Although this time during quarantine has freed up time in some ways since many events, gatherings, and usual activities have been cancelled or postponed, in other ways life has seemed to keep up with its normal fast pace. There is still work that needs to be done (whether from home or the office), kids who need to be nurtured, a church community to connect with (whether in person or via Zoom), and daily tasks and chores that add up to fill our days.
Life has a way of creeping in and filling our time, even when we think we will have margin left on certain days or in certain seasons. There always seems to be something new on the horizon; a new problem to tackle, a concern to address, or someone who needs our time and attention, not to mention the spare moments of time you try to carve out just to take care of yourself.
Amidst all this busyness, it can unfortunately be much too easy to leave God out of the picture, even though he is the one upholding it all. Often, we realize that we should be giving more time to the Lord, but it simply seems untenable to add one more thing to our days. We may truly believe that having a daily quiet time, reading a chapter of Scripture, and spending time in prayer is beneficial and even necessary to our spiritual growth and wellbeing, but that doesn’t make it any easier to change it from something we believe to something we actually do.
This is a common struggle for many of us which is why in this article I want to share five practical ways you can seek and find God even when you are in the midst of life’s busyness.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/FamVeld
1. Don’t overcomplicate it.
Oftentimes, we put so much pressure on ourselves and set the stakes so high that it becomes a self-defeating cycle when we are not able to live up to the hour of daily quiet time or the weekly 6:30am prayer meeting. When intentionally seeking the Lord, it’s important to remember that, “he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust,” (Psalm 103:14), and he has ample grace for that.
God wants you, not your perfect commitment, artfully decorated prayer journal, or your timeliness in arriving for the early morning prayer meeting. If you need to start intentionally connecting with God or need to renew this habit in this current season, it’s okay to start simply. You don’t need to wonder if that whispered Scripture verse before your feet hit the floor in the morning or the few seconds you took to read the encouragement taped to the bathroom mirror “count.” A faithful believer who attends my church once said that often, the only time during the day her thoughts are turned toward the Lord is when she’s in the car with her kids and they are listening to “Slugs and Bugs,” which are faith-focused songs made for children. Sometimes, Slugs and Bugs is all you need to seek God.
The Lord is patient and full of grace and ready to welcome these small moments of focus on him. And the more we turn our hearts and minds to even these simple instances, the more we will find our hearts and minds turned toward him throughout the day. Eventually, these small steps could even lead organically into feeling like we are able to set aside a much longer amount of time to connect with the Lord.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/digitalskillet3
2. Know that He is present in the mundane as much as the overtly spiritual.
As Christians, we know that God is with us always, wherever we are, in whatever circumstances. However, we still often succumb to the temptation to believe that he is more present at church, during a Bible study, a prayer meeting, or when we are doing something innately “spiritual.” The encouraging truth is that, when we have faith in Christ, all of life is sacred and God can be sought and found just as well while we are folding laundry, raking leaves in the yard, or comforting a crying baby as he can be at church or during our mid-week small group.
Throughout Jesus’ time of ministry on earth he used everyday moments to teach people about his Father; think of the stories of the Loaves and Fishes, the Woman at the Well, the Little Children, or the Widow’s Mite. His parables also contain lessons about God using scenarios that the people of the day would have been familiar with in their daily lives.
God created the world and is intimately familiar with it, including the minutiae of what we do each day. Seeking him while you are engaged in everyday tasks may just be the perfect time to connect with your heavenly father.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/Nattakorn Maneerat
3. Seek out a friend or mentor who can keep you accountable.
If you struggle with managing your time and desire a connection with God that you keep putting off, perhaps God may be encouraging you to rely on a trusted friend or mentor. We all need support from the Body of Christ, and having a friend or mentor in your life who can be honest with you but also encourage you in your walk with the Lord can be crucial to your spiritual growth.
God often works through others if we are willing to listen; is he calling you to seek out someone who can act as your mentor to encourage you to seek God and share with you about their own journey with the Lord?
God created us to need other people, whether it’s their encouragement, honesty, or simply their presence. The precedent for this can be found throughout Scripture. A few examples include Jesus gathering twelve disciples, Paul taking Barnabas and others on his missionary journeys, or Paul’s encouragement in Colossians to “Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts” (Colossians 3:16, emphasis added).
Related Resource:
Listen to our FREE prayer podcast, Teach Us to Pray with Christina Patterson. You can find all the episodes at LifeAudio.com. Here's our episode on making time for prayer when life is busy:
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/gpointstudio
4. Start small.
The good news is that God is always eager to hear from his children. He always welcomes us with open arms, no matter what time of day or night we are seeking him, in whatever season of life, in whatever circumstance or corner of the globe. Since we can be assured of this, we can feel free to seek him first thing in the morning while we have our morning coffee, in the few moments while we’re preparing lunch for our children, while we are walking the dog, on a work break, or even while we are taking out the trash. Is there a time of day when you have a few moments of quiet where you can turn your thoughts to the Lord and to Scripture? Could you talk to him in prayer, even if just for a sentence or two, whether silently or out loud?
It may be helpful to keep a journal of the moments in your day that may be conducive to intentionally seeking the Lord. Even if you don’t initially think you have any moments like these, pausing to think about your day and write these times down will help you realize there are possibilities. Remember that it’s okay to start small. God has given you other responsibilities and gifts such as your vocation, your family, and your home which he doesn’t intend for you to neglect. In fact, caring for and cultivating those things to the best of your ability can also be a way of seeking him and finding that he provides and is with you.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/AaronAmat
5. Remember that seeking God looks different in different seasons.
Often, we can long for a season of life when we felt exceptionally connected to the Lord. For me, this was in high school when I was first exploring my faith in depth and reading Scripture for the first time. The newness of my faith and God’s word in my life coupled with the intense emotions and young adult experiences of the teen years caused me to later long for that time in my life, and the way I connected with the Lord. When my relationship with God no longer felt so intense and new, it was tempting to believe that God was farther away or that I had lost my connection with him.
The truth is, in some seasons of life God will feel oh so present, while in others it may feel like he is more distant. Thankfully, his presence does not fluctuate with our feelings or perceptions. Sometimes, seeking him looks like reading a few Scripture verses, talking to him about our joys and fears, caring for those he has put in our lives—and then doing the same thing the next day and the next and the next. Although you may not receive a shining epiphany, over time when you look back, you will likely see that God was there and he was working.
My hope is that these suggestions of how to seek and find God during a busy season in life will encourage you and perhaps provide you with the reminder you need for the path God has you on right now.
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/evgenyatamane
Originally published Friday, 16 October 2020.
