe don’t create an expectation for yourself that you will read 3 chapters a day for a month. This is a marathon, not a sprint. You don’t want to run out of steam and be unable to sustain this new habit. So, be realistic. Assess where you are and “up” it a notch. If you’re in a busy season and cannot commit to an hour-long quiet time session, try committing to 10 minutes of quality time with the Lord. Here are 3 ideas for spending time with God that are all under 15 minutes.
Visualization
Before bed, get a picture in your mind of the next day with your quiet time habit incorporated into it. Try to envision exactly what you’ll do when your alarm goes off in the morning. For example: You do not hit snooze, but instead turn off the alarm and get up to go to the bathroom. You splash water on your face and brush your teeth to get a rhythm going. By now you’re mostly awake. You head to the kitchen to drink some water, and it refreshes you to fully awake. You then head to the closet to put on some sweatpants and your sneakers and take a brisk 20-minute walk around the neighborhood while listening to worship music. You enter back into your home, start the Keurig machine, and get out your She Reads Truth Bible, pen, and highlighters. You place the items on the couch, finish making your coffee, and snuggle up before opening to John chapter 6. You invite the Holy Spirit into your study time and begin to read using the Heart-to-Heart method. You finish your study having understood more about God’s character, yourself, and what you need to do as a result. You’re feeling confident this is going to be an amazing day.
Then, go to bed and wake up the next day carrying out exactly what you just envisioned.
Print a Habit Tracker
Sometimes, the act of physically checking off a completed task is enough satisfaction to keep you wanting to continue the goal as to not break the streak. This is a really simple psychology trick to get you to commit to your habit. Just print off a habit tracker sheet or even an online calendar (you can also draw a bunch of squares on computer paper), and tape it to your wall or hang it on the refrigerator— somewhere where you can see it daily. Each time you’ve completed your quiet time with God, mark it on your sheet and feel proud for showing up and taking control of your spiritual growth.
Habit Stack
What habits do you already have so ingrained in your daily routine that you probably don’t even notice it’s a habit anymore? For most of us, brushing our teeth in the mornings and evenings is one. Maybe you have to have your morning Celsius to start the day, or you drop your kids off to daycare each morning. See if you can align your new quiet time habit with an existing habit. Maybe after dropping off your kids in the morning, you listen to the Bible on audio on your drive back home and stay in the driveway for a few extra minutes to pray and jot down a few notes over what you just heard. By doing this, you’re making it easier on yourself to naturally add something different into your routine without it feeling like a huge undertaking.
Reward Yourself
Research has shown that incentivizing your habits is a great way to stick to a goal. Consider a duration of time you’d like to stick to your new quiet time habit. Maybe it’s 30 days if you’re going through the Creative Quiet Time Journal. Every 7 days you’ve successfully completed, treat yourself with something small as a pat on the back and encouragement to keep going. If you decide to join the Creative Quiet Time Challenge, you’ll see that rewards come throughout it for participants. Join our email list to be notified about the next one. An easy idea for a reward is a Bible accessory like these gel highlighters, or my favorite pens of all time!
“The Lord is near to all who call on him, to all who call on him in truth.” —Psalm 145:18
Setting an alarm for your quiet time with God isn’t working. I love that you have a desire to spend time with God, but desire only gets us so far. Take action and start to see your life transformed by this important practice by using these tips. Okay, off to share this blog with the hubby!
Ready to get started with a quiet time habit, but need a bit of direction? You’ll love the Creative Quiet Time Journal. It’s 30 days of one-of-a-kind prompts and activities to encounter God daily. You can think of it like a challenge and commit to one prompt a day for a month, or use in alignment with a different goal. Need to start small? Try the Creative Quiet Time Quest for 3 daily mystery prompts sent to your inbox!
