Finding Time To Hear God

During this morning's church sermon, the pastor
mentioned the Lord majors in forgiveness and
change (positive). Being able to receive the
message, though, requires us to make a deliberate
choice to hear the Lord in the first place by
being humble and still in a world full of chaos.

But, how do we find the time and quiet moments
to devote to daily prayer?

We live in a world of noise. Almost everywhere we go,
we find sounds competing with our minds, keeping us
from letting our thoughts get below the surface level.

Hearing God's voice means not being held captive to the
noise of the world around us. It's not easy, but it can be
done.

I'll share one way, not the only way, that works for me
which came from trying out many different options to
to maintain a regular schedule.

The mornings are often a hectic maze of getting the kids
up and off to school, work for mom & dad, & just general
business. So, what I've found is by setting the alarm clock
1/2 hour earlier, I can find quiet time in the morning to
read the bible and for prayer before the demands of the
day get a hold of me.

"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)

But, being that some mornings are tough to get out of
bed, I also allow myself a nightly ritual as well. By my
bedside, I keep my Bible and various notes as physical
reminders for me to devote time immediately before
the night's sleep.

That way, in either case I get at least 1 - 2 times daily
spent praying and listening to God's instructions for
me to serve his will.

This way, I've found my personal time with God that
is such a treasure does not compete with the daily time
demands of living in this world.

But, of course, whenever during the day I feel the need
to praise the Lord for the many blessings and personal
miracles he provides, I'll find a moment to step outside
the office routine for a "spiritual break".

So, flexibility is key and having these general guidelines,
I find provides ample opportunity to slow down amid
the chaos and noise of the world to find time to hear God.

Finally, as many people spend some part of their day at
a computer within the workplace, here's a resource I
recently found which allows you to hear the Bible as
streaming MP3 audio.