Practical QT预览

 #3 Brain required... but also the heart

Our Quiet Times are not a leave-your-brain-at-the-door moment.  We should come to our meeting with God with full-devotion, full-passion, full-sensitivity and full-concentration.

The ancient Church Leaders called us to contemplate God.  If “contemplate” sounds airy-fairy or navel-gazing, then you might want to use the word “consider” because this is a word Scripture uses:

• Psalm 107 is a psalm that recounts the history of God's dealings with Israel.  The call to consider God's love comes at the end of the psalm.
• In Psalm 8 the psalmist considers the heavens and the things God has made.
• In Psalm 119 he considers God's Laws.
• In Ecclesiastes 7:14 we are reminded to consider God's working in the good times and bad times.
• In Isaiah 41:20 we are called to consider God's greatness compared to the futility of idols.
• Jeremiah calls people to consider their ways in the light of God's awesomeness (2:19).
• Jesus reminds us to consider the lilies and learn about God's provision (Luke 12:27,28).
• In Romans 11:22 we are urged to consider the kindness and sternness of God.
• In Hebrews 12:3 we are urged to consider the example of Christ in the face of hardship.

So, we're to think about God.  We're to consider His creation, His work in our past, what His Word says about Him, the uselessness of idols when compared to Him, His presence even in our tough times, His greatness, His provision, His holiness and the example of His Son.

We're to think about God thoroughly, with wide-awake brains and alert faculties.  We're to observe His fingerprints in creation and analyse the evidence and conclude that He is good.

But we have to come back to the word “contemplate” because the danger with “consider” is that it can seem to imply only a mental exercise.  “Contemplate” reminds us to let our considerations drop 30cm from our head to our heart.

Consider + Worship = Contemplation!