Fireside Thoughts: Quality Time & Agua

It is so easy for us to let things come between us and another person--even the ones we love and live with. A day turns hectic, so we push off QT (quality time) until later. And later, more things come up until one day grows into a week, a week becomes a couple of months, and finally, you're ready to make the distance permanent because you've grown used to your isolation.

As I sit here on the floor in front of our LED fireplace heater, wrapped in a blanket and feeling like Chief Sitting Bull, I am reminded of my husband's prayer for us this morning.

Striking resemblance, I know. Believe it or not, there IS some Native American in my heritage (although it's not Sioux).

"Help us to find time to spend with You today."

His words struck within me the thought that we allow the busy-ness of our days to excuse us from spending time with God in His Word.

Here's where the Bible being pictured as water comes to my mind.

Water is great. I love drinking water, but this has not always been the case. At one point during my college career, in addition to consuming copious amounts of coffee, juice, and milk, I pretty much went through 6 cans of diet soda per day. I drank virtually no water at all. When you hear this confession, you are probably thinking: "Oh my word! That's SO unhealthy!" And you are absolutely right. It was not healthy.

Several years ago, though, I kicked my soda habit by replacing it with water. At first, I hated it. I had to force myself to drink it. I did not like drinking water instead of soda, but I knew it was good for me to do. I knew I was forming a good habit. And now, I crave water. I want to drink it all the time. My husband laughs at (but also relies on) the fact that I have water with me everywhere we go.

The same principle is true of the Bible. You may not absolutely love reading your Bible and drinking in God's words. You know that you should and that it would be good for you to do it, but you do not possess the desire.

I challenge you to start reading it everyday. Realize that this challenge may even mean forcing yourself to do it--getting up a painful 10 minutes earlier, going to bed a couple minutes later, or even buying an audio Bible to listen to as you commute to work or run errands throughout each day.

I am not saying it's ideal to only spend 10 minutes a day in the Word of God, but you have to start somewhere. And I am confident that the more consistently you spend time in the Bible, the more you are going to crave it. The more you are going to depend on that QT (quality time) with God to get you through the day. And, as you store His words in your heart, you can take them with you wherever you go.

"Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart." (Proverbs 7:3)