Baby steps

I really should blog more often as I find I have a lot to say, but by the time I say it it's no longer relevant or it's far too much to put into one post. I'll try to catch up though.

There are two things in my life that I have struggled with for as long as I can remember. Exercising (ok, maybe this one not as long as I can remember, but at least since freshman year of college.) and "quiet times". It seems every year I resolve to be better or try a new technique and I always seem to fail. In my quest to lose weight I realized I wasn't going to be able to avoid the workouts and turned to a friend for some advice on how to get started. She suggested that I start with only 5 min a day for the first week and slowly increase each week. She emphasized me not letting myself go over my pre-determined time limit for the day so as to keep myself encouraged and excited for the next workout. So far it is working. I'm up to 20 min a day 5 times a week and doing well.

That philosophy worked so well that this week I decided to apply it to my "quiet times". I am aware that most theologians and Christian scholars encourage morning "quiet times" as a way to get your mind set on Christ and start your day "right". I, however, struggle with getting up early in the morning. Maybe this is one reason that I've struggled with my "quiet times" for so long. The one time in my life that I was making myself get up early for morning "quiet times" I found myself frequently falling asleep and getting less then quality out of my devotions. Therefore, I decided to try night time "quiet times". I've also realized that I often times stall in my prayers as I have a hard time verbalizing my thoughts and feelings. I've decided to instead write/journal my prayers. Prayer I believe comes from the heart, not from the mouth anyway. It has been amazing. As of yet I haven't had a "quiet time" less then 15 min. I'm finding myself able to pour out my heart so much more easily on paper and I'm gleaning so much more from scripture. I am thankful for God showing me how best for me to commune with Him. My life is richer for it!