My watch regularly alerts me to the fact that I am slowly losing my hearing one toddler protest at a time. With 8 kids in the house all day everyday the noise level is a real issue! Often times it is too loud to hear myself think straight! With all the on-going noise making quiet time to focus on God’s word can be a challenge!

Quiet time. What does this actually mean? This is just a little way of saying spending some time with God in his Word, in prayer, meditating and reflecting on who He is and what He says. Time to think and pray through things that may be weighing heavily upon your heart or praising Him for His goodness and mercy.

Everyone probably goes about this a little bit different and there really isn’t one right way. Just connecting with God daily is really so important to the believer and definitely so as a mom. We draw our strength and direction for the day from Him. Reading the Bible, doing a bit of a bible study or reading a book about a topic you are struggling with, praying, journaling could all be a part of this time with the Lord. Even just sitting and reflecting on who God is counts.

What this used to look like before I had kids was hot cup of coffee in hand while I prayed, journaled, read and savored the scriptures. For an hour. Without interruption. But when I became a mom and my first baby turned my world upside down, lol, I had to find new ways to make time with the Lord a priority.

Why is daily quiet time with the Lord so important for moms:

As moms we need to be reminded of God’s truths and realign our hearts towards them. This is what helps us draw strength for the day! We need the Holy Spirit to help and guide us, we need to abide in the Lord daily (moment by moment even) to be the moms that God has called us to be. He supplies us the grace and strength when we go to Him and ask Him. We need to renew our minds constantly, scripture and prayer help us to do that.

God wants us to spend time with Him

Psalm 46:10– Be still, and know that I am God.

Psalm 5:3– In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.

Isaiah 26:3 – You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.

Matthew 11:28 – Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Psalm 119:147–I rise before dawn and cry for help; I have put my hope in your word.

Psalm 119:105-Your word is a lamp for my feet, a light on my path.

James 4:8 – Come near to God and he will come near to you.

Psalm 19:7–8–The law of the Lord is perfect, refreshing the soul. The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.

Different seasons of motherhood call for different approaches to “quiet time” in my opinion. What works with only one newborn baby will look a lot different than several toddlers tearing through the house. What works for me now with teens and toddlers in the house is different than even a couple of years ago when I only had really young children in the house. Flexibility and adaptability with all things in motherhood is going to be key!

Here is a list of quiet time ideas for busy moms:

💛First thing in the morning before your children wake up

💛First thing in the morning after you wake up (even with kids awake). More often than not this is the season I am in. Sometimes I wake up before the kids, but usually we are all waking up at the same time. They like to snuggle next to me.

💛In the bathroom! Keep your bible and notebook in there for when you need a mom break. Bonus keep the Bible open, so anyone who goes in there is also drawn to reading for themselves.

💛At the kitchen table. Read some to your kids aloud while they eat their breakfast. Read some for yourself as well.

💛As you go about your day. Keep an open bible, or a closed one handy to pick up as you go about your chores, and pray as you go as well.

💛At naptime. Even if you require a nap yourself you can read a little bit and pray as your drift off to sleep and maybe even pick it up again when you wake up.

💛While you nurse (or even bottle feed though it’s trickier) the baby. It’s super easy to mindlessly scroll on a phone, but if you have your phone handy use a bible app and read and pray while you feed the baby.

💛While you walk or exercise. You can listen to an audio recording of the Bible, pray, listen to an encouraging podcast or just meditate on a bible verse.

💛Coffee date with Jesus. Go out to a coffee shop or the beach or park. This is a more of a special treat but so worth the effort. Maybe grandma would be up for letting you get out, or your husband, even trading with another mom friend.

💛Anytime! I love the story of Susanna Wesley (a mom of many) who when she needed to connect with the Lord would take her bible and put her apron over her head and pray. She was busy and didn’t have the perfect setup but had a willing heart and a little creativity.

I have used all of these ideas at one time or another since becoming a mom!

I hope that you have found something here to help you adapt to whatever season of motherhood you are in and are encouraged to make some special time daily with the Lord in his Word and in prayer. You will be so blessed by any effort that you make, even if you are interrupted!

💛Mandy