How to Make Time For God | 7 Secrets to Staying Connected with God on Your Busiest Days

Have you been struggling to make time for God? I’m right there with you!

I currently work 40 hours a week at a traditional job (plus 10 hours commuting there and back), 10-15 hours a week freelancing, and the rest of my time caring for my family and home. Where the heck are we supposed to find extra time in our schedules, am I right?!

But if you’re anything like me, you’ve felt the difference that not making time for God can make. I’m more self-centered and impatient, frustrated by the smallest triggers, and more easily distracted and beaten down by daily worries and concerns.

So what’s the solution when your schedule is already beyond packed? Well, I’m far from having all the answers, but this is what’s helping me to make time for God in this busy season!

Simple Ways to Make Time For God

• Wake up earlier. Easier said than done, I know! But I’ve personally found the mornings to be the simplest time to make time for God. Nothing’s come along yet to distract me or demand my time, my family is usually still sleeping (and not yet requesting chocolate milk), and my home is quiet and dark. I make a whole thing of it! I light a candle with a calming scent, keep the lights low, and sip a coffee while reading my Bible and praying for my family every morning. But to get to that point, I had to take it in steps. The first morning, I woke up just 5 minutes earlier. The next morning, I tried 10. I slowly worked my way up to waking up 30 minutes earlier, and am now able to set the tone for my entire day before the day ever begins.

• Involve your kids. Maybe your kids wake up at the crack of dawn or don’t afford you much personal space. If that’s the case, do it anyway! You could read from a kids Bible or devotional with them, or simply allow them to observe you reading your own Bible. Your actions will set an example and demonstrate making faith a priority. (Need more tips for teaching kids about Jesus? Get them here!)

• Play the Bible or uplifting, Christian music in the background as often as possible. Sitting at your desk at work? Busy cooking or cleaning the house? Knocking out a home project? The Bible app will read the Bible aloud any time you see and press the play button on the bottom of the screen. I may not always be able to devote my full attention to what’s being read, but you’d better believe the bits and pieces I’m taking in are making a difference. Find reading too distracting? Then try playing uplifting, Christian music in the background instead. Most cities air K-LOVE, Air1, or both. If yours doesn’t, you can also stream them directly from your computer or their respective apps. Again, you might not be able to devote your entire attention to every word of every song, but your heart is taking them in, and shifting your focus back to God throughout your day.

• Utilize commute time. What are you doing as you drive to and from work each day? Or driving from one errand to the next? Are you listening to the radio? Getting worked up over bad drivers? Fighting the temptation to check social media at every stoplight? If you’re stuck in the car anyway, you might as well make the most of your time! Listen to a Christian audio book or devotional (or the Bible!) being read, or play Christian radio or worship music.

• Start small. If 30+ minutes feels like an overwhelming commitment to add to your day, start with 5. Lots of devotionals on the Bible app take just 5 minutes to read, and help to focus your devotional time on any number of themes, such as depression, anxiety, motherhood, and more. Once you’ve added just 5 minutes of devotional time to your day, try bumping it up to 10 the following week. I found that the more time I spent with God, the more I began to long for that time, and to find ways to fit more in. (Looking for a little guidance in this area? Check out The 40 Best Devotionals for Women!)

• Recognize mindless habits. Do you scroll social media for several hours every day? Or binge watch tv from the time you get home to the time you go to bed? If you’re not feeling 110% fulfilled by any activity, consider swapping some of that mindless/zone out time for time in God’s word or prayer. I’m usually just scrolling Facebook out of boredom. So I might as well crack open my Bible or a Christian book (This is my current favorite!) and dive into something that really engages my heart and improves my life. I’m not saying that you should never scroll social media or binge watch tv, but that we can make time for God by borrowing some time from other activities.

• Make time, not excuses, for church and related activities. We were never meant to live at the church, but to be out making disciples. (That’s a whole other topic!) At the same time, it’s important to make time at least once a week to be there, and to worship and study God’s word in community with others. If you have the room in your schedule, consider joining a small group if your church offers one. My own women’s small group meets for just 1-2 hours every other week. But it provides me with the Christian fellowship and encouragement I need to power through those weeks between. No, church isn’t a requirement of your faith, but it sure helps to keep you connected to your faith! (Click here for more reasons to make church a priority!)

Wrap It Up

You can absolutely make time for God every day if you properly utilize your time! By waking up earlier, filling the background with an uplifting message, taking advantage of downtime, and starting small, you’ll find you experience more peace and connection with God every day.

What tricks have you found to make time for God amidst a hectic schedule? Be sure to share in the comments!

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