Spending Time Alone with God

Making Room for the One Who Loves You Most

By Sharon Gamble

I wake up with the usual battle raging in my head every time it’s my day to “run away.” My practical side points out all the important things waiting to be done and whispers, “A responsible person gets her work done before she takes a day off.” My heart side reminds me that the most important thing of all is actually a Person—and I’ve committed to meet with Him today. The phone rings, and yet another responsibility threatens to pull me back into the ebb and flow of daily living.

But, for almost a decade now, I’ve been spending one day alone with God each month, and still I’m bombarded—every single month—with mental pictures of all the responsibilities I’m walking away from. “It’s always hard to leave.” “There is always too much to do.” It takes courage to pick up my TAWG (Time Alone With God) bag and walk myself out of the house and into the car—but I do it.

The worship music I chose the night before is waiting for me as I start the car. As the music begins, my heart starts to sing. “You chose time with God over all that stuff at home!”

The fact that chores await me seems less urgent once I’m on my way. I stop and splurge on my favorite drink and speak out loud to my King, “Forgive me, Lord. It’s still hard to leave even though I want to be with You, and I know this is Your will for me. Bless this day, Father, with Your Presence and Your words. I give myself to You. Use me as You choose, teach me as You please, and help me to set aside all else for the pure joy of being ‘just us’ today.”