Most Christians have heard the word “quiet time”.  This is supposed to me a time, usually in the morning where you spend time alone in the word and prayer. The “quiet time” is sometimes referred to as your personal devotion time. I was surprised to learn that wikipedia had a definition for “quiet time”. Here it is:

Quiet time, also stated as heart-to-heart time, or one-on-one time with the creator, is a regular individual session of Christian spiritual activities, such as prayer,  private meditation, contemplation, worship of God or study of the Bible. The term “quiet time” or “sacred time” is used by 20th-century Protestants, mostly evangelical Christians. It is also called “personal Bible study” or “personal devotions” . Interesting!

When I first got saved, I was taught that it was best to have a ‘quiet time’ preferably in the morning hours. The purpose of an early morning time alone with God was to help set / focus your mind on the word of God as you begin the day. However, I was not taught that I had to use a devotional, I was taught that “quiet time” was a time for Bible study (actually opening the Bible) and prayer. I will be forever grateful for that. As time went on, I began to notice a trend among Christians that stressed the need to use a devotional book (daily devotional) for your “quiet time”. Perhaps that was always the case, but it was new to me. The devotional usually has a Bible verse or two and then a short story or exhortation to help clarify the verse(s), & help with personal application. At the same time, I also began to hear that the amount of time spent in “quiet time” did not matter, that it could be as little as 5mins a day. The most important thing was that you were “doing your morning devotion” or “quiet time”.

Now I am not against using daily devotionals, I believe they can be very helpful, I sometimes use them myself from time to time. From experience, I can say nothing is as profitable to the believer as actually studying the Bible itself. I was also shocked at the idea of only spending 5mins day in Bible study. 5mins a day? Why would anyone think 5mins a day of Bible study is sufficient to make them spiritually mature over time? Some people try to make the argument that 5mins a day is better than nothing.

 Nothing worthwhile takes 5mins a day to accomplish. No one becomes a doctor by studying for only 5mins a day.  No one becomes a professional athlete by practicing 5mins  day. No good mother invests only 5mins in caring for their child. It takes more than 5mins a day to put a nutritious meal on the table for your family.

Studying the Bible and praying for 5mins a day is not something a Christian should aspire to. I am convinced most Christians do not think this way about issues in other area of their lives. I don’t know of anyone who thinks, showing up to work, or school for only 5mins a day is better than not showing up at all.  Nothing worthwhile takes 5mins a day to accomplish. No one becomes a doctor by studying for only 5mins a day.  No one becomes a professional athlete by practicing 5mins  day. No good mother invests only 5mins in caring for their child. It takes more than 5mins a day to put a nutritious meal on the table for your family. I sure hope you don’t attend a church where the Pastor only spends 5mins a day preparing his sermon! No one is ever going to mature as a Christian by studying their Bible for only 5mins a day.

I understand that for some people, there is just not enough time in the morning for deep Bible study and prayer for a variety of reasons, then I would advice they find a more appropriate time during the day. Your spiritual growth and life, your sanctification depends on a through knowledge of the Bible and time in prayer. It is not legalistic to stress a deeper study of the Word and prayer. We need to create order in our lives to make room for time alone with God in prayer. JC Ryle in his book “Practical Religion” said this about prayer:

I might say something of the value of regular times in the day for prayer. God is a God of order. The hours of the morning and evening sacrifice in the Jewish temple were not established as they were without a meaning. Disorder is notably one of the fruits of sin. But I would not bring anyone under bondage. I only say this, that it is essential to your soul’s health to make praying a part of the routine of every twenty-four hours in your life.

Just as you allot time to eating, sleeping, and business, so also allot time to prayer. Choose your own hours and periods. At the very least, speak with God in the morning, before you speak with the world; and speak with God at night, after you have finished with the world for that day. But settle it in your minds that prayer is one of the vital things of each day. Do not put it into a corner. Do not give it the scraps, and leftover minutes of your day. Whatever else you make a business of, make a business of prayer.” (emphasis mine)

Becoming a woman of prayer and a student of the Bible will demand some investment of time as well as some discipline, there is no way around it. The apostle Paul constantly compared the discipline our Christian life demands to that of an athlete. In 1Cor. 9:24-27 he compared our spiritual journey to that of an athlete running to win. For that to happen, the athlete must discipline himself.  He said:

 “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it.  Every athlete exercises self-control in all things. They do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable.  So I do not run aimlessly; I do not box as one beating the air.  But I discipline my body and keep it under control, lest after preaching to others I myself should be disqualified.” (emphasis mine)

All growth, including spiritual growth takes time, discipline and effort. Some people seem to think that when it comes to spiritual matters, the Holy Spirit will somehow supernaturally just make up for what we lack. While the Holy Spirit has been given to assist us in knowing more about the Lord, He is only able to do so with what we have already studied from the word.  The Holy Spirit enlightens our hearts as we study. When there is nothing there, there will be nothing for Him to enlighten. Becoming spiritually mature takes a lot of discipline that will involve taking the time to spend lots of time in the word of God.  In the end, it will be worth it.