Editor’s Note: Today’s post is a “duet,” written in tandem by Mary and Erika. We hope you enjoy!

Not Enough Time In The Day

Life is busy. I get it. We all get it. No one is immune to giving into the pressure of becoming extremely busy. Between my  marriage, children, work, homeschooling, church, housekeeping, meal prep, and family time, I sometimes feel like my days are out of control. 

If you’re new around here, you may not know that I worked with women as a time management and productivity coach for years. As go-getters, fixers, caretakers, and ambitious women, one of the most important things any Christian woman has to accept is that everyone is bound by the same 24-hours each day. However, not everyone has the same priorities. 

Spending time with God IS a priority for me. It is the most important relationship to me. Yet, it is the first relationship to suffer when I am struggling. Spending time in the Word is the first “task” that goes when I shift into the “I don’t have time” mindset. 

Aren’t so many of our struggles actually matters of perspective? It’s no wonder the Apostle Paul wrote this to the Corinthians,  “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” (2 Corinthians 4:18) It goes without saying that he wasn’t talking about Bible study. Yet, the principle of what he said applies here.

How can I do what is important to me?

In episode 75, you’ll be presented with an opportunity to shift your mindset when given this prompt: figure out how to do what is important to you. 

Isn’t that the key? 

When either of us slows down to assess the day and the demands of life, we give ourselves a chance to identify what’s most important. How? By considering our  true priorities. It’s easy to get sucked into the mindset that everything is important and needs to get done urgently. Yet, when a busy Christian woman slows down and thinks through her own priorities and her plan for the day, oftentimes the biggest priority, a relationship with the Lord, doesn’t always make it into the plan. 

We all need to reserve time for the Lord.

For us, a relationship with God is THE priority. That means that when life gets busy, we need to make sacrifices in order to put a relationship with God in the place it should be. Can we start with non-essentials and give up some phone time? (Cough, YES.) Perhaps we can get into the habit of getting the Bible out as soon as the kids are in bed. What if there is no other option than to wake up 30-minutes earlier to have focused time with the Lord? Ask yourself: Am I willing to make that sacrifice? If not, why?

There is no prescribed time frame for spending time with God. The growth you and each of us are looking for is learning to put God first. What that looks like and how many minutes a day you read the Bible or pray is not the matter at hand. Yes, of course, you want to grow into having deeper and longer sit-downs with God, but that will come with consistency. It will take patience and learning to put your relationship with Him in the right place of priority.

Where does a relationship with God fall on your priority list? 

Elisabeth Elliot, a missionary and evangelist, detailed her husband’s life and martyrdom in a biography she titled, Shadow of the Almighty: The Life & Testament of Jim Elliot. In it, she shared an excerpt from a letter her late husband sent to his parents in December 1945. Jim, a well-known missionary and martyr, was in the midst of his undergraduate career at Wheaton College, and even though he was concerned with doing well, he was most concerned with keeping his first things first: prioritizing intentional time with the Lord. The excerpt Elisabeth included read,

Can you relate to the commitments, responsibilities, and exhaustion that the late Jim Elliot wrote about? How about the need to endure hardness? The topic of enduring often comes up in discussions of end times. Yet, in our everyday lives, we struggle with meeting responsibilities, experiencing exhaustion, and overcoming the temptation to put a relationship with God on the back burner. Our success in putting first things first requires that every woman assign a proper definition to what the “first things” really are for her.

Your Next Step to Consistent Bible Study and Time in Prayer as a Christian Woman 

Instead of beating yourself up, try taking a more solution-minded approach. Take a few minutes to think through your commitments and priorities, then ask yourself this: What am I willing to move around or remove from my schedule so I can prioritize time with the Lord?

Once you honestly answered that question, think through making a commitment to yourself and God that today you will spend time with Him for just ten minutes a day. Even if that ten minutes is in the car with the YouVersion Bible app or while you’re in the bathroom getting ready for the day, or in your kitchen with your Bible on the counter and a pan of eggs on the stove. If you’re a mom, you might even consider sitting down with your kids and  reading aloud while they play on the floor. 

The options are endless! What matters is that you take the first step towards consistent time with the Lord through Bible study and prayer. Make a decision to commit and see it through. Quiet time is not about checking off the box to say that you did it. It’s about being with the Lord. It’s about showing up for the relationship you say is most important. Keep your commitment to Him and you will find that it transforms your day and your life. Soon, you will find that the time will come easier and slowly become longer. Who knows, you may even begin to look forward to that time. 

The HRS team is praying for you. But don’t forget to pray for your own time with the Lord. Ask Him to help you keep your commitment. The Holy Spirit will gently remind you and lead you to Him. 

Love, 

E + Mary

---

Listen to Episode 75: Worried You Don’t Have Enough Time To Get Consistent With Bible Study? 3 Ways To Have High-Quality Quiet Time In Just 10 Minutes! +A LIVE Study of 1 Peter 5:7!