Parishioners would never dream it, but there is a segment of the ecclesiastical nobility-myself included-for whom personal worship (a.k.a. “devotions,” “quiet time,” “QT”) has been a struggle. First, it’s finding the minutes. Those phone calls in the morning always seem to foul up your communion with God. Or maybe it’s the kids. Or the sweet smell of coffee wafting from the kitchen.
Next, there’s how long you spend. Reading about John Wesley awakening at 4 A.M. and praying for two hours is exhilarating, but it nearly wipes you out. As holy as David Brainerd was, you get a bit tired of him lying in the snow, praying for six hours, and getting up wet. Not from the snow, though. From the sweat.
Once QT gets a beachhead in your life, it’s the lightning bolts of guilt that shoot through you every time you miss. Remember the day you cracked up the car? What was the first thing you muttered? “Why didn’t I have my prayer time this morning?”
Then there are the dry periods. The Bible puts you right out. You kneel by the couch and promptly fall asleep as you mumble, “And bless the deacons and the trustees and Luke Skywalker. … “
Finally, there’s simply sticking with it, through sick and sin. You try it with the television on. With the television off. At home. At your office. Under the beech trees in the park. In bed. Out of bed. You go for a week straight and don’t miss once. The next week you miss seven for seven.
Believe me, I’ve been there. I’ve been lectured to, preached at, cajoled, and excoriated. I have also lectured to, preached at, cajoled, and excoriated others about having a personal life of devotion.
Please understand at the outset that I do not write to put anyone into another guilt epoch. However, I would like to discuss some basic principles about personal worship and then speak rather specifically about ways I’ve implemented them in my life. The goal is to help pastors become consistent and make devotions enjoyable, not annoying.
Some Basic Principles
Let me begin by saying that I know of no verses in Scripture that command us to have devotions … la the twentieth-century American recipes. We have, unfortunately, separated life into various boxes: “devotions,” “church,” “family,” and so on. I suspect devotions are more a matter of lifestyle than a five- to fifty-minute bracket of time in which we follow some quickie scheme, deliver to the Lord a few spiritual creme donuts, and figure we’ve properly induced him to bless us for the day. With that in mind, consider these principles.
First, men and women of God have always sought quiet, deep communion with God at regular times and places. The sons of Korah wrote, “In the morning my prayer comes before you” (Ps. 88:13). David also said, “Morning by morning, O Lord, you hear my voice; morning by morning I lay my requests before you and wait in expectation” (Ps. 5:3). Daniel had the habit of praying three times a day with his windows open (Dan. 6:10), and Jesus appears to have gone out regularly in the mornings to commune with his Father (Mark 1:35).
It was taking time to commune with God that made these spiritual giants. They prayed regularly, sometimes for long periods, sometimes for short. But they prayed and studied just the same.
The biographies of people God has used in history hold few common elements in terms of evangelistic methods, preaching styles, or church growth principles. But one thread runs throughout: they all prayed; they all studied the Word for their own edification; they all sought God with fervor and fire. They were fulfillments of Psalm 42:1 “As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God.” Read a book like Dick Eastman’s No Easy Road, and you can’t help but catch the vision. He speaks of John “Praying” Hyde, whose heart was twisted out of its cavity because of his soul-wrenching hours in intercession. Samuel Rutherford rose at 3 A.M. to pray. John Welch of Scotland remarked that a day was ill-spent if he did not commit eight to ten hours to communion with God.
These kinds of stories both thrill and devastate me as a struggling pastor. But I have to ask myself the question: Are all the activities that scream for my time and attention in twentieth-century America really essential? Am I missing the burning bush for trying to keep the lawn cut? There must be priorities in our lives, and one of them ought to be heart-to-heart communion with God. God moved through these men to move the world. Perhaps the lack of spiritual power for many of us is not a lack of books, principles, or exhortations but a lack of keeping this one priority.
Second, while there is nothing more spiritual about having longer devotions, and nothing less spiritual about short devotions, there is much to be said for a balance of both. I’ve read about Martin Luther saying, “I have so much to do today I will have to spend the first three hours in prayer, or the Devil will get the victory.” I am not sure whether such stories are preachers’ illustrations or whether I am totally carnal. But the idea of three or more straight hours in prayer every morning bowls me over. Yet, I have to ask myself: Do I ever spend lengthy times in prayer, personal study, and communion?
We can get into such a groove of slicing out twenty minutes a day for prayer and Bible reading that we begin to think it’s enough. Especially if the church is growing and everyone is happy. Yet, Jesus prayed a whole night before he chose the twelve disciples. Shouldn’t we consider that big decisions call for big prayer? Such things must also be planned and made a priority.
Still, the primary consideration is an overall walk with God. It is not the quantity of nouns and verbs thrust into the Lord’s ears that counts. Much of my own time in prayer is between activities-in bathrooms, on walks, while driving. I believe those prayers are just as important, fervent, and effective as those with folded hands and closed eyes on my knees in a preaching robe.
Third, the Bible does not legislate any set patterns for devotions. Each individual makes up his own. But again there must be a balance of both planned and spontaneous worship. I have met those who scorned anyone who woke up at the same time and went through the same routine each day. I have also met those who ridiculed people who always “wing it,” taking their communion with the Lord in snips and snaps.
A real friendship with God involves both. Can you imagine a friendship made up of a fifteen-minute shot each morning, from 6:45 to 7:00, in which I say, “Sit down, friend-I’m gonna talk to you now and ask you to bless me.” In the same way I can’t believe the Lord relishes a daily queue of ACTS-users (ACTS = Adore, Confess, Thank, Supplicate). While it’s a nice acrostic, I always imagine someone coming to the Lord and saying, “Well, I’ve adored you for thirty seconds-now here’s some confession.” What if the Lord suddenly booms, “Look, kid, you better hit me with another thirty seconds of adoration. I’ve had a bad night.” It’s a little like using a quickie evangelistic method on people. They begin to feel like slot machines.
At the same time, I have found that all spontaneity and no planning makes Jack a disorganized boy. There must be a plan to follow even when we don’t feel like it. Having certain patterns in my life of Bible study, Bible memory, and prayer is an anchor that holds me in the harbor while at the same time giving me just enough play in the line to move about on the breezes of the Spirit.
Fourth, a devotional life ought to involve Bible reading, prayer, Bible memorization, study, singing, and worship, but not necessarily in that order, every day, or at the same time every day. No pastor can question the need to store up God’s Word in his heart (Col. 3:16). There can be no argument about spending time in prayer (1 Thess. 5:17) or Bible study (2 Tim. 2:15). All these ingredients should be abundantly apparent.
However, I am not sure one has to be doing these things every day, in the same amount, at the same times, with the same fervor and determination. Certainly it is wise to schedule time for them. That’s the only way they will get done. But if devotions become a chore, we are in danger of becoming legalists rather than lovers. If we feel guilty because we “missed,” are we genuinely guilty or just putting ourselves on?
Our worship must be from the heart. But it must also be structured, intelligent, and consistent.
Cracking the Devotional Padlock
Every pastor is pressed for time. If you aren’t, maybe you’re not pastoring. Still, how can a minister have a guilt-free personal walk with God, live a Spirit-filled life, and continue to grow?
Here are some past and present ways I have found to bring satisfaction, joy, and love into my own relationship with the Lord.
Let’s start with prayer. I have at times spent several hours in prayer, alone and with others. In general, though, I find it hard to kneel that long. Prayer can be particularly life-giving and refreshing as well as effective in the following environments:
While walking. On my feet I think of things that don’t normally occur to me in a closed room. There is an “on-the-road-with-him” quality that I love.
Furthermore, I meet people on the way. This provides a break in prayer (if I need it) and often leads to witnessing opportunities. I can also pray for people I pass along the way, for homes, streets, and businesses I would miss in the quiet of my study.
There is also time to meditate. I carry a memory pack of cards to use in learning new Scriptures. I discuss them with the Lord, and it seems he fills my mind with his thoughts. Many times problems have been solved, sermons hatched, and processes begun on such prayer excursions.
In addition, they give me much-needed exercise, a change of pace, a breath of fresh air, and contact with nature. It is easier to worship and adore the Lord when I’m beholding his beautiful creation instead of a hot room. Thus, I plan much of my prayer time for my daily walk.
While driving. This again is a rich time to be mined for prayer and meditation. I have to travel anyway, so why not make the most of it?
During dead time. Dead time is standing in lines, walking from place to place, in the bathtub, washing dishes, cooking, falling to sleep. All those periods of useless time become moments when we can talk to the Lord. Why not plan to use dead time for this purpose?
Scheduled time. Any person who knows the Lord knows that prayer is an essential as well as an elixir. That’s why I must plan for long periods of prayer, whether I feel like it or not. I find that if I plan to pray with another person for an extended period, it gets done. Not only do we gain a blessing together, but the Lord works mightily through it.
Other occasions. One of the perennial bugaboos in a pastor’s life is all the people who solicit your prayers. Whenever someone greets me at the church door with a request for prayer, I always nod and assure them I will. Then I promptly forget about it until they tell me how God answered, and I feel guilty for not playing a part.
What’s the answer? If I can remember the request just until a break occurs (often, right after the solicitation), I can pray on the spot. Stonewall Jackson, they say, had the habit of praying every time he sealed a letter, began a meal, met a friend, or issued an order. Quickly asking the Lord to work in such situations is useful.
A prayer file. One of the greatest tools I have ever used is a simple prayer filing system using three-by-five cards. I put each request on a card and file it under one of several headings: Non-Christians, Members of the Church, Family, Personal, Missions, World, United States, etc. When I go for my prayer walk, for a drive, or just to pray in my office, I often pull out those cards and pray through them. When an answer comes, I record it on the card and file it away in “Answered Prayers.” A great joy is to pull this file out and review what the Lord has done.
Bible Study
A second area is Bible reading and study. I do not regard myself as too “spiritual” to use a devotional aid. Timeless Insights, published by Walk Thru the Bible Ministries, takes you through the New Testament in a year’s time and includes quotes from the greats in every reading. The Daily Walk goes through the whole Bible in a year and includes an outline of the passage, several insights and highlights on the passage, and some ideas about application. Both are excellent tools.
Another method I’ve used with great effect is to read the same passage for a week straight. (Some even suggest doing this for a whole month.) I have worked out a schedule of reading six to eight chapters a day for a week that covers the whole New Testament and the Minor Prophets in a year’s time. Thus I read through these books seven times each year.
Our Daily Bread is an excellent source not only of insight but of sermon illustrations. I read one whole volume at a time and cut out the material I want to use in sermons, filing it away on three-by-five cards.
Beyond reading, though, comes meditation. This can be done on walks, while driving, and during dead time as well, but it should also be planned. I once heard Henry Brandt say he schedules time just to “sit and stare.” Often I plan to spend a whole two-hour walk meditating on a passage I am studying for sermon preparation.
I had professors in seminary who warned against using sermon preparation as devotional time. I still can’t understand such thinking. If a sermon is meant to meet others’ needs, why not your own? All heavy study should include personal nourishment as much as any purely “devotional time.”
Bible Memory
I am appalled at the number of “men of God” who spend no time memorizing Bible passages, from verses to whole books. In my own life, the primary motivation came when a friend introduced me to a system for retaining the verses I’d memorized. It is easy to use and not at all time-consuming. I can presently keep nearly 2,500 verses memorized (wording and reference) with only fifteen minutes of review a day.
Most adults think memorizing Scripture is terribly hard. However, books by Jerry Lucas and Harry Lorayne such as The Memory Book give anyone quick insight into the easy way to memorize. They provide all kinds of association and numerical devices that take the pain out of Bible memory.
Other Disciplines
Singing. Devotional time, for me, was dry until I began singing regularly. A person can memorize many hymns just by singing several each day during a devotional period.
Listening to tapes. I subscribe to several tape libraries that provide rich spiritual meat for digesting while driving and elsewhere. This is a great source of edification, illustrations, and helpful sermon notes.
Devotional books, biographies, and general spiritual reading. At times I have included in my devotional habits the reading of books on prayer, preaching, and worship-usually, one chapter a day. This can also be done with books of sermons. (A friend of mine in seminary even read Robertson’s Grammar of the Greek New Testament during his personal worship time. Now that was devotion.)
Exploring God’s creation with a devotional purpose. It isn’t impossible to have your devotions by going to the zoo, an art museum, aquarium, or some beauty spot. This appeals to our spiritual nature and can enhance the moment of worship.
Communing with the Lord is a constantly growing, challenging, fulfilling aspect of Christian ministry. It is really what our lives are all about. Find a vacant life, and you’ll usually discover one who has put God on a back lot. But if the devotional life is a priority, he will gladly fill everything else with blessing.
Mark Littleton is pastor of Berea Baptist Church, Glen Burnie, Maryland.
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