Quiet Time Ideas

Quiet Time Ideas

(from www.mastertruth.com)

  

     The best way to get to know God better and keep your relationship with him fresh is to meet with him each day. You probably already know that, but maybe you’ve gotten out of the habit, and if you woke up early tomorrow to read the Bible, you would have no idea where to even start.

     Below is a list of ideas to keep you going for the next year – and beyond.

     But first, a tool. If you have a computer/Internet and you don’t already have a Bible program on your computer, you can download a fabulous free one – The Online Bible - from onlinebible.net. Go to www.onlinebible.net/describe.html to read what it includes. This will allow you to study your Bible more efficiently, looking up the meaning of words and examining cross-references to find more verses that talk about the concepts in the verse you are studying. You will need it to accomplish some of the quiet time ideas listed below.

     Visit this page often. New ideas will be added continually. If you have a good study idea of your own that you think others would benefit from, e-mail us and we may add it to this list.

  

Crowns and Prizes

The Bible talks about crowns and prizes that we strive for. At least the apostle Paul did! Will I get a crown or a prize when I get to heaven? It's something to study:

• In what spirit were the following crowns given? Matt. 27:29; John 19:5
• What are the following crowns: Phil. 4:1; 1 Thes. 2:19
• What four types of crowns are given, and to whom? 1 Cor. 9:25; 2 Tim. 4:8; 1 Pet. 5:4; James 1:12 and Rev. 2:10
• Read James 1:12 and Rev. 2:10 again, along with Rev. 3:10-11. What words/concepts do these three passages have in common? Based on that, what kind of crown do you suppose is given in Rev. 3:10-11?
• What attitudes lead to the prize? 1 Cor. 9:24; Phil 3:14

Good Works

 

    What is God’s goal for us as Christians? There are several. That we would be godly and have love, hope and faith, but the greatest is love. Those are dispositions, attitudes, inner attributes. He saved us to “be” something. But he equally saved us to “do” something. Good works are the expected. Look up some of the verses that discuss good works below. And notice that most of the verses were written by the Apostle Paul. “Good works” was a significant topic to him, especially in his writing to Timothy and Titus. They were his disciples. He was a spiritual mentor to them and he was training them to lead churches. Look up the verses and write any insights you receive about good works. Finish by writing a prayer of response to God.

 

 

The foundation for good works:

2 Tim. 3:16-17; Titus 2:14

The importance of good works:

Eph. 2:10; Tit 3:1; Heb. 10:24; 1 Tim. 2:9-10; 1 Tim. 6:17-18

The result of our good works:

Matt. 5:16

The path to good works:

2 Tim. 2:19-21; 2 Cor. 9:8  

Examples of good works:

These are both examples for us to learn from, and a charge that we should be an example of good works to others.

Neh. 2:18; Acts 9:36; 1Tim. 5:9-10; 1Tim. 5:24-25; Titus 2:6-7

Esther and God’s Sovereignty

 

In the book of Esther, God’s name is never mentioned, but you see his fingerprints all over the pages. It’s the perfect book to illustrate God’s Sovereignty. See for yourself.

Esther is the last of the 12 Jewish history books in the Bible. The timing of the incredible and miraculous events was between Ezra chapters 6 and 7. There were three waves of Israelites who returned from captivity to the city of Jerusalem. This book takes place between the first and second returns from captivity and records what happened to the Jews who stayed in Persia rather than return to Jerusalem. God delivered his people by raising up a Jewish queen in the Persian Empire who stood in the gap and influenced the pagan king to thwart the planned annihilation of the Jews. This was a pivotal time in Jewish history.

Read through each chapter with a notebook or computer file open to record your impressions. Answer these questions at the end of each chapter:

• What happened in this chapter?
• How did God orchestrate in the lives and events of this chapter?
• What do I learn about God from this chapter?
• How can this affect my life?

 

 Character of David

David was a choice man of God. God’s choice. He’s used as a benchmark servant of God throughout the Bible. His life was not perfect, but the Bible says his heart was. What was it about David that caused God to declare: “I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after mine own heart, which shall fulfill all my will.” Acts 13:22?

That’s for you to discover. You will read about David from 1 Sam. 16 to the end of 2 Sam. (and a bit into 1 Kings).

Take a chapter a day and keep a running list of exemplary character qualities you see in David. At the end of each chapter, answer the questions:

• What happened in David’s life?
• How did David respond?
• What can I tell about his relationship with God from this chapter?
• What, of all this, can I apply to my life?

 

 God’s Response to David

     Once you study David’s character from 1 Sam. 16 to the end of 2 Sam., you have a clear picture of what kind of heart and life God values. That’s an enriching study that serves as a template for how we might want to pattern our lives. But it’s only part of the full story.

     How did God respond to David?

     Read back through 1 Sam. 16 through the end of 2 Sam. and record what you learn about God from how he worked in David’s life and how he responded.

     Read a chapter each day and answer these questions:

• What did God do in and for David?
•  What do I learn about God from this?  

  

God’s Description

 

     If you want to know what God is like, discover what he said about himself in the first and only description he gave of himself to Moses there on that mount.

 “And the LORD passed by before him, and proclaimed, The LORD, The LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, Keeping mercy for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, and that will by no means clear the guilty; visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, unto the third and to the fourth generation.” (Exodus 34:6-7)

 Here are several study ideas using these two verses as a springboard. (It will be most helpful if you have the Online Bible installed on your computer.)

• Look up the adjectives (merciful, gracious, longsuffering, goodness, truth, etc.) and their meaning.
• Look up cross-references for these verses to find other verses that discuss these characteristics of God. You’ll find many.
• Do a search for other verses that contain both the words merciful and gracious in them and write them out.

  

Call Upon the Lord

One way to draw closer to the Lord is to call upon his name. In what circumstances did individuals in the Bible do that, and what was the result? What does God say about calling on his name?

You’ll need the Online Bible to do this study. Do a search on the words “call* upon.” (Note, putting the asterisk after the word call will search for all forms of the word – as in called, calls and calling.) You’ll find as many as 42 references. Look through those and write what you learn. It might be helpful to copy and paste them and arrange them according to themes. For example, results and testimony of calling on the Lord and commands to call upon the Lord.

  

Glorifying God

     What is the purpose of this life? Hopefully, you’ve discovered that it is to bring glory to God. That was Christ’s purpose, and it is to be our purpose. Three New Testament books that talk extensively about glorifying God are John, 1 Peter and Romans. This quiet-time adventure will be easiest if you use the Online Bible, or whatever Bible program you might have on your computer with a search function.

·     Start with the gospel of John and do a search on “glorif*.” This will allow you to find all forms of the word glorify. Copy and paste all the verses into a Word file. Read through them to gather insight, in many cases reading your Bible to get the context of the verses. You’ll find that many of the verses have to do with Christ’s purpose of glorifying God. You might want to arrange the verses according to such topics as: purpose of miracles; Christ’s death and resurrection; Christ’s aim to glorify God; how we glorify God, etc. Summarize what you learn and how you can change your life to reflect God’s glory.

·     Move on to 1 Peter, where 15 times in the five chapters, Peter uses some form of the word glory. Copy and paste each reference to “glorif*.” Notice and write down what these verses have to say about what brings God glory, or how and when God is glorified. Again, summarize what you learn and how you can change your life to reflect God’s glory.

·     Paul in Romans also has much to say about God’s glory and bringing glory to him. Again, do a search on “glorif*” and copy and paste the verses. Now that you’re used to looking for themes you can arrange the verses under, find some common themes and arrange the verses. Write a summary.