As we continue living in this modern age of communication and information, our mind can be consumed with thoughts of how to “keep up” with what is happening all around us. We feel a constant pressure to perform, to post on social media, to plan every waking moment with something to keep us busy and entertained. Yes, we live in a fast-paced and highly demanding society, but there is true value in slowing down and filling our mind with the Word of God. In order to take care of our responsibilities AND spend quality time with God, we must be intentional to commit to “Unhurried Time.”
The Bible tells us in Proverbs 16:3 to “Commit thy works unto the LORD, and thy thoughts will be established.” In other words, giving our daily plans, thoughts, motives, attitudes, and actions over to God will allow us to process and think as we should. Isaiah 26:3 tells us, “Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee: because he trusteth in thee.” This peace has been described as the “supreme level of peace available.” This peace is what the world promotes, but fails to deliver. The Bible promotes this peace, and delivers on that promise because God is the one who has done the promising and we know, “God cannot lie!” (Titus 1:2)
I have found that committing to “unhurried time” with God helps clear the mind of debris and establish a foundation for clear and biblical thinking. Consistently saturating your mind with Scripture helps with the daily choices that we all face. What is “unhurried time” with God? It is not quickly pulling out our phone and scrolling through a chapter of the Bible while multiple notifications are competing for our attention. Rather, it is setting aside enough time to truly commune with God. This time allows for reading the Word, but also digging deeper into what God is saying in a particular passage. It gives time to look up a complimenting cross reference to the passage you are reading. It gives time to reference a commentary or another reliable source that gives clarity to the passage. Also, it gives enough time to truly talk with God. Not just pray for things, but pray about certain areas of your life, decisions, feelings, concerns, and questions. It also gives enough time to thank God properly for all that He has done. Practically, this might mean waking up earlier (like I do) or staying up later to give enough time for God. It sounds simple, and that is because it is.
Recently, while sharing a meal with someone that I had not seen in some time, I realized that the longer we talked and the more time we spent together, the better the conversation. Often when meeting up with someone, it takes some time to get through the “small talk” to a meaningful conversation. This often leads to a productive and enjoyable time together. In order to have clear and biblical thinking, meaningful and productive time must be spent in the Word. We should seek to not just spend the bare minimum time reading a passage, saying a quick prayer, and then moving on to checking social media, the news, or running out the door. We must get past the “small talk.” May God help us desire what David did when he was in the wilderness:
“O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land, where no water is;”
Psalm 60:1