I first wrote this post a couple of years ago near the beginning of the year when many of us make fresh commitments to read more in the Bible, pray more, and in general, have a more effective quiet time. But when I came across it this morning, I thought it was worth republishing since it’s something most of us think about often.

While there is no right way or wrong way to do that, there are some things that can make our time with God more spiritually profitable and enjoyable. I’d like to share twenty-eight of them.

28 Ways to Improve Your Quiet Time

What Is a Quiet Time?

Sometimes as believers, we speak a kind of Christian-ese. We throw around terms that we don’t fully explain. So let’s talk a little about what a quiet time is and is not.

First, what it is not.

It’s not a way to get right with God.

It’s not a way to earn His favor.

We can only be right with God by coming to Him by faith through Jesus Christ. If you’re not sure you’ve done this, you can read more about it here. In fact, this is so important, I would urge you to do that now before you finish reading this post if you’re not sure.

What a quiet time is.

It’s a time we set aside for focused prayer, worship, and Bible reading, a time to fellowship with God and get to know Him better through His Word. It’s not a time of earning His grace and love. Instead, it flows out of our love for Him.

Most of us pray throughout the day as things come to our minds or problems arise. We pray in traffic and even for parking spaces. If we enjoy music, we may praise Him in our cars and kitchens as we sing along to our favorite worship music. We hear the Word preached in our churches and listen to podcasts. We may, even, have verses that pop up on our phones.

All of that is good but if that’s all our spiritual lives entail, we’re depriving ourselves of much of the comfort, encouragement, and fellowship God has for us. Frankly, without personal quiet time with God, we’ll be spiritually anemic.

Why We Need a Quiet Time with God

Living in a fallen world, we both fail God ourselves and suffer from the sinful behavior of others. When that happens, we need the comfort only the Holy Spirit can provide. We need to be reminded of His mercy and other gospel truths (Jn. 14.26-27).

We, also, need strength to resist temptation (Matt. 6.13), to respond rightly to others (Matt. 22.37-40; Rom. 12.9-21), and to walk in obedience (Jn. 14.15). We need wisdom for the multitude of decisions we make every day (Jas. 1.5-8). Those things require purposeful prayer (Eph. 6.18; 1 Thess. 5.17) and a steady intake of His Word (Col 3.16; Josh. 1.8).

Personal quiet time with God provides opportunities for all of those things.

3 Ways God Grows Us Spiritually

Donald Whitney in his book Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life talks about three ways that God grows us spiritually. The first is through people. God uses our friends and family, our co-workers, our pastors and teachers, parents, children, and even our enemies to grow us (Prov. 27.17).

The second is through circumstances: financial problems, relational problems, world events, natural phenomena like the weather, sickness, and all kinds of tests and trials (Rom. 8.28-29).

The third is through the spiritual disciplines like Bible intake, prayer, fasting, service, worship, journaling, and others.

Whitney uses the stories of the blind beggar Bartimaeus (Lk. 18.35-42) and the tax collector Zacchaeus (Lk. 19.1-10) to explain the importance of spiritual disciplines.

When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus was approaching, over the objections of others in the crowd, he cried out repeatedly for Jesus to have mercy on him. And Zacchaeus, a wealthy but short tax collector, climbed up into a sycamore tree just to get a glimpse of Him. Both, unashamedly, placed themselves in His path. And in both cases, Jesus stopped and responded to their desire for an encounter with Him.

When we practice the spiritual disciplines, many of which are part of a quiet time, we do the same thing. We place ourselves in Jesus’ path and, just as He did with Bartimaeus and Zacchaeus, He responds to us and communes with us.

Making Our Quiet Time More Effective

So, how can we do that more effectively? While there is no right way or wrong way to have a quiet time, there are some things we might consider to make our time with God more spiritually profitable and enjoyable. While this is not intended to be a checklist, certainly prayer, Bible reading, and worship are all essential. But how we do those things will vary from person to person and even from season to season in our lives.

Prepare your heart.

Jehoshaphat was a relatively good king. He made his share of mistakes for which God rebuked him, but God said this about him:

Nevertheless good things are found in you, in that you have removed the wooden images from the land, and have prepared your heart to seek God (2 Chron. 19.3).

We prepare our hearts by confessing any known sin (1 Jn. 1.9) and by asking God to show us those things we don’t see.

We might also pray passages like these:

Open my eyes, that I may see
Wondrous things from Your law (Ps. 119.18).

³³ Teach me, O Lord, the way of Your statutes,
And I shall keep it to the end.
³⁴ Give me understanding, and I shall keep Your law;
Indeed, I shall observe it with my whole heart.
³⁵ Make me walk in the path of Your commandments,
For I delight in it.
³⁶ Incline my heart to Your testimonies,
And not to covetousness.
³⁷ Turn away my eyes from looking at worthless things,
And revive me in Your way (Ps. 119.33-37).

God is always looking at the heart so, even though, our best attempts to worship and pray will fall short, God honors those whose hearts at set on Him.

Be physically alert.

That may mean getting your coffee before you begin or going to bed a little earlier.

Eliminate distractions.

Technology can be a blessing or a curse. Too often instead of reaching for our Bibles, we reach for our smartphones to check email, text messages, or Instagram. Leave your phone in the other room or turn it face down when you do your quiet time.

And it’s not just technology. We have errands to run, bills to pay, and a host of other things on our mental to-do lists. Sometimes it’s hard to turn it all off. Keep a notepad handy. Write down those things that come to mind so you can deal with them later instead of trying to mentally juggle them now.

Make an appointment with God.

When we desire a relationship with someone, we purpose to spend time with them. Relationships don’t just happen. We must make them a priority and not let other things take precedence.

Seeing our quiet time as an appointment with God and being consistent helps us build a relationship with Him.

If you’re not a morning person by nature, setting aside a regular time will eventually make getting up easier as your body adjusts to a regular schedule.

Psalm 5:3 says, “… in the morning will I direct my prayer unto Thee, and will look up.”

Note that while I could make a case that morning is often the best time, it’s not possible or right for everyone. But decide what time is best for you and schedule it.

Have a regular place.

Jesus sought out places where He could be alone with His Father (Matt. 6.6). We should, too. Any quiet place where we can focus on the Lord is good.

Depending on the weather and the time of the year, I have my quiet time in my little home office or outside on the patio.

Because most of us are creatures of habit, having a regular place can help us get our minds off the things of this world and unto heavenly things more quickly.

Get up earlier.

I understand this can take effort. But even 15-30 minutes of extra time alone with the Lord in the morning can set a whole different tone for your day.

Plan ahead.

Set your coffee up the night before. Have your Bible, journal, and other things together in one place.

Be quiet and still.

Psalm 46:10 says, “Be still, and know that I am God.”

Focus your mind on Him. Be reverent. Think about what you’re reading and expect Him to speak to you through His Word. But keep in mind the Word should be read and understood in context.

Ask good questions during your quiet time.

Have a time of Holy Spirit-inspired, Word-based self-examination.

Jesus said the two greatest commandments are to love God and love others (Matt. 22.37-40). We should examine ourselves in light of those commands and others. See my post entitled “How to Re-Inform Your Conscience & Why You Should” for help and suggestions. (A free printable is available at the bottom of that post.)

Confess any areas of sin to God and make them right with others as soon as possible.

Some other questions to ask:

As I look back on the past 24 hours, what were the most significant events?

Did I do any reading or hear any teaching? What were my reactions to it? What do I need to remember? How do I need to change and grow?

How did I feel during the day? What were the emotional high points or low points?  Why did I feel as I did?  Is God trying to tell me anything through those feelings?

Did I find myself worrying about anything today? How can I turn that worry into a prayer?

What were the chief joys of the day?

What did I accomplish today?

Did I fail at anything? What can I learn from this?

Did I have any insights into myself or another person that I want to remember?

What nuggets of truth did I glean?

Is there something I need to change or do? If so, what is my plan to do so?

Have a tent.

In Genesis 12.8 Abraham built an altar and pitched his tent near Bethel. Bethel means the house of bread. We, too, can pitch a tent with what we need for our quiet time.

Gather things like a readable translation of the Bible, a journal (we’ll talk more about that in a minute), a notepad, pens, highlighters, and perhaps a prayer, devotional, or Bible study book.

You might want to corral it all in a tote or basket. The added advantage of a tote is it’s portable. You can throw it in your car and redeem the time spent waiting for kids or appointments.

Read your Bible.

Prayer is talking to God. Reading our Bibles is listening to Him. Good relationships require both.

All of God’s Word is valuable (2 Tim. 3.16-17), yet too often our knowledge of the Bible is limited to a few key passages.

I highly recommend reading the Bible in a systematic way. Whether you read through it in a year, two years, or longer, have a plan. It would take a little over 70 hours to read the entire Bible out loud at a pulpit rate. Stop for a minute and think about that statistic. That breaks down to twelve minutes a day if spread over a year.

There are many plans available including mine which is a one-year plan. You will read some in the Old Testament; some in the New, a portion of a Psalm, and a verse or two in Proverbs each day. Doing so will keep you from getting bogged down in some of the more difficult-to-understand books.

If you follow along with me here at Soul Survival, I’ll add some practical commentary to help you get more out of your reading. Simply sign up here if you would like to join me.

There are other reading plans available. You can find them on the internet and on various Bible apps. You can also do something as simple as reading one book at a time and checking them off in the table of contents as you do.

Have a plan for praying.

Some days we all have specific things on our minds that we want to pray about, but other days we may feel overwhelmed or unmotivated.

You might try praying various Bible verses back to God.

Or you may want to pray for different things each day of the week (i.e. Sunday, church and ministry; Monday, family; Tuesday, personal; etc.).

Try using the acronym ACTS: adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication.

Take time to express your adoration for God and His character. Confess your sins. Thank Him for His many blessings. Then begin to share your requests.

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, He gave them (and us) what we commonly call the “Lord’s Prayer.” It’s really an outline for prayer. You can read more about praying the Lord’s Prayer here.

Keep a prayer list.

When someone asks me to pray, I’ve learned to do it on the spot when I can, but I also try to write myself a note that I can transfer to my prayer list as soon as possible.

Keeping a prayer list can help us pray in a more organized and thorough way.

Keep a journal.

Many of the great men and women from Christian history kept journals.

You can jot down verses that speak to your heart. Keep a record of prayer requests and answers. Write out quotes or thoughts from your Bible or other reading. You might write down and answer the questions above or write out your prayers. It doesn’t have to be flowery. You’re not writing for publication.

Also, there are times in all of our lives (when our children are small, we’re traveling with others, etc.) when it’s difficult to get away and find a quiet place. A journal can be very helpful. I have prayed in my journal on airplanes and sitting on a park bench watching my grandchildren. You can pray at your desk during your lunch hour, in a tent on a military installation, and in many other places.

Your journal can be a fancy blank book or a simple notebook. You can write a little or a lot, with a pen or with a computer. Do what works for you.

Read more on journaling in these two posts: Journal Prompts for your Prayer or Scripture Journaling and How’s Your Spiritual Health?

Read a book.

While reading about prayer shouldn’t replace praying and books about the Bible shouldn’t replace reading it for yourself, they can help motivate you to pray more, help you learn to study the Bible for yourself, and draw you closer to God.

One of my favorites is the one I quoted above, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life by Donald Whitney. It covers all the spiritual disciplines and can help you understand their importance. I have read it multiple times and will almost surely read it again.

I recently read Susan Heck’s book, With the Master on Our Knees. Each chapter covers a different prayer from the Bible. The chapter on Uzziah’s prayer alone is worth the price of the book.

John Piper writes great devotional books and there are many other good ones.

I will list a few recommendations at the bottom of this post.

Know the principles of good Bible study and interpretation.

You might want to check out my post, 10 Principles for Effective Bible Study.

Use study Bibles and commentaries.

While someone else’s interpretation of God’s Word shouldn’t be our sole source of spiritual sustenance, there are men and women who have devoted their lives to the study of the Scripture. We can benefit greatly from their work.

One of my go-to resources is the MacArthur Study Bible. It’s available in several translations and is packed with a lifetime of study.

Another of my favorite tools is Matthew Henry’s Commentary. It’s available free at StudyLight.org. StudyLight provides a number of commentaries and other resources on its site. Another good one is BlueLetterBible. It’s full of useful tools.

Use props.

Keep photos of your family in your journal to help you focus on each one as you pray.

A map or globe can help you pray for missionaries or persecuted Christians around the world.

Listen to worship music.

Some find music distracting and others find it very helpful. See what works for you.

It can be vocal or instrumental. Experiment with styles and songs you may not hear often. Many of the old hymns are rich in theology. You can find many of them on youtube.

Use sticky notes.

I love these and have them in all shapes and sizes. I can record thoughts, leave myself a reminder for additional study, or note a passage I want to include in a post or Bible study.

Since I read at four places in my Bible each day (Old Testament, Psalms, Proverbs, New Testament), I have colorful sticky arrows marking each place.

You can also jot down prayer requests and anything else God brings to mind.

Memorize Scripture.

Psalm 119.11 says, “Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You.”

The only way to do that is to memorize it.

Memorizing Scripture extends your quiet time into the rest of your day by allowing you to think more deeply about a verse or passage anywhere and anytime. Carry a 3 x 5 card with you and pull it out during those otherwise wasted moments of time.

If you think you can’t memorize Scripture, remember God would never command us to do something that He won’t enable us to do.

Use technology.

I keep my journal on my computer. I also store my prayer list, verses I’m memorizing, and others I want to pray there.

Bible apps can make God’s Word readily accessible no matter where you are. Many have Bible reading, study, and devotional plans available.

Meditate on Scripture.

Think deeply about what you read in your Bible. Let it sink down into your heart. Think about each phrase. Look up words, if necessary. Ask questions:

Is there a command to obey or a promise to believe?

Is there a principle to remember or a sin to avoid or repent of?

Engage.

It’s all too easy to mentally check out even when praying or reading our Bibles. I’ve found myself thinking about my to-do list, the load of laundry I need to start, or a conversation I had with someone.

If that happens to you, try reading your Bible out loud. You can highlight key verses or copy them in your journal.

If you have trouble staying awake, walk around while you pray, sing with worship music, or listen to an audio Bible.

Someone told me she sat on the edge of her bathtub when she prayed so she would not fall asleep.

Pray with someone.

We all need to have time to think, read, and pray alone with God. But you might also consider finding a prayer partner to pray with on a weekly basis. This can add accountability and encouragement.

Contemplate the gospel.

In the Biblical counseling world, a statement you’ll sometimes hear is, “You have to preach the gospel to yourself every day.”

What does that mean? Isn’t the gospel for unbelievers, something you believe once and then move on to other things?

I don’t know about you, but even though I know that I wasn’t saved by any goodness in me or any amount of good deeds (Rom. 3.10), I tend to think I have to keep myself saved by my own self-effort. I can easily come under condemnation and feel like giving up and thinking I’ll never get things right in my life.

Some years ago I read Elyse Fitzpatrick’s book Because He Loves Me: How Christ Transforms Our Daily Life. In it, she asks a number of questions to help you evaluate whether you need a deeper understanding of the gospel and God’s love for His children. One question stuck with me:

At the end of the day is there a rest in your soul because of him, or is there guilt and a determination that tomorrow you’re going to “do better”?

It’s easy for me to forget that I’m a partaker of His righteousness and that Christianity is not about “doing,” but about what He did!

Elyse goes on to say:

It’s essential for us to think about God’s love today because it is only his love that can grant us the joy that will strengthen our hearts, the courage that will embolden us in our fight against sin, and the assurance that will enable us to open up our lives to him so that he might deal powerfully with our unbelief and idolatry.

Maybe like me, you start thinking it’s about your self-efforts. If so, use some of your quiet time to contemplate the gospel.

Obey.

Obey what God shows you in your time with Him. Spiritual growth happens not so much as a result of an increase in information as an increase in our willingness to obey and act on what we believe.

¹² For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. ¹³ For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. ¹⁴ But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil (Heb. 5.12-14).

Finally … Believe.

Believe we can come boldly to His throne of grace (Heb. 4.14-16).

Believe God hears and answers prayer (1 Jn. 5.14-15).

Believe He will meet us and commune with us as we are faithful to meet with Him.

Do you have other things that enhance your time with God? Which of these have you tried and found helpful? Are there a few on this list that you want to incorporate into your quiet time?