Connect with Christ

Intimacy with God requires established patterns of communication with Him. The key is developing a pattern of prayer and study. The Bible suggests "early" in the day, with good reason. You can cope better, and do it with peace and perseverance when you get in sync with God before the pressures of the world surround you. But whatever time allows you to give your best to God is the right time for you. Don't make it legalistic, because intimacy with God is a daylong walk...something to be celebrated.

A model for Time with God:

• Read the Word as a personal encounter with God. Attempt to connect with God, allowing Him to show you something that is relevant to your life.

• Keep reading until God has spoken to you in a substantive way. It may come quickly or require you to read on. Keep reading until there has been a ministry to your soul, heart, and mind.

• Capture the ministry in a way that you can take with you throughout day. Write down the concept and put it in your pocket, memorize a key verse, or make it a brief prayer that you can lift before Him throughout the day.

• Read God's Word in terms of its intended purposes. This aligns you with what God is wanting to do in your life. His Word is a mirror to your life; a seed that if planted deep in your soul will eventually reap fruit; a sword that cuts through all the externals; a lamp to give guidance; and bread for your soul.

• Share with a trusted friend what God has given you from His Word for the day. Sharing life-related insights can be a powerful tool in bonding, not only with God but also with a friend, your spouse, and your children.

• Vary your approach to Scripture. Spend a few months reading a few chapters in the Psalms and Proverbs, then switch and study a theme (friends, repentance, forgiveness, money), using your concordance. Spend some time in the biographies of Old Testament saints. Whatever the approach, don't let yourself get bogged down in duty or artificial goals for Bible study.

• Read the text submissively. Engage the Word with an open, yielded spirit.

• Pray God's Word back to Him. It not only helps you process His Word personally, but it lets God know that you have been paying attention and that you really do get it.

• Stay at it. There will be times when the exercise seems to be less exhilarating than you expect it to be. Don't abandon the process. Faithfulness is the key. And intimacy is the reward.

From Far From Home by Joseph M. Stowell, copyright (c) 1998. Used by permission of Moody Press, Chicago, Ill., 1-800-678-6928.

Joseph M. Stowell (B.A., Cedarville College, Th.M., Dallas Theological Seminary; D.D., Master's College) is president of the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago. Dr. Stowell is heard on the radio broadcast "Proclaim!" daily. His many books include Following Christ, Eternity, and Kingdom Conflict.