Last week I preached from Exodus 19 on how to prepare for a meeting with God. In preparing for that sermon I ran across a paragraph from Stephen Olford on how he practices his quiet time with the Lord. Stephen Olford has been a mentor preacher for me over the years. I've listened to him preach several times. He's been a model preacher for many. I appreciate his passion for expository preaching. Even though he's gone on to be with the Lord, his ministry is still going strong. Check out his website - http://stephenolford.com/
Here's what Dr. Olford shares about his own quiet time practice:
"I have a very, very simple procedure. I read from Genesis to Revelation. When I reach Revelation I go back to Genesis. Even though I have read it over the years—over and over and over again—never a morning with God that He does not reveal something new to me. I read the passage three times: First time generally, second time expositionally, third time personally. I let the Lord speak to me, showing me in His Word a promise to keep, a prayer to echo, a command to obey, a sin to confess, etc. I personalize it entirely and write in that form. And then I like to take what I have written and loosely turn that into prayer so that my prayers are not mechanical. It is not a Chinese wheel I can just put on and watch TV while it plays. It is a prayer that comes right out of my quiet time before I go into thanksgiving, intercessions, etc...My prayer list is a very interesting one. Monday-Missions. Tuesdays-Thanksgiving. Wednesday-Workers, staff, etc. Thursday-Tasks. Friday-Family. Saturday-Saints (so much of Paul’s praying was for the saints). And Sunday-Sinners. On the list of sinners for this present period of my life, one of them is a famous golfing figure that I’m praying for earnestly, because I believe if he were converted it would turn the youth world upside down. Anyway, I do have a prayer list, and under those headings. Now, it isn’t the length of time I spend in my quiet time, though I usually take an hour, but there is a carry-over of the activity of prayer, the attitude of prayer, that marks the rest of the day. I never pick up a telephone without a prayer. I never dictate a letter to my secretary without a prayer. I never let anybody into my study or out of my study without a prayer, and as my beloved workers know, any time we get together we say, ‘Let’s pray.’ And so, prayer is literally praying without ceasing. At the drop of a hat… and so I feel I live in that of perpetual prayer.”
Dr. Olford's quiet time set the stage for his entire day. I believe it will do the same for us.