Mikki's Posts

So I have a place for devotions.  I decided on my desk.  It's a good place because it's not too comfortable so there's little chance I'd fall asleep.  I'm not giving up but picking the same time every day won't work for me. February has a few goals now. 1. When I rise and when I go to bed, I will be spending a concentrated 10 minutes in prayer.  If I go over, great.  But at least 10 mins. 2. I'm going to read Today in the Word, the Moody Bible Institute daily devotional.  I gave the hard copy I have for the month to my friend and she's going to read with me to keep us both accountable.  I'm going to text or email her every day my thoughts or reactions to the day's reading/devo. 3.  In this next month I will get my bible study homework done before the day I have study. Sunday for BSF, Tuesday for the women's study.  Yes BSF is a daily structure but there many weeks where I have days I slack. So that's it for now. Oh!  I'm g...

I have learned much this last week.  I had a great response to my informal survey on devotion and prayer time among my Christian friends.  (See the previous three posts for those details.) So now that I have all this information at my disposal, what am I going to do with it you might ask?  Well I'll tell you.  I have developed a plan for me to start out with. My new devotion plan involves eating within an hour of waking up and doing my daily quiet time before I get to play with my blackberry.  This takes into account my work days when I'll be at work doing my devotion before getting started.  I've started to make a habit of getting to work early anyway so now I can do my devotions in that time.  For days I'm off, there's no computer, TV or blackberry before devotions and some prayer time. The one exception is for now I'm getting the Daily Bread email until the little booklet comes.  I'm allowed to look that up on my blackberry.  But onc...

In no particular order another six friends throw their two cents in about daily time spent in the Word and prayer. The first of a pair of BFFs (seriously they are like two peas in a pod) said that she liked to read just before bed. Something that has helped her focus on God was referring to scripture when she wrote. Did I mention she’s a fellow writer? She also spoke of her desire to start memorizing scripture again. The second BFF responded said that when she was younger she kept a Bible beside her bed and read a chapter a night. Now, she does a morning routine, reading her Bible and doing morning meditation at the breakfast table. She raised an interesting point—she does not mandate a time limit. Her focus has been on concentration. Three minutes of undivided attention to the Word can often be enough, rather than sitting there for a prescribed time when her mind might wander. I like her thoughts on prayer: “anytime and often”. I can hear her voice in my head saying b...

I am very blessed to have been part of several Bible studies over the years. Currently I’m kind of in three again. I didn’t really plan on that, but so far it’s been crappy. Mostly because I’ve been depressed. Now I’m thinking God allowed me to get involved with all three groups again because there are people in each group that I need to connect to. I only hope that even in my current state I can return the blessing and be used by God in the Bible studies. Both former and current Bible study leaders said their devotions are in the morning. The first is before breakfast, for 20-30 minutes of study. The second is first thing every morning. She also adds that she views “quiet time as non-negotiable.” She likens her time with God in the morning as part of schedule, as much as showering or flossing teeth. She added that it was important to follow through with the commitment, often regardless of feelings. Another facilitator reminded me to not only 1) Make a plan but 2) Make a...

Recently I enlisted a bit of help from family and friends. I am struggling with doing devotions every day, reading my Bible, and dedicating myself to a time of prayer. I have been very selfish with my time and ignoring God a lot. When I started to ignore my friends and skip Bible Study, I realized things were going too far. I surveyed, in a most unscientific manner, the patterns and routines, or lack thereof, of those I knew professed belief in Christ. What did they do for devotions (or daily quiet time as it often known as)? How did they ensure prayer was a priority? What had worked in the past and what was currently working for them? When did they take time to read the Bible and spend focused time with God? Starting with some good ‘ol maternal advice, my mom had a number of suggestions for me. Start small. Read a little devotional article (one of those tiny one page book thingies) with breakfast. Write a few sentences of a prayer/spiritual to do list. Such as: 1. find...