To-Do God

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Morning devotions--something precious, yet so often skewed or misunderstood. When we're told as children, "Read your Bible and pray every day" instead of "Get to know the Lord and chat with Him", the idea of morning devotions or sitting down to pray can seem nothing more than vacuuming the house or washing the dishes. 

I woke up this morning with a task mindset. I threw God a "Good morning", walked downstairs, made some hot tea, and grabbed my Bible with the mental list, "Psalms, Proverbs, Ephesians and then I can get to some writing." I caught myself like a fly under a swatter. I don't ever want to approach friends, family, or Daylen with a task mindset, so why do I let that slip into my relationship with God? I think He enjoyed waiting folded-armed next to the kettle with me better than He'd like a brain-dead Bible reading. 

I apologized and decided to allow myself to get "distracted" without feeling guilty. An hour of computer-time later, I am joyful and have an un-interrupted mindset on Him. I read blogs. Blogs of people who love Him. Their verses, stories, hopes, and adventures inspired me to think about mine--to think about my love, my dreams, my God. And I'm closer and more real with Him than I would have been from to-do-list reading.

The key is to be real with Him. He's real with us, why do we think we can fake genuine time with Him? He calls our bluff. It's only now, with the right mindset, that I can enter into reading His words and really get it--really be with Him. And I'm excited.