More Than a Few Quiet Moments

A devotion is simply time that we intentionally set aside to focus our hearts and minds on God through His Word. It gives us an opportunity to pull away from everything competing for our attention and remember what is true. Romans 12:2 (NLT) tells us, “Let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” We need God’s Word working in our minds because there are plenty of other voices trying to tell us what to think, what to value, what to fear, and how to live. A devotion may only take a few minutes to read, but the goal isn’t simply to finish it. The goal is to take what God has said, think about it, pray about it, and allow His truth to become part of the way we live.

This is one of the reasons spending time with God is so necessary. We cannot expect to grow spiritually while giving very little attention to the One we are supposed to be following. Jesus Christ said in Matthew 4:4 (NLT), “People do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Just as our physical bodies need nourishment, our spirits need the truth of God’s Word. We need His wisdom when we don’t know what to do, His correction when our thinking gets off track, His encouragement when we become weary, and His promises when circumstances tempt us to doubt. Devotional time helps us develop the habit of bringing our lives back to God and allowing His Word to have the final say.

Most importantly, our time with God should remind us of how worthy He is of our attention, our gratitude, our worship, and our lives. He is holy, faithful, merciful, loving, all-powerful, and completely good. Through the finished work of Jesus Christ, He has forgiven our sins, made us His sons and daughters, given us His Holy Spirit, and brought us into a relationship with Himself that we could never have earned. Ephesians 2:10 (NLT) tells us, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.” We don’t spend time with God trying to convince Him to love us or make ourselves worthy of Him. Jesus Christ has already accomplished what we could never accomplish for ourselves. We come because we belong to God, because we love Him, because we need Him, and because there is no greater privilege than knowing Him and becoming more like His Son.