Weekend in Review - BASICS week 5 - Spending Time with God

I realized this morning that I have failed to post the last two weeks of weekend outlines... for week 5 (May 13) and week 6 (May 20)...

My apologies...

Here is week 5:
BASICS Spring Training
Week 5 – Having Quiet Time In the Midst of Madness
High Voltage – May 13, 2007 – Jim Clark
Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. Philippians 3:12-14

The World is… Noisy
God speaks in… The Quiet
How do I do this? Get Quiet
Result: Centered
The LORD said, "Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by." Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper. When Elijah heard it, he pulled his cloak over his face and went out and stood at the mouth of the cave. Then a voice said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" 1 Kings 19:11-13
He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters. Psalm 23:2

The World is… Distracted
God speaks in… The Intentional
How do I do this? Get Alone
Result: Certainty
She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Matthew 10:39-42a
Very early in the morning while it was still dark he got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. Mark 1:35

The World is… Multi-Tasking
God speaks in… The Focused
How do I do this? Get away
Result: Control
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Matthew 6:6
After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray. Mark 6:46

The World is… Non-Stop
God speaks in…The Slow
How do I do this? Get connected
Result: Closeness
Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, "Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest." Mark 6:31


Action Steps:
Make time with God a priority.

Take the time regularly.

Spend time with comfort rather than guilt.

The Bottom Line: Spending quality quiet time with God will help me follow him better.


Jim