5 Powerful Ways to Connect With God Beyond Quiet Times
Is “Quiet Time” the Only Way to Connect with God?
You hear it mentioned often in Christian circles—“How’s your quiet time going?” The term is a staple in our vocabulary. While definitions may vary, most agree it refers to personal time spent in prayer and Bible reading as a means of connecting with God.
Generally, a quiet time involves prayer and bible reading. Perhaps more than anything else, these two practices have shaped the heart, soul, and mind of Christians for countless number of years as we seek to hear the words of God and spend time in His presence.
While the practice of a quiet time is meaningful and a beautiful rhythm of life, it is not the only spiritual tool we can use to fellowship with God and grow in our likeness to Him.
Unhelpful Weight
I’m not against quiet times—I try to read my Bible and pray daily. But we often expect too much from them. We want to read for ten minutes and walk away with perfect understanding, fresh insight, deep emotional connection, and a spiritual breakthrough—every day. That’s a lot to ask of one tool. It’s like expecting a hammer to also be a screwdriver, washcloth, and knife. One tool can’t do everything.
So maybe you are in a season of life where quiet time feels unhelpful, stale, or hard to do because of busyness and mental depletion. Or maybe you just want to explore new ways to encounter and fellowship with God? What other spiritual tools might there be? (A great resource is Donald Whitneys, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life.)
5 Spiritual Tools
Scripture Meditation - Choose a verse or two to write down or memorize. Revisit it throughout the day, praying it back to God and reflecting on how it shapes your heart and actions. (Want more insight on meditation? Read my article here.)
Fasting - Giving up something you love for a specific period of time to replace that with Spiritual practices. (A great Desiring God resource can be found here.)
Serving – Using your gifts and time to serve God and others. We don’t often think of this as a spiritual discipline, but Christ was the ultimate servant, so does it not make sense that we could fellowship with Him in moments of service ourselves?
Prayer Walks - Finding a place in nature to walk and pray/talk to God about your life. This has been a particularly helpful practice for me lately.
Journaling – Writing to reflect on spiritual growth, Scripture, and prayer.
These are just a few spiritual tools we can use to connect with God in new ways. Is there a different tool you should use in your approach to following Jesus during this season to supplement your quiet times?
Helpful Reminders
Two helpful thoughts on the Christian practice of spiritual disciplines:
1- The word discipline is helpful in the spiritual disciplines phrasing because it highlights that almost none of these come naturally to us. Sure, some may be easier than others. But they all require some effort. Some work. Some grit. Some, well, discipline. I encourage you to ramp up your work ethic in your faith. No, we do not want to be legalistic. No, you are not loved more if you read more of your bible. But Jesus is clear: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.” - Matthew 16:24
2- Be grace-oriented. If you miss a day of the spiritual practices, life is not over. Jesus does not hate you. While your spiritual maturity might be determined by your track record of the spiritual disciplines and the fruit of the Spirit exhibited in your life, your loveliness to God is not.
We work to be faithful to God in the disciplines because of His great love for us, not to earn it His great love. There is a huge difference between the two.
Growing with you,
Josh.