When I was a child, I remember being at my grandmother’s house and sitting on her front porch in a child-size rocking chair they had bought for me. I loved that blue rocking chair, and I felt so special to have it. I have always had loads of energy, so they may have bought me that chair so I would sit still. They are in heaven now and we can’t ask them for clarity, but let’s just agree that it made me calm down and spend time with them.
One of my favorite things to do was to sit in my chair and sing. My mom still tells me that the neighbors would listen to me sing from their porches.
Today’s world is challenging, to say the least. So much is coming at us from so many directions all the time. Navigating our life responsibilities and honoring God can be overwhelming. However, it’s important for us to sit in timeout with Him.
Let’s say, supposedly, that your week holds some or all of the following responsibilities: work meetings, zoom meetings, board meetings, budget-planning sessions, replies to countless emails, taking the kids to school, volunteering in the community, caring for aging parents, kids’ sports practices and games, family dinners and time with your spouse. Of course, there are hundreds of other little things we encounter and manage every day, too many to list here.
Do you get the sense that there is never enough time? Life can start to feel like one large to-do list, and we’re just checking off tasks, hoping and praying nothing goes wrong because we ran out the door without sitting in our chair and putting first things first.
So, let me tell you about my chair. I felt led to purchase a prayer chair. It reminded me of when I was a small child. This surely would be a constant reminder of putting first things first. After all, we all make time for what we value, right? Spending time in our chair helps draw us closer to God. Our chair time should be intentional and free from distractions as we sit uninterrupted and meet with God.
I must admit, when my schedule gets crazy and I miss my time with God first thing in the morning, I feel God tugging at my heart, and he gently reprimands me. That is when my prayer chair becomes my time-out chair. Psalms 46:10 says, “Be still, and know that I am God.”
All our spiritual journeys are unique, God guides each of us. We certainly will get off track, and that’s normal. When that happens, we can simply get back in our timeout chair and ask God to direct our paths. When we are on the right path, we feel peace. Use the feeling of love and peace as the central signpost that we have spent ample chair time and are on the right path.
Where is your favorite place to spend chair time with God? Do you have a designated prayer chair? Or maybe a timeout chair?
Ephesians 2:4-6 (NIV) tells us, “But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions. it is by grace we have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus.”
Robin Killeen is the founder of W.O.W. Women of Wisdom. Reach her at (228) 424-0098 and learn more at www.wowcommunity.org.
