How to Make the Most of Your Devotional TimeSample

Daily Devotionals and Living

There is no definitive answer in Scripture on how much time regularly a believer should dedicate to Bible reading and prayer. When making the decision about the amount of time allotted to this spiritual exercise, each believer needs to remember its purpose. The time we spend studying God’s Word and praying should focus both on our knowledge of God and on how we can reflect this knowledge in our everyday lives.

One of the reasons we spend time in daily devotionals is so that we can worship the Lord on an individual level. However, another reason for this daily practice is for us to be strengthened in our inner man so that we can leave our devotional rooms and go out into the world where we can live out in a community what we have learned. We must reveal what we know about God through the manner in which we live our daily lives. The study of Scripture is only one aspect of our devotional life. It is not its sole purpose.

The Word of God addresses the whole of our earthly life, and it is through His sovereignty and grace that we are empowered to live in accordance with His will. For those who are married, this means that knowing God is about being a godly spouse through His strength. For those who have children, it is about being a godly parent by His grace. Serving the Lord involves being a faithful son or daughter, a diligent pastor, and a righteous citizen, all enabled by God's power. The Scripture guides us in all areas of life, including money management and entertainment, and calls us to rely on God's wisdom and judgment in every aspect of our existence.

Since various facets of our lives are discussed in Scripture, the purpose of our devotional time is for us to learn how to live well. We dedicate time to becoming godly individuals living in this ungodly world. Our devotional times should serve the purpose of helping us to know God and then reflecting this knowledge in our daily living. We need to examine our personal devotional times in that context. We are not just to spend hours and hours a day studying the Word of God; we also need to spend time living out what we have learned. This does not mean that we need to rush through our study of Scripture and focus on practice. We need to find a fine balance between the knowledge aspect of our devotional time and the practical side of living it out.