My pastor mentioned in a sermon recently that she does not read her bible every day, though she does study at least 3-4 times a week outside sermon preparation. I was totally fine with that since I also have some periods where I am not in scripture every day. It is important to have practical guidelines for consistent devotions.
35 I am saying this for your own good, not to restrict you, but that you may live in a right way in undivided devotion to the Lord. 1 Corinthians 7:35
Be practical
The picture above is a visual reminder of practical. Imagine that you want to make something. If you have no tools, the product is unlikely to be a consistent, good result. To be good at anything requires skill and practice, and the right tools for the job. We have much better confidence and product when we know what we are doing. It is not the only ti, but it is a good idea – pursue devotional methods you know, and learn new methods over time.
24 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of mine and puts them into practice is like a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 The
rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds blew and beat against
that house; yet it did not fall, because it had its foundation on the
rock. Matthew 7:24-25
No guilt
This one is obvious for me. My life with Christ is not a philosophy based on rules. My life with Christ is based on a relationship. It is natural that there are some things that we will or will not do, based on our relationships. For instance, I will never be unfaithful with my wife, simply because I love her too much for that to ever be considered. In a sense, it is a rule, but more accurately it is a basic part of the definition of my relationship. With Christ, I desire to follow Him – only. Guilt does not enter the picture since it is not a consideration.
27 He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”
28 “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”
Luke 10:27-28
Be Diverse
Devotions do not have to be the same method, all the time. Some of the ways I do devotions include:
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- Bible study, by myself – Focus on a story or passage in the Bible.
- Scripture memorizing – Useful when I am going through something, and I need a verse to calm my spirit.
- Meditation/ Thinking about a bible passage – I put myself in the story or passage, and think about how would I handle it, and what I can learn from it. This meditation can last for hours, days, or weeks.
- Listening to Worship music – A lot of Christian radio stations are available, or specific music artists. It sets a mood for the day or work, that continues the whole time I am listening.
- Meditation on the words in worship music.
- Sometimes the theology in the song is bad, and I meditate on why I have a problem with the message in the song.
- Sometimes the song words are directly from scripture, and it becomes an extended meditation on scripture.
- Word study or topical study.
- This can be educational to any relationship. Focus one aspect and note what it means, and how you can apply t.
- Bible Study, with others.
- With COVID-19, this has not been as available but it is still nice.
- Study with others means a fresh perspective on experiences or ways to consider a biblical truth.
Journal it
People today write a lot less than people did, 150 years ago. I have seen countless stories of people who wrote about life in a diary or letter format, to describe what they are going through, during the 1800s. In today’s world, people still do this but it is not nearly to the same extent. We need to consider that if we forget the past, we may not learn the lessons from it, and we will go through it again. I also find that if I write stuff down, it keeps the emotions fresh enough so that I can recall the time in my life when I went through it. It can provide calm assurance to help when that situation comes up again.Blogging, for me, is a type of journaling, which puts me into a mode of thought where I am not thinking just about myself. I am thinking about how I can inspire others. In typical meditation, my thought process is on myself, and how I can improve and develop my relationship even more, with Christ. With blogging, I can share my experience and encourage others on issues that may be a similar concern, and help others have some input on how to get through life.
Be Consistent
Consistency means I have to regularly do the same thing every day – if I am rules based. But since a christian is not rules based, consistency means I need to apply myself every day, in a way that continues to keep my relationship strong. I can be guilt free in in my method of devotions, and I can pursue diversity in my meditation to keep the meditation fresh.
Devotion
My final tip is the concept: devotion. Oxford defines ‘devotion’ as a noun, with the primary meaning: ‘love, loyalty, or enthusiasm for a person, activity, or cause.’ I need enthusiasm as I am being devoted. There is not much sense in having devotions if you are not in love with the Savior. For a non-christian, the love is not there, and the devotions are not going to happen. Perhaps you find yourself too busy to do devotions. When this point is considered, we quickly realize that we love the busy-ness more than we love the Savior.How do we move beyond loving the busy-ness and fall in love with the Savior? This will need to be a subject for next week. The short answer is — moving beyond the busy-ness requires that we hang out with Christ in the midst of the busy-ness. I will explain this in more detail next week.
