Growing closer to God is a commitment.  I have been learning this over the past few weeks as God continues to work on my heart.

In order for me to come to this conclusion, a few things have happened.  First, several influences have made me consider how much time I devote to God and the studying of His Word.  For example: 

Books: I have been reading good Christian books and a few in particular stress the importance of having personal devotions and spending time alone with God and His Word.  A Young Woman After God's Own Heart: A Devotional by Elizabeth George encourages young women to grow in their prayer life and to commune with the Lord regularily.  (Note: I do not endorse all of the views that Elizabeth George has on all areas of life and spiritual matters [for instance, she makes dating seem acceptable], but it the book presents many good points otherwise.)  Another book that I have been reading is a book by a young woman in my area, Teresa Nuckols.  She has recently published a book for Christian young women about devoting time to spend with God entitled Consider the Lilies  and I have been enjoying her sisterly encouragement. (For more information about this book, visit www.lilacmeadows.com.)  And of course, I am convicted by God's Word and Jesus's example of often going off in secret and praying to His Father.  

People: My parents spend time, together and individually, in God's Word, studying and praying.  I have admired them for this commitment.  My mom every morning faithfully reads a devotion from a good devotional book and then we (those who can read fairly well in my family) read about two chapters a day in what book of the Bible we are studying at the time.  My parents are good examples (not perfect, but good ) of spending time in God's Word.

CDs: Our family has many wonderful resources in our home (as we found out last week when we began to reorganize the family library; not a particularly fun task, yet it can be enjoyable at times).  Among those resources are mulitple CDs that provide godly encouragement.  Last year, my sister Leesha, Mom, and I attended a Bright Lights conference presented by Sarah Mally.  I received much encouragement from that experience and among the resources gained were numerous CDs by Sarah Mally and other Bright Lighters.  In these, much stress is put on personal time with God and memorizing Scripture.  More nudging on my heart.  Another resource that has been a push in the right direction is a CD put out by Crystal Paine called What to Do While Waiting for Prince Charming.  In her presentation, Crystal encourages young women to devote as much as they can now then to wait until they are married and have families; they will have barely enough time then to spend at least ten minutes in God's Word.  

So, I have said all this to say this: I am striving to spend (as it has been pointed out, it will cost me something: time!) more PTJ (Personal Time with Jesus).  For the more time I spend with Him, the more I will be like Him.  If you spend time with your family or friends, more than not, people will be able to tell who you have been around by the way you talk and act.  I want to be like Christ, so I am making this a goal of mine: to increase the time I devote to strengthening my relationship with Christ and the reading of His Word.

In His Love,

Miss Taylor

P.S. I have NO time to spend to edit this blog at the moment, so please bear with any typos that I have so disgracefully typed.