I wake up every morning and say "hello" to God, roll over and put on the radio. I then get ready for the day ahead, rush through Morning Prayer (I am an ordinand now) with a bit of a ‘quiet time’, which involves reading my bible and reeling off a few prayers and a meditation for the day. At breakfast I might read a Christian book or the church times (I told you I am an Ordinand), walk to work listening to some Christian music or catch up with my mum on the phone and grab the bus where I again pick up a Christian book to read before starting the day at work. On the way home I might check my diary, meet a friend for coffee, and eat with friend’s some dinner. By the time I have checked e-mails, done any work I need to do, attended meetings or whatever it might be the evening holds, I roll into bed, do evening prayer with another meditation, jot a few things in my prayer journal and switch off the light.
In any of that time have I made space to listen to God? No. Why do we need to listen to Him? Surely we listen on Sunday mornings or in our worship sessions?
Well, sometimes yes we do. But at others we are too busy doing other things, talking to friends, serving one another, ensuring things are running smoothly, preoccupied with liturgy or where you are in the service...the list goes on.
But why is this important? How many relationships do you have which are one way? I bet it is not many. I know I wouldn’t be too impressed if my friends started ignoring me, putting on the t.v., reading a book, talking to other friends whenever I tried to talk to them. Isn’t this what we do to God? He wants a relationship with us and calls us friends so wants a friendship – us talking and Him talking too. But are we crowding God out?
Hold on, I listen to Christian music. I read Christian books. I read my bible and pray and meditate on Godly things. I attend services, pray with friends and discuss my bible. Surely I am listening to God and involving Him in every area of my life?
In some ways yes, these are all good things to be doing (you might be thinking you need to get a life and you know what, you probably aren’t wrong!) but are they not distractions from pausing and just BEING with God?
I wrote this a few weeks ago. Since, things have got worse. I am now a full-time training ordinand. This entails getting up and doing morning prayer with the community in which I live and work every morning after breakfast at 8.30am and evening prayer every night before dinner at 5.15pm with optional Eucharist on a Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning at 7.30 am and Compline at 9pm Monday and Wednesday. Not to mention community worship every Tuesday evening, again this is compulsory.
All this is great, but accompanied by busy , long days ,and lots of time with people in the community it leaves little time to just ‘be’ with God. Who would think that training vicars would have less time listening to God than anyone else? Could it be that I am crowding God out more now than I ever did previously?
This topic has really challenged me! I am not pretending to have an answer, but I do wonder what God makes of all this. I think that God loves us and wants to spend time with us, I think this isn’t for His benefit but for our own, so why do we not make time to be with Him? This is my challenge, to fit my time around God not the other way round. Rather than trusting the set prayer, listening to Christian lyrics, reading Christian literature and generally filling my life with ‘good Christian things’. Not that I think any of these things are wrong but instead think I may benefit more from actually spending time with my Father, Creator, councillor and friend. What do you think?
Love and Blessings, Deborah <><
