By Casey Nickerson, Contributing Writer

I have recently started to journal/write things down during my quiet time. For me, things seem to *stick* more when I write and how nice it will be when my children are grown, they can look back at this and see all the things that Mom was praying for them.

So before I tell you how I manage my quiet time, I will talk about what I use and what I do first.

I LOVE binders!! I use them for everything, so I thought it would be a good choice for my quiet time. I didn’t want anything big and bulky, so I found a smaller size binder (just a little bigger than my bible) at staples. It is from the Martha Stewart line. I have one section where I journal on scripture. I will often come across scripture that speaks to something in my life at the moment so I write about it.  I use the SOAP method.  Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer.  The next 3 sections are devoted to prayers for my husband, prayers for my daughter and prayers for my son. The last section is dedicated to prayers for others and a place where I can jot down things I want to remember from church seminars etc.

MAKING Time

So now on to finding time! We actually don’t need to find time because it’s already there! We need to MAKE time. How often do we as mothers complain of exhaustion so we sit, just for a moment, to catch up on social media, browse pinterest, watch tv etc..?? I know I’m guilty too! We are not actually resting when we do these things, just zoning out. So if you have time for these things you have time for ‘quiet time’ if you want it.

In The Morning

Wake up just 30mins. before your children. I know this may not be practical for some of you Mom’s that have children that are up before the sun! but if not, it’s only 30 mins. I will GUARANTEE you that you will not miss that extra 30mins. of sleep and you will have started your day more refreshed and more focused which in turn will bring down your stress levels.

In The Afternoon

Squeeze it in during the afternoon! This is when I like to do my quiet time. When the afternoon rolls around my kids start to wind down a bit. They are content to sit and watch a movie or a quiet activity like coloring, play-dough  crafts etc. So it will sit and do my quiet time at the kitchen table. I would be lying if I said my kids sit quietly and never interrupt me during this LOL I tend to my kids, keep focused and then get back to it. Some of you may have children that take a nap in the afternoon, that’s a great opportunity to get your quiet time in!

In The Evenings

Evenings/before bed. This is when I like to review notes from a ladies morning bible study I recently joined. Have you ever curled up in the evening with a good book? Got caught up in it for a few hours! Why not do the same with Gods word? Now I’m not saying that you can’t read a book in the evenings anymore except your bible…just manage your time better. Have your quiet time with God first and if you still want to have more time after to read a book …etc. go ahead, if not, go to bed. Simple as that. It’s all in making the most out of our time and managing it well. Minimizing the time wasters and things that zone us out and setting our priorities straight.

I would love to hear your tips on how you fit quiet time into your day when you have little ones at home and would love to see your prayer/scripture journals as well!

~Casey