The Myth of the "Perfect" Quiet Time

Blessed are You, O LORD! Teach me Your statutes! With my lips I have declared All the judgments of Your mouth. I have rejoiced in the way of Your testimonies, As much as in all riches. I will meditate on Your precepts, And contemplate Your ways. Psalm 119:12-15

Years ago, when I had two babies as well as three school-aged children in the home, God led me into a more intense time with Him in Bible study and prayer than I had ever had. I truly desired time with God and I prioritized it.

As the years have passed I have continued to desire time with God. I have found, however, that if I am going to  faithfully spend time with Him, I must let go of the perfectionism that says that unless I do it in one certain way, it doesn't "count."

Perfectionism says,

1. "I will have my quiet time when I can do it all in one stretch with no interruptions." 

2. "I will have my quiet time when I figure out a plan that works for me."

3. "I will have my quiet time when the house is actually quiet."

4. "I will have my quiet time when I find the perfect spot."

5. "I will have my quiet time when the house is in order."

Obviously if I created this list of requirements before I communicated with my husband, we would not talk much. The same is true with my communication with God. Just as the seasons of my marriage have required Mark and me to think through the when, where and how of our communication, the same is true with my quiet time with God.

In the very busiest season of my life when I had not only four of my children in the home but also multiple foster babies, I found that by breaking up the various spiritual disciplines into bite-sized pieces, I could find time for the Lord and not put the children at risk. I could pray when I woke up in the night to feed a baby or  while in the car. (Actually, in Monrovia some of my most intense praying is in the car. "Please keep us all from dying!") I could listening to an audio Bible while washing dishes. And a few minutes with God in either prayer or Bible reading before I went to sleep at night wrapped it all together as with a big red ribbon.

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Now my life is a bit more "normal" and my quiet times with God are easier to schedule. However, I continue to enjoy the habit I developed of talking to Him continually and listening to His Word as I went about my day. I know God's goal for me is increased Christlikeness and as I grow in faith through reading (or listening to) His Word and prayer, that goal is reached—even if it is not "perfect." And if He's happy, I'm happy.

See No Longer Playing the Part of the Martyr.

See Am I Gorgeous Yet?