burdened by unrealistic expectations about what it means to be a good Christian.”
— Ruth Haley Barton, Sacred Rhythms
Okay Preacher sister: let’s drop the veils and the pretensions and get real! Hands up if you’ve ever allowed your personal spiritual growth become a check off, to do list rather than the joy-filled, enriching experience it is meant to be? Or have you ever found yourself scrambling at the end of a long, hectic day trying to get a few minutes in with the Lord before you succumb to falling into bed out of sheer emotional and physical exhaustion? I sure have: not that I’m proud to admit it, but hey, life happens and ministry happens and sometimes all of it comes together and moments seem to turn into hours and sometimes even into days when it all is just a bit more than a little overwhelming.
When this happens we have a choice to make: we can lean on Jesus or we can lean on processes we know and work those processes like a checklist rather than embracing and enjoying our time in the presence of the Master. Simply leaning into Jesus sure does seem simpler, yet in my experience, we sometimes default to the checklist.
Oh, please don’t misunderstand me. I’m certainly not wagging my finger at you, I’m right there with you, learning this priceless lesson and growing. There are even times that I am found picking myself up off the floor, dusting myself off, and starting once again.
A Deep Reflection of the Heart
Reality hit me right between the eyes one time in particular. I was attending a spiritual retreat for pastors and their spouses and was thrilled to be there. The season of ministry I was in was particularly hard, disappointments abounded, and there were things happening within my family that were causing even more stress. It had been a long day of travel and after bringing everything in from the car to the room and dropping on the bed, I began to do my daily Bible reading in the way I had recently found myself doing it—though I never dreamed I would—I was simply reading it to check it off the list. There was no joy in it, I was barely hearing from the Lord. It was a particularly dry season.
As I finished my time of reading, I heard a distinct nudge in my soul, “I don’t want you reading your Bible for a week.” It was a still, small voice that shook me to the core. “Are you kidding me?” was my response. I sat on the bed flabbergasted and prayed for clarification. I was dumbfounded and confused at this word reverberating deep in my soul. As I sat in the quiet and listened, there was a deep knowing that God was speaking and I needed to listen and be obedient.
He rebuked my behaviour and chastised me for my attitude in coming to Him. There were things He revealed to me that no one else knew: attitudes of my heart that I was hiding (at least I thought I was) and it pained me to think I had allowed myself to get to the place I was.
I had been a student of Jesus for about ten years and had been reading my Bible daily for most of those years. Now God was revealing to me not to read my Bible for a week! It seemed anti-God. It seemed utterly ridiculous! It felt counterintuitive! It seemed foolish and wrong! I spoke with a couple other pastors and their opinions differed. But I knew what He was speaking to me and why.
A New Way
Sometimes, in our wanting to do things “right” we forget the main thing. In desiring to be perfect like Jesus is perfect, we set up rules and guardrails and figure we must always stay within them if we want to be “good”. In our minds, we think that if we stray away or change things, we are “bad”. Looking at the preceding words in this paragraph, these words in black and white, I am tempted to delete them because they seem so ridiculous, but I doubt that I’m alone when I say, I think they’re true in some of our lives, in some seasons.
It was at this time that I was introduced to a book called Unforced Rhythms by Gwen Jackson. As I read, I began to see a whole new picture of what spending time with God and in His presence could look like. In my years as a Christian, I was told and I have even taught others, that it was vital for people to read their Bible daily and that early morning was best. But this book blew that theory out of the water. It stretched me in uncomfortable ways that have brought great freedom and joy to my devotional life.
Learning to Walk in Unforced Rhythms
In her book, Gwen Jackson explains that daily devotions aren’t for everyone and why that is. Now, some of you may be ready to stop reading and I want to encourage you not to. Others of you may be cheering and leaping for joy! Some people—like me most of the time—have daily rhythms, some are weekly/monthly people, and some are seasonal/yearly people. Let me give you a quick overview of each to help you figure out where you may fit if you don’t already know.
These are a few of the characteristics she shares of daily people: (p. 117)
- Their preferred calendar is a page a day planner.
- They ask “What day is it?”
- They are task oriented.
- They accomplish a lot each day.
For weekly/monthly people: (p.125)
- Their preferred calendar is a week or month at a glance.
- They are goal oriented.
- They are driven to achieve big goals or complete major projects.
- They love to organize their schedule and set priorities.
For seasonal/ yearly people: (p. 136)
- Their preferred calendars are year at a glance.
- They are process oriented.
- They prefer a big picture perspective.
- They are more interested in living life than in checking off achievements.
There is a lot more to it, but this gives you a quick snapshot. When you look at this, you may be thinking that we all need to read and study the Scripture and you would be right, but the way we do it does not have to be the same. Each of us needs to find the rhythm that works for us to enjoy and savour the time we spend at the Lord’s feet learning from Him.
Not everyone will find a daily Bible reading plan helpful and that’s okay. It is not about making everyone the same, but embracing the authentic person each of us is created to be. Some people will grow tremendously from a daily Bible reading plan, but others will shrivel up trying to fit into that box they were never meant to be shoved into. Some may grow tremendously by taking a day a month with God rather than a few minutes a day. Yearly people may grow tremendously studying a book of the Bible over a particular season then enjoy His presence in different ways than simply in the Word. Preacher sister, whichever is you, embrace it and walk in it! Your soul and relationship with Jesus will flourish because of it.
It is important for us to remember that all of these are good. We cannot allow ourselves to get bogged down in the muck and mire of legalism. Paul teaches us a powerful truth in Galatians. “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Jesus never says that we need to read the Bible daily to grow in relationship with Him. He desires for us to spend time with Him: which may mean many different things for each of us.
Living in Freedom
We are called to be close to Jesus - to yoke ourselves to Him, but it doesn’t have to look the same for every single one of us. We are not clones of one another, but can walk in freedom, finding what is best for each of us and encouraging others to do the same. Each of us are made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27) but we all look very different physically. Shouldn’t this be an indication that we can be different in the way we grow spiritually?
If you don’t fit into the daily rhythm, you can stop shaming and guilting yourself. And if you are a daily person, it’s okay to break your routine and try something new. Our spiritual lives are about relationship not routine.
If your relationship with Jesus is stale, try something new: go out into the beautiful world and experience Him, drive to the beach and put your feet in the water and praise Him for the beauty of the shore, go hiking in the mountains or backcountry, take a drive somewhere you’ve never been—and look for the handiwork of the Master, look into the face of a sweet new baby, hear the cooing of the birds outside or the water trickling down the stream. There are so many ways to experience Him and His creation in a new way.
When you read, pray before you dive in and allow the Scriptures to come to life. Listen for His voice and hear Him speak to your heart. Preacher sister, allow Him to minister to your soul without your own woman-made parameters stuck on it. Let Him be creative with you and see what He will do. You are free to make choices that are empowering to your soul. Why not start today and give it a try! Maybe try something new—experiment with different rhythms until you find what fills and blesses your soul.
