Forthright Fixation

Recently I’ve been reflecting on the concept of spending time with God, particularly within the context of regular quiet times in the morning (or evening, if you prefer). I’ll confess, this is an area in which I’ve seen a need for growth for quite awhile. I’ve experienced firsthand the desire (and even determination) to spend time with the Lord after a rich time of teaching, worship, and fellowship on a Sunday, yet when 6am Monday morning comes around, I’ve decided instead that an extra hour of sleep would feel much better than getting up to meet with Him.

Such patterns only left me wondering, “Do I really value time with God on a heart level?” Beyond that, if I don’t have a heart-level desire for God in terms of sacrificing a bit of sleep in the morning in order to spend time with Him, how do I increase that desire?

To answer both of those questions, the starting point ought to be a consideration of the purpose behind spending time with the Lord, and then the attitude with which we should approach this discipline.

“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.” Psalm 143:8 (NIV)

“Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love…”

Even when I am not diligent to spend time with the Lord, I can’t help but still notice the effects of having less time with Him in my day. My mom likes to use the analogy of gearing up for battle with sin and the lies of the world when we spend time with the Lord in the mornings. Otherwise—she contrasts—we’re headed into the battle in flip-flops and armed with a pool noodle!

And it’s true! Without arming myself with truth, I feel unprepared to face the day. Psalm 143:8 puts its finger on one of the primary truths we need to remind ourselves of: His unfailing love. Though a very simple truth, and easy to take for granted, being reminded of His love for us is a sustaining part of our armor for each day.

“…for I have put my trust in you.”

Spending time reading the word of God, praying, and crying out to Him for help in the morning is a humble acknowledgment of weakness. Why do I need to hear from Him each day? Because He is the one in which I need to put my trust. When I wake up, I naturally begin the day trusting myself. When I take time to dwell on truth, however, I recognize my need for the Lord, and I’m filled with fresh faith for the day.

“Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.”

Here the psalmist recognizes his need for God’s direction, and his dependence upon God. More than that, he lifts up his soul to God. How often do I do that? How often do I find Christ so valuable, so sufficient, and his love so deep that I say “to you, Lord, I lift up my soul”?

At New Attitude 2008, pastor Eric Simmons spoke on the topic of loving the Word of God. In his message he observed that “our love for the Bible is directly proportional to our love for Christ”. This strikes at the root of my second question, “How do I increase my desire for the word?” The answer comes in valuing Christ more highly. When I value Christ as supreme, I will value His words! Eric continued to challenge us with this statement: When I have no passion or vision for the Bible, I need to repent of putting something above it.

What am I putting above the Word of God? What am I putting above time with God? What am I putting above God Himself?

Our answers may vary, but when we consider the practice of going to the Word every day as set forth in Psalm 143, let us begin to pray for increased passion for God and His Word. Let us repent of putting something above Christ, and ask God for a re-prioritization to take place in our hearts as we seek to grow in godliness.

“Hear my prayer, O Lord;
give ear to my pleas for mercy!
In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!”

(Psalm 143:1)

 

Filed under: Christian Living, God's Word