Set aside a time and a place

One of the things I’ve found to be very imporant for keeping up my devotions regularly is having a time and a place set aside for this purpose.  Finding a place free of distractions, seems to be something that is increasingly more difficult in the midst of our non-stop, 24×7, media overloaded culture.  Depending on your life circumstances, what works for you may not work for somebody else.  Let me share my own example, so you can understand what has worked well for me.  The best time I’ve found for my devotions is in the morning before I head to work.  My alarm goes off around 4:00 AM every morning.  (Truth be told, I normally hit snooze a few times and am usually out of bed by 4:30.)  Next I head downstairs and start the coffee maker.    Once the coffee is brewing, I head down to my office.  My office works well for a couple of reasons.  1.  It’s very quiet.  2.  I have a comfortable chair and desk available.  3.  My personal library is at my fingertips, including my Bibles, commentaries, etc.  My only word of caution for quiet time in your office is to resist the temptation to turn on your computer or check your blackberry.  These 2 electronic wonders are sure to get you sidetracked nearly every time.  With a steaming cup of coffee by my side, I’m ready to spend 20-30 minutes reading and then 5-15 minutes in prayer.  Sometimes I spend extra time reading and other times I spend extra time in prayer.  If I run short on time, I will continue my prayer time during my daily commute.  For where I’m at in life right now (full-time job, 5 kids, etc.) this has worked well for me.  I’d encourage each of you to make it a priority to set aside a specific time of day and a place to further your relationship with God through daily Bible reading and prayer.  Please post in the comments concerning other things that have worked well for you in your personal devotions.

I’m always looking for ways to improve and expand upon my regimen for daily devotions.  Currently, I’m working through the gospel of Mark and have enhanced my learning and understanding by including some commentaries and reference works in my daily reading plan.  I feel that this has helped me to better grasp the context and background information behind the texts I’m reading.  Here are a few of the books I’ve been using:

• An Exposition of the Whole Bible by G. Campbell Morgan
• The Bible Reader’s Companion by Lawrence (Larry) O. Richards
• The Gospel of Mark:  The New Daily Study Bible by William Barclay

This morning for my devotions I read Mark 6:14-29.  This portion of Mark’s gospel tells us about the death of John the Baptist.  While it may be difficult to find a direct personal application from this text, it does reveal much about the character of King Herod, Herodias (Herod’s niece, former sister-in-law, and wife), and Salome (Herod’s niece, grand-niece, and step-daughter).  As the details of the death of John the Baptist unfold, we get a sense of the debased nature of these 3 characters.  Also, this passage testifies to the power of words, for this all began with John the Baptist speaking truth to Herod by telling him it is unlawful for him to have his brother’s wife.  Unltimately, this resulted in John’s death.  When one considers the trickery and conniving undertaken by Herodias in this story, we see the depths to which she was willing to sink in order to not look at her own sin.