Do you struggle finding quiet time for your devotions? Does your Bible reading and prayer fall to the bottom of the pile and end up as the last thing on the schedule?
I know for me, few things rocked my world like having kids.
When I was pregnant with my second and my oldest was 2 (and still waking up 5-6 times a night), I was so exhausted. He was sooooo busy. A “real” devotional time could never happen. I would read the Bible on my phone for a few minutes during naptime and then pass out until he woke up from his nap. Nothing I read or did seemed to sink into my brain.
Each season (and month it felt like) with my babies brought a new challenge of figuring out and prioritizing daily devotions and quiet time. I juggled energy levels with my childrens’ schedules to find a time where I could devote a few minutes reading and prayer.
Since I know what a struggle this can be, I wanted to give you 18 encouraging tricks for making quiet time happen. This is not an exhaustive list. And, no one person implements every idea. This is merely a varied list of suggestions. Maybe one or two (or several) will resonate with your soul.
1) Find a time that works for you (morning, nap-time, evening).
This time may vary by your season and personal wiring. I tried morning devotions for years, and just fell back asleep sitting in a hard chair at my desk. Before I was married, evening devotions were the best fit for me. After I became a mom, I found that I could devote nap-time as my quiet time to do my Bible study and prayer.
The key is scheduling your devotions as part of your day. If you try to just fit in your devotions whenever you feel like it or have a spare moments, odds are you never will.
There may only be one time of day that will work for your family’s schedule, even though this time isn’t best for you. Be willing to sacrifice and make the necessary adjustments to spend time in your Bible. You may have to choose between Jesus or Netflix.
2) Make multi-tiered devotional plans: your primary plan, and a back-up plan, and a lowest-common-denominator plan.
Knowing what you are going to do for your devotions during your quiet time seriously reduces your decision fatigue, and makes your time in Bible reading and prayer more productive. But, I learned early on that I needed to have a back-up plan (or two) to my primary devotional system.
If making your own multi-tiered plan feels a little overwhelming (and I completely understand why it would!). Check out our Devotional Plan Flowchart System.
3) Have A SPOT. Keep your quiet time books there.
Have you ever wasted precious minutes of quiet time running around the house gathering the materials you need for your devotions? Having a constant place where you do your devotions and spot for your quiet time materials will enable you to get into your time more quickly, and will help you focus on worship more quickly.
4) Get pretty things.
Choose beautiful study helps when you get quiet time materials (like journals, pens, colors, etc). Having an aesthetically pleasing Bible and devotional tools can give an atmosphere of reverence and set-apartness to your quiet time.
Yes, Bible study notes can be effectively taken in a college-ruled spiral-bound notebook for $0.84 at Walmart. And I’m not disparaging those who use simple, easy to come by materials.
But, if you are one who feels a need for beauty in your soul (Where are my enneagram 4s?), remember your God is a God of beauty. His Word is an intricately crafted masterpiece of linguistic brilliance. Allow your study aids to help you enter into an attitude of beauty observation.
5) Ask for help.
There are some seasons where we must ask for help. You might need to have a talk with your husband about how to shift family schedules around to make time for you both to have quiet time for Bible reading and prayer.
Maybe you could set up a babysitting swap with a friend so that every month or so you each could get out for a morning of quiet time with the LORD.
We must walk in community with each other, aiding one another in our mutual goal of loving Jesus.
6) Use the available quiet moments.
Make a list of the quiet moments in your day. They may be as simple as reading a couple verses while in the bathroom. Or listening to music/podcasts while cleaning. Reading a devotional book while nursing. Pray while laying awake in the middle of the night.
7) Make your spiritual life a priority.
I know women who will spend 30-45 minutes per day exercising, yet they claim not to have time for their personal devotions.
Now, you may not have time for a “traditional” sit-down Bible study lasting 30 minutes a day – and that’s fine. But, you will be most likely to accomplish your highest priorities. And priorities are yours to choose.
You must make your spiritual life the most important item on your calendar. Spending time with God is not optional.
Even if you only have 5-15 minutes, there are ways to have devotions in that amount of time!
8) Bring your husband into the discussion.
If you are blessed with a Christian husband, bring him into your struggles. Get his advice. Listen to his perspective.
God gave him to you to wash you with the Gospel (Ephesians 5) and to help you grow spiritually. Work together as a team to make spiritual growth and time with Jesus happen.
9) Get up before your kids.
Now, this piece of advice is for those who have children sleeping through the night. There are seasons of life where the necessity of physical rest makes getting up early in the morning unfeasible. When my son was waking up 5 times a night, and rising for the day at 5 am, I wondered WHEN do I get up to be up “before” him? 3 am? 2 am? There are seasons in life where getting up early is unreasonable. Sleep on, dear one!
Now, when you are getting adequate sleep, especially if you find yourself drifting awake before the alarm. Get up 15, 20, 45 minutes before your kids do. Enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and talk to Jesus about your day.
10) Do Bible reading and prayer with your Husband in the evening.
After the kids go to bed, many of us turn to Netflix. What if we watched one less episode and spent that time reading the Bible and praying with our spouse, or alone?
11) Train your children to play or read quietly while you finish your breakfast (or other meal) and read your Bible.
I know a couple of moms who’ve found the best time for their quiet time is at the end of breakfast. Their children are happy to get down and play. So, they have a few moments of quiet to finish their coffee and read.
12) Don’t be a perfectionist.
The old adage goes, “Perfection is the enemy of good.” Jesus isn’t looking for us to have a perfect devotional time. There are no achievement rewards for not missing a day.
We get up, stumble on and continue on. Even if you feel inadequate in your BIble study. Even if you only manage to read your Bible once a week. Doing something is better than nothing.
Keep chasing Jesus. He’s not looking for those who keep the law perfectly and accomplish their spiritual disciplines routinely. He is looking for those who need Him, who have broken and contrite hearts (Psalm 51).
13) Understand the different seasons.
Don’t expect your spiritual life in the 4th trimester to look like it did when you were single. Your quiet time during the toddler years may be a lot noisier than when you have teenagers who sleep in.
Each season of life and parenting changes dramatically. Give yourself permission to have a different devotional rhythm each season.
14) Utilize unexpected moments.
Seek to get what you can when you can get it. Jesus tells us to seek and we will find, knock and the door will be opened to us. If you are constantly seeking fellowship with the Lord throughout the day, you will be surprised at how much you get!
15) Don’t give up because it’s hard.
Attaining good things is hard. Please don’t give up. Your perfectly crafted plans may not be working. Your children who were napping great may suddenly stop sleeping entirely. Life can get really hard when we get serious about seeking Jesus. Don’t give up. Press on!
16) Use your carpooling times.
Some moms do devotions during sports practices or listening to the Bible in the car. If you are taxi-mom, you have perhaps hours each day where you can absorb God’s word and pray. This is a grace gift!
17) Bible/theology training for your children enriches you also.
As you read the Bible to your children and train them in theological concepts. God will bless your heart and grow your faith alongside theirs.
God has a unique growth plan for moms. It doesn’t look like His spiritual growth plan for pastors or singles or grandparents. Part of God’s spiritual plan for your life is to grow you through your teaching and instruction of your children in His word and His ways. To neglect to instruct them is to neglect His means of grace for your soul.
18) Spread out your reading, study, and prayer throughout the day.
Don’t get caught up thinking you HAVE to do it all at one time. You can link other tasks with certain types of prayer or certain devotional activities. Maybe you can pray for your husband while folding clothes. Read your Bible while nursing. Learn theology while reading to your toddler. Listen to a sermon while on your way to the grocery store.
Fill your life with searching for Jesus. And you will find Him!
Remember, this season of life will pass. Jesus is looking for a willing and worshipful heart, not your successful accomplishment of all the spiritual disciplines. He will carry you through. Rest in Him, while you prioritize seeking him throughout the day. He gives us difficult circumstances out of His grace so that we can learn to see Him in all things.
