If you’re a new Christian or a seasoned one who has never gone past just going to church, you may be in a place where you don’t know how to spend time with a God you cannot see, or even why it’s important. If that’s you, it’s OK. You’re in the right place.

I was 13 years old when I decided to be intentional about growing in my relationship with God. Unfortunately, at that time I was the only one in my family who was trying to live a Christian life so I didn’t have much support and no way to get to church. I didn’t join a local church until 4 years later when I turned 17. During that time, my relationship with Jesus was sustained by watching sermons online and through cultivating a solid routine for spending quiet time with God. That routine has sustained me for the past 17 years now. Today I am going to share with you my quiet time routine and tips in an effort to help you jumpstart your own. To be clear: this is NOT a one-size-fits-all approach, and it is not the ONLY way to have a quiet time. It’s just one way that has proven to work for me personally. Please take whatever you find here that works for you and build upon it.

Why do you need to have a quiet time with God?

We need to spend time with Jesus every day for the same reason we need to eat food every day – so we don’t die. I know that sounds dramatic but hear me out.

We typically don’t skip meals every day – unless we are intentionally fasting – because we know that we need food to survive. In the same way, we need fresh communication with God every day to survive spiritually. In the Bible Matthew 4:4 gives us this bit of wisdom:

Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

God wants to connect with us every day because during those times He downloads wisdom to us; He warns and corrects us; He refreshes and refuels us; He gives us direction and wisdom. In the world and climate we live in today, we desperately need the direction and protection that our all-knowing, all-seeing God is waiting to provide. Spending time with God every day ensures you stay connected to the only one who knows what’s ahead of you and can help you navigate it successfully.

How Do I have a quiet time with God?

1 | Establish a set place and time

The first thing I like to do is decide ahead of time when and where I will be spending quiet time with God. It doesn’t have to be somewhere fancy, and it doesn’t have to take place early in the morning. It just has to be at a place and time that I can be alone and free of distraction. Furthermore, I like to keep the time and place consistent because it helps me not miss it. If I know I have a scheduled time and place to meet with God every day, I am less likely to skip it or schedule other things on top of it.

For me personally right now, my set time and place is in the mornings (around 6 AM) on my living room couch. Yours could be in your walk-in closet, in your office, or even in your car. The location itself doesn’t have to be spectacular, as long as it’s quiet and distraction-free, you’re good to go. Which brings me to point number two.

2| Limit distractions

This is a big one for me. Between my husband, my child and my phone, my life is full of activity that isn’t always conducive to me sitting still and hearing from God. To combat this, I try to have my quiet time at a time when my husband and daughter are both asleep and I also make it a point to put my phone on do not disturb. I use my phone during my quiet time to play music and also look up scriptures on the Bible app, so not taking it with me is not an option right now. Still the temptation to scroll on social media is always there.

If you find yourself in the same boat, consider logging out of and closing every app on your phone except for your music and your Bible app that way you won’t mindlessly flip to Instagram when you’re supposed to be reading the Psalms.

3| Gather your materials

While you absolutely can just bring yourself into the presence of God, if your goal is to study your Bible you’re going to need some stuff. I personally bring my Beautiful Word Bible (it is as the name suggests – BEAUTIFUL), a journal, a pen, a highlighter, and a Bible commentary. My favorite right now is the Moody Bible Commentary). On my phone, I also pull up the YouVersion Bible App as well as Blueletterbible.org, where I access Strong’s Exhaustive concordance. I have the actual physical concordance, but it is LARGE and heavy so pulling it up on the phone is more ideal for me.

4| Start with praise and worship

We don’t have to guess how to approach God. The Bible lays it out for us.

²Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.

⁴Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise.

~ Psalm 100:2 & 4

The way we enter into God’s presence is by simply thanking Him for who He is and for what He has done. An example of this:

“Lord, I lift You up right now. You are God and God alone. All other gods are the works of man, but You are El Elyon, the Most High God, and there is none like You. Thank You for all You’ve done for me. Thank you for providing for me. Thank You for keeping me healthy and safe. Thank You for forgiving me of my sins. Thank You for this time I get to have with You today.”

That is all worship and praise is. From a genuine place, just reflect on who God is and how He has come through for You then vocally acknowledge it to Him with adoration. The cool thing about that is that God LOVES it when we worship and praise Him! Our praise draws Him closer to us. It makes Him lean in! Psalm 22:3 says He actually abides in our praise. That is amazing and such a privilege!

5 | Invite the Holy Spirit in

The Holy Spirit is described as our helper in John 14:26. He is honestly so much more than that. He is our Counselor, Helper, Advocate, Intercessor, Strengthener, and Standby. He reveals who Jesus is to us. He gives us understanding and insight when we read the Bible. We can’t even fully understand what we are reading in the Bible unless the Holy Spirit reveals the true meaning to us (see 1 Corinthians 2:14).

For this reason, I always start my quiet time with God by asking the Holy Spirit to lead and guide me as I pray and study. We need His guidance and the best way to ensure we get it is to simply ask Him.

6| Choose a verse or passage in the Bible to study

This is sometimes the hardest part of study time for some people. How do you know where to start?

For me, I usually study based on what I am currently going through or trying to grow in. So if I’ve been having trouble with overspending, I may look for scriptures on discipline. If I’m trying to grow in my love walk. I might head over to 1 Corinthians 13 and read about love.

Another way to choose where to start is to look over your notes from church. What scriptures were given during the message that stood out to you?

If you’re currently reading a devotional (the YouVersion Bible App has hundreds) you can start with one of the scriptures from the daily reading.

I wouldn’t stress where you start so much. Remember how we invited the Holy Spirit in on the previous step? Well, He’s really good about directing you to the place you should be. There have been times where I started reading about one topic and a few minutes in, the Holy Spirit will impress upon me to go to a completely different book of the Bible and as I follow Him, I get FED from the place He re-routed me to.

Basically, what I’m saying is, just start somewhere and be open to God’s leading as you go!

7| Take notes

This is a big one. You want to take notes so you’ll 1) be more likely to remember what you read/what God told you, and 2) be able to reference what God told you when you need it later. Listen, I am still getting fed off of messages God gave me 10 years ago, all because I wrote it down.

You also want to take notes because it makes it that much easier for you to work out your thoughts and retain the information better. I am the type of person that needs to get my thoughts on paper. If they stay in my head, I really don’t digest the information as I should. Do not trust your memory. Write down what you hear from God.

8| Talk to God as He leads you

Prayer is so key for having a quiet time with God. There are two ways I pray during my quiet time. Number 1: I pray as I’m reading the scriptures. ‘God what does this mean? Holy Spirit how can I apply this?’ We have to get into the habit of reading the Bible with God. That’s what the Holy Spirit is there for!

Secondly, I like to have a set time where I only pray. Now, this set time can come before or after my bible study time, it just depends on how I’m feeling or how the Holy Spirit is leading, but regardless of the order, I try to dedicate at least 30 minutes to talking to and hearing from God through prayer.

My prayer time usually consists of praising God, repenting for anything that I’ve missed the mark on, praying for others (i.e. friends, family, the government, church leaders, coworkers – literally any and everybody!), praying for myself, and then listening for God’s response. Sometimes He will put a scripture on my heart to go reference. Other times He will whisper a message to me that comes in the form of a thought. Other times He doesn’t say anything at all. Regardless, I always try to take time to hear as much as I talk during my prayer time.

9| Apply what you learned

This is where you decide what your takeaway is from what you heard during your quiet time with God. Did He show you where there is sin in your life that you need to now repent for? Maybe He gave you an idea that you now need to go out and execute. Maybe your takeaway is to devote more time to go to church. Whatever it is, write down how you plan to apply what you learned during your quiet time with God that day.

10| Write down a verse to memorize

One of the first things I learned as a young Christian was the power and importance of memorizing scripture. God’s word is described as a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. God speaks to us through His word more than any other way. When you’re going through something or comforting someone else who is, it helps to have the word of God memorized. Sometimes you don’t have time to go look up a Bible verse. There are situations where you need to use the word RIGHT NOW so it behooves us to make it a priority to commit it to memory.

Bonus| The SOAP Bible Study Method

The SOAP Bible study method is a simple way to study the Bible that is very similar to what I described above. The SOAP method stands for scripture, observation, application, and prayer.

Scripture: Write out at least one verse that spoke to your heart

Observation: Write down what stood out to you. Where there any commands or instructions to follow? What was the author’s overall message?

Application: How can you apply this verse to your life starting today? What is God instructing you to start or stop doing?

Prayer: write out or say aloud, a prayer regarding what you read. Ask God to help you apply what you have read. Ask Him to reveal more about the passage.

Wrapping it up

As I mentioned earlier, this routine is just one of many ways to have a successful quiet time with God. My prayer is that you will take what you learned here and use it to craft your own routine that is as special and unique as your individual relationship with God is. Whatever you do, I can’t stress enough the importance of being intentional and consistent. Go in every day intentional about connecting with God then living out whatever He shows you during that time. Also, make it a point to try to show up every day. Every relationship requires time and communication in order to stay strong and to grow. Our relationship with God is no different.

Thank you, friend, for taking the time to read this all the way through. I pray it blesses you and helps energize you as you pursue Christ!

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