Last Tuesday, we shared that a quiet time is a time when a believer goes before God to commune. He or she goes to be in His presence and know His glory. They go to be washed, refreshed and humbled. But, all too often, we don’t have that time because we don’t understand our need. Have you ever been at the point where you don’t want to get into the Word of God? Day after day, your desire for the Word lessens. Or, maybe you think that you have it all together and don’t need to have time with the Lord. We are going to look at why you and I need to have a quiet time with God.

The Character of God…

1 Peter 1:14-16 commands believers to “be holy as I (God) am holy.” We need to understand that our Creator is holy. He is the standard of holiness. His glory causes all others to fall down before Him. In fact, in Isaiah and Revelation, there is worship declaring His holiness every moment at the throne of God. His throne room is a sight we cannot fathom! He is so holy that when He showed His back to Moses, Moses hid in the cleft of the rock. Anything that is not eternally holy is separated from Him for eternity.

The State of Man…

Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that man’s heart is the most deceitful of all things in this world! No one on this earth can understand it. It is sick and in need of a cure. Romans 3:23 says that all men have fallen short of God’s glory. We are not holy as the eternal God is; therefore, we are doomed to an eternal punishment. Before sin, we had a relationship with God. After sin, we now have the wrath of God.

But God Reconciled…

Romans 5:8 says, “BUT God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Our eternal God saw our eternal loss and came to die an eternal death to restore an eternal relationship! He came to make right what we made wrong. Relationship is the key. God restored a relationship, showing us His glory and as we see His glory, we fall down in worship and reflect His glory for His glory!

A Beautiful Relationship…

You hear all this and wonder what it has to do with quiet time. It has everything to do with quiet time! You will not know anyone unless you spend time studying who they are. You will not love anyone unless you speak their love language. You will not grow intimate with anyone unless you are passionate for them. You have a personal relationship with God Almighty! He loves you and wants to care for you. He is, after all, your Bread of Life and your Living Water. He is the One Who convicts you of sin. Why do you, a sinner saved by the amazing grace of God, need “time alone” with God? You need God!

Are you a night owl? Every time you do your quiet time, a yellow box pops up in your chart. If you want to “cheat the time,” you simply change your time zone in Account / Account Settings / General, and move it ahead one or two zones. But I would say this!!!! Doing the Quiet Time after midnight is OK, and a yellow box is OK. The important part isn’t the yellow box; the important part is that you did it and that your accountability partners know and that you have conversations with them about it. That is iron sharpening iron; honesty and not performance. I have an accountability partner who rides me like a horse and, if I am late or miss, I hear from him! He knows I do it late and we talk about it and it is very healthy. I also do mine late at night and yellow is OK.  You could also do it a day ahead and that would always get a green.  But then you lose some of the conversation of being on the same passage as everyone else. The key is to remember your goal is to know the person of God.