Why Everyone’s Quiet Time Meaning Might be Different and That’s Ok

It’s ok if your quiet time meaning looks different from mine. We all need quiet time, though. Here’s how I love to spend mine. #quiettime #quietude #timealone #introvert #devotions #moonrise #travel #photography

It’s ok if your quiet time meaning looks different from mine. We all need quiet time, though. Here’s how I love to spend mine.

This post is part of the Five-Minute Friday quick write hosted by Kate Moutang. Join us each Thursday night on Twitter (#FMFParty) for fun and fellowship, then grab a pen and start writing when the prompt goes live!

It’s ok if your quiet time meaning looks different from mine. We all need quiet time, though. Here’s how I love to spend mine. #quiettime #quietude #timealone #introvert #devotions #moonrise #travel #photography

My Quiet Time Meaning Involves Solo Driving

“I got turned away at the border,” I texted Pedro on Sunday afternoon. Evidently, my interpretation of the Canadian’s rules for transit through Canada to Alaska didn’t jibe with the customs agent’s interpretation.

“That’s rotten,” he replied. “What’s your plan?”

“Not sure,” I texted back, “I’ll let you know as soon as I have one!”

I spent the next few hours trying to find a cool place with internet service so I could research plane tickets vs. ferry tickets. By late afternoon, I had a plan—I would spend the next two nights at our daughter’s place in Oregon, and then fly to Alaska.

I really wanted to drive, though, because I relish the quiet time. For thousands of miles, I can soak in the beauty of Creation, stop whenever I want to and snap photos, and not talk if I don’t feel like it. I can leave the radio off or turn it on; listen to praise music or listen to audiobooks. The introvert’s dream trip. Quiet time meaning for me involves time alone to process without distractions from conversations or loud noises.

I normally get up about an hour before everyone else so I can spend quiet time with God. This usually involves listing things I’m grateful for, reading scripture, applying scripture to my life or a specific situation, journaling about my emotions, and praying for people.

For someone else, quiet time may have a completely different meaning or rhythm. And that’s ok. We don’t all have to do quiet time the same. It must feel meaningful in order to benefit us.

After a month of hanging out with various family members, I couldn’t wait to have some time alone on a long drive. Opportunities to photograph wildlife came in a close second. But, alas, Canada and her quirky rules thwarted my plan.

The Quiet of a Moonrise at Midnight

It’s ok if your quiet time meaning looks different from mine. We all need quiet time, though. Here’s how I love to spend mine. #quiettime #quietude #timealone #introvert #devotions #moonrise #travel #photography

I arrived in Anchorage a little after ten p.m. An hour later, a kind friend who had dropped my daughter and her family off at the airport two weeks ago picked me up. He and his wife had my daughter’s car at their house. By midnight, I finally headed towards my daughter’s home. I only got a mile down the road when I had to pull over.

A yellow, almost full moon rose majestically behind Matanuska Peak. The battery on my camera flashed low when I turned the camera on and I prayed it would stay on long enough for me to capture the spectacular sight.

I spent the next twenty minutes taking photos of the velvety sky, the snow-covered peaks, and the soft, yellow moon. It didn’t matter if I felt exhausted from a long day of travel. My disappointment over not driving to Alaska fell away as I realized I never would have had the opportunity to see this moonrise in this place if I hadn’t flown.

Even better? The next morning when I checked my Bible app, the verse of the day came from Psalms 8:3-4:

“When I consider your heavens,
    the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars,
    which you have set in place,
what is mankind that you are mindful of them,
    human beings that you care for them?”

NIV

Quiet time meaning looks different for everyone. It can happen during a midnight moonrise or a midday moment of silence. Quietude allows the Holy Spirit to fill me with peace. What does it mean for you?

15 Comments

  1. Quiet-time’s a big V-8
    with no muffler (but, of course!)
    and it gets me feeling great
    (though others find their hearing worse).
    Quiet-time’s an oval track,
    dirt or asphalt, same to me,
    a place where I can stalk, attack,
    spin ’em out, gain victory.
    Quiet-time’s post-race debrief,
    fists a-clenched and faces red,
    and when it’s over there’s relief
    that tempers cooled and I ain’t dead.
    It’s quiet-time for which I pray,
    and it comes back next Saturday.
    Andrew Budek-Schmeisser recently posted…Stepping Aside For A Brighter VoiceMy Profile

  2. Like you, Anita, it has been my practice to rise about an hour before the rest of our household. I treasure the quiet, needing it each morning so that I can face the day. “Quiet time meaning for me involves time alone to process without distractions from conversations or loud noises.” Quiet time enables me to function better throughout the day.
    P.S. I love that you love long drives as then you share your beautiful photos with us all!

  3. Quiet time for me has always worked best when I could get up early while the house is still. It was harder when I had small children whose radar detects when Mom is up. But God gave grace and helped me get something even when they were playing beside me. Some years, quiet time worked best just after the kids left for school. Some people like late nights for meeting with the Lord. What matters most is just to have the time, somehow, some way.
    Barbara Harper recently posted…Friday’s Fave FiveMy Profile

  4. So true, Anita, “The introvert’s dream trip. Quiet time meaning for me involves time alone to process without distractions from conversations or loud noises.”

    I’m glad you were able to enjoy the yellow moon!
    ~Lisa, FMF #20
    Lisa+Blair recently posted…Inner QuietnessMy Profile

  5. I am a night owl – but that quiet drive, that walk – that time out with my camera talking with God – focusing in on what He’s telling me. That is revives my spirit.

  6. I have tried getting up early but I nod off. I am a morning person but not too early😆. I do it right before bed. Usually when the house has become quiet and I am serenaded by the humming of the dishwasher or crickets outside.

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Anita Ojeda

Anita Ojeda juggles writing with teaching high school English and history. When she's not lurking in odd places looking for rare birds, you can find her camping with her kids, adventuring with her husband or mountain biking with her students.

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