Friends, I have to say that yesterday was a really great day. It’s not always the case. Remember Saturday’s single tasking challenge? Still hard. That’s no joke. And my entry way closet? Already needs a makeover. Or two. But yesterday? Lighting my candle and playing great music? So neat. It really does bring tranquility to our home. It really does set a mood. And I love it. Not to mention that as a ministry family we actually have Mondays set aside for our Sabbath so it’s already set up to be a nice day. Bonus that there was no school and so 5/6 of us got to sit around the table for a great lunch.

Today we are going to add to the morning routine. Now remember, Sunday we just kind of took an inventory. Yesterday I challenged you to light that candle again and set the tone of your home with music. Today? Today we are going to talk quiet time.

Let me please be the first to tell you that I absolutely buck up against all of this quiet time talk. When quiet time = devotions or scripture reading or prayer or any kind of seriously structured thing, I have a hard time. Do I think that I need to be in God’s word every single day? Yes. Am I? Pretty much. Do I think Bible Studies are beneficial? Absolutely. Do I do them? Yes. Do I think that prayer is important? 100%. I pray daily and sometimes continuously throughout the day. But if someone tells me that I have to begin my day with quiet time I get salty. Or contentious. Why? Let me explain myself. I am a morning person. I love mornings and I do mornings well. And, I do have quiet time most mornings. And quiet time actually does mean Bible study and prayer. So why put up the fight? Because even though I know it’s good for me, I don’t always get it done. Sometimes I hit snooze because I’m so tired. Sometimes I have an extra long talk with my little one. Sometimes I just need a really long, hot shower. And, knowing that later I’ll have my quintessential “quiet time,” I let it go. My husband, on the other hand, just cannot function in the early morning (I similarly cannot function late at night.) and so he doesn’t do any sort of thing like this until he hits the office. Some people work odd shifts or love being night owls. Some of my friends are moms in. the. trenches. and they literally can’t. And so guess what? I’m just not going to let anyone make me feel like a bad Christian if I don’t get my scripture reading done before I go to work. Because I will get to it. I will pray. Trust me.

That said, just like music sets our tone, so does everything else that we “put into” our minds and bodies. Which means that a few minutes of quiet or meditation or reading or prayer or even the morning paper’s crossword is good for us. Yeah. I said it. Do the crossword. I don’t care. Sometimes I read fiction. It’s ok. Because what I am doing is taking a little time to be still and fill my mind with something good.

So, that leads me to today’s challenge! Today’s challenge is to take 15 minutes during the morning to do something for you. Use this time to set the tone for your day. If it’s too late today already, do it tomorrow. And the next day. And the next.

I won’t tell you what you have to do. I usually read my Bible and I have an awesome prayer app that goes off every day at 6:30 to remind me to pray. I have input several prayer lists and the app gives me a random list of my people and things to pray for. I love it! Like I said, I won’t tell you what to do. But, I will tell you what not to do. This 15 minutes is not for TV or your phone or computer or the morning news. It is for solitude and growth. A practice of quiet.

Try this for 15 minutes, friends. Share with us your experiences. If you incorporate this into your regular morning routine I bet you will begin to feel better. More calm. Slower. And your home will be made better, as well. A sanctuary. A refuge. A place where peace becomes practice.