Appointment with God

Have you set an appointment for your daily devotion time with God? Begin your schedule with five to 15 minutes each morning. Aim is to establish a quality time of intimacy with Him. You may want to lengthen the time (He can handle it) to an hour once a week for extra reading and review time. A quarterly review should also go on the calendar, perhaps for a three hour block of time.

As in any appointment there are several stages:

1. Preparation. Develop a common place to meet with God, first light or last light of the day -- whichever works for you. Bring these materials with you to your meeting.

2. Arrival. "Good morning, God" will work as a greeting, but find a Psalm that exclaims your desire to spend time with Him. Let's make sure our attitude is proper for this meeting and our eyes open. The obvious prayer might be Psalm 119.18.

3. Assembly. Spend the next few moments in your Bible reading. Pay attention to the still small voice of the Holy Spirit and take notes of the words, phrases, and related thoughts. Because of our relationship with God, this time is not mystical, rather very practical and personal.

4. Actions. What actions do need to take as a result of your reading? Make a list. Put them in your planner or under Warrior "Thoughts" as action items with a timetable or schedule for resolution or implementation.

5. Discussion. Spend a moment reflecting on the thoughts, ideas, attributes, and impressions he has revealed - out loud, with Him, making sure you have understand the proper taskings or direction.

6. Open items? God having covered his agenda, it's now time for a quick review of your own hearts concerns. Open to your prayer journal for others and for yourself.

7. Close. Ready to either hit or wrap up the day? Any further questions? Close with a short song or psalm of praise and commitment. Glory be unto the father. Or, Philippians 4.4