How to Find Quality Time for God When Busy

Inside: Our culture indirectly tells us to run the rat race. We are missing the best of God, so how do we spend time with God when busy?

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Every morning I envision myself sitting at my kitchen table with the Bible and a steaming mug of black tea ready to meet up with my Lord. With my fleece blanket wrapped around me,  I can’t wait to hear from Him and be refreshed and renewed before I become too busy during the day.

In reality, though, I am up and down out of my chair for the umpteenth time because of my toddler’s demands. My time is spent trying to quickly read and grasp something, all while enjoying my cold cup of tea. Is there a limit to how many times you can warm up tea?

Some days, I bypass this whole rendezvous with God because my To-Do list is beckoning more than the quiet whisper of God.

Many times, I feel like spending time with God is just another item on my list. When I think beyond my home, helping and serving others can feel burdensome. How do I have the time for that?

All this rushing and doing makes me irritable, exhausted, and overwhelmed.

As a result, how can I be surprised at my negative feelings if I’m not truly seeking out God authentically? Or how about when I skip the time with Him?

I am constantly running busy. What about you?

Even when I fit God in, many days I’m distracted. My thoughts are on the next thing I need to do. It’s like I’m with a good friend, but I’m not paying attention to them at all. I’ve been the one on the receiving end of this and it doesn’t make you feel important at all.

A life of distracted busyness has a hold on me.

 What if in my heart, I just want to stop and spend time and enjoy the everyday moments instead of the days blurring by without aforethought?

All this busyness is keeping me from God, growing in faith, and living my life for his purpose.

Disregarding time with Jesus deepens weariness and displaces faith.

How to Spend Time with God When Busy?

According to  The Obstacles to Growth Survey, 60% of Christians say they are too busy for God.1

How do we find a more peaceful life in the midst of the madness? Isn’t this the million-dollar question? We are all running around ragged and rushed.

I can intentionally plan to stay un-busy, but somehow my calendar fills up. The sad truth is on days when there is nothing to do, I can’t relax because my body doesn’t know how to unwind from the fast pace.

Should we just accept that this is life?

Jesus was no stranger to being busy. He was constantly doing something; He was needed by people.

How did Jesus find quality time amidst busyness?

One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him.¹⁴ But Jesus said, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children.” ¹⁵ And he placed his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.  Matthew 19:13-15 (NLT)

My children are the slowest little beings ever. I ask them to put on their shoes and get ready, yet twenty minutes later they are still no further along.

These verses display the disciples’ humanness and what happens when busyness clouds our perspective.

The intriguing thing about children is they can read people sometimes better than us.

Most little kids need to warm up to new people, or maybe that’s just my kids. Kids don’t run up to and fawn over people they don’t know. This gives us a clue that Jesus saw these children regularly, and they were comfortable with Him because He spent time with them.

How Do We Spend Time With God?

• Jesus turned to these children and their parents to minister to them. We can miss opportunities to witness and minister if we are rushing all the time.
• During the time with the children, Jesus spent moments embracing them and laying on His hands. We too can move from more of a formal ministry into a personal, compassionate fellowship, but only when we break the cycle of the rat race.
• Jesus slowed down to create and maintain relationships. Our relationship with God is the first priority, but relationships with other believers are important too. We achieve this by making the time for it.
• Jesus acted from the heart. I can spend my day reading the Bible, listening to podcasts, doing Bible study, etc. When I let my love of God freely flow from my heart, I grow the best in my faith. Faith without action is dead.

Jesus was busy for a heavenly purpose, is our busyness serving and guiding others to Heaven? Share on X

We don’t need to conform to this pattern of culture, but rather follow Jesus’ example. He was busy, but it was busyness with a purpose: building relationships, ministering, character building, and showing love from the heart.

What I missed was: connecting with God throughout my day instead of putting all my expectations in that one meeting in the morning. Meeting up with Him often while I tend to kids and the house, keeps the peace graspable and the faith growing.

The busyness of your life leaves little room for the source of your life. ~Ann Voskamp

1.http://www.assess-yourself.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/OGSdesign.pdf

Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World: Finding Intimacy with God in the Busyness of LifeThe Best Yes: Making Wise Decisions in the Midst of Endless DemandsRhythms of Rest: Finding the Spirit of Sabbath in a Busy WorldHaving a Mary heart in a Martha world a 2007 paperback Finding intimacy with God in the busyness of life