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Tea for Two // A Quiet One-on-One Gathering with God

by | Faith, Gatherings | 26 comments

Gathering each week to worship the One true God is life-giving.

Gathering with the One, quiet and alone, is a sacred delight.

 

This gathering requires no preparations. Simply come.

 

Sometimes, especially after a hard season in life, or in the middle of one, I find comfort in setting an intentional table for two. This tea time with God isn’t a weird “fluffy feel good” practice. It’s an intentional act that flies in the face of my enemy who never tires of reminding me of past sins or current failures.

But God’s nearness is the key that unlocks both my hope and joy. So I simply come.

Two teacups sit on my farm table. One cup holds a teabag. The other holds a place at the table, reminding me that my Heavenly Father’s presence is that near.

As the kettle whistles and the water pours, my cup blossoms into rich amber. Its rising fragrance reminds me of the incense that arose from the Holy of Holies, representing the prayers of God’s people.

Let my prayer be accepted as sweet-smelling incense in your presence. Psalm 141:2

 

As I sip my tea — time slows to a sacred pace. I sit still and quiet.

 

Be still and know that I am God. Psalm 46:10

There’s nothing natural about stilling the heart and mind. (Lately, it seems the more unnatural/uncomfortable something feels, the more convinced I am it is of God.) He wants us to know Him. I can’t wrap my head around this truth but I fully embrace it with every drop of gratitude possible.

Let these truths settle deep in the soul: God never hides from us, ignores our pain, or fiddles with a phone when we speak. Nothing is too small, too big, too high, or too wide for His reach. He is ever-present.

 

May these truths never wear thin in the fabric of our everyday lives.

 

As I sip my tea, I read His Word aloud, pray, and talk with Him as I would with a friend sitting across from me. Words aren’t always necessary, just like any relationship. “Happy masks” are exchanged for the freedom that is mine through Jesus. In Him, I can be me — a repeat offender, quirky, and quite the mess, but it’s in this same freedom I recognize that “being me” doesn’t negate my sinfulness. In fact, it highlights it, and for my good. So I confess and close out our time by thanking God for who He is:

  • Heavenly Father
  • Holy
  • Just
  • Forgiving, full of grace
  • Omniscient
  • Omnipresent
  • El Roi, the God who sees

 

The quiet power of our tea-for-two lingers long after the last sip, thanks be to Jesus.

 

Have you practiced something similar? Is there a particular name of God you’re leaning into these days? I’d love for you to share your thoughts with us in the comment section.

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Breathing New Life Into Our Time With God

by | Faith | 6 comments

Are you a creature of habit?

Confession: I use the same coffee mug for my morning brew (it’s 10 years old), enjoy almond butter toast every day by 7:30 a.m. and I use purple pens only for poetry. I also have the propensity to stick with the same routine when it comes to spending time with my Maker. 

The good thing about habits is that they provide predictability. 
The bad thing about habits is that they provide predictability.

On the one hand certainty brings stability, which inherently leads to comfort. We know what to expect and when to expect it. (I feel comforted already.) 

On the other hand some things can become so ordinary, so predictable, that its uniqueness wanders and wanes—including our time with God—if we’re brutally honest with ourselves. (My comfort level is quickly dwindling.) 

Time with God can look different for everyone, as well it should. As for me, I’ve done the same thing for many years (surprise!), including journaling, reading His Word, praying aloud, and studying. In recent years, however, I’ve sensed a need to kick predictability to the proverbial curb by trying fresh ways to connect with my heavenly Father, such as: 

  • Taking a walk around my backyard, thanking Him for even the slightest hint of creative handiwork. 
  • Singing to Him. 
  • Journaling with instrumental music playing in background.
  • Releasing the “doing” part of the time (studying, journaling, etc.) and simply “receiving” what He reveals to me in His Word.

Most recently, I signed up with Christ Notes to receive a randomly selected daily verse. I write it in my journal along with answers to the following questions:

  • What word or phrase speaks to me? 
  • What do I need to hear today? 
  • How do I respond?

You may want to give it a try! It’s not what I’ll use every day, but varying my time with God breathes life in to the routine and renews an appreciation for the fact that He didn’t create us to be robots, but rather, His children. 

And children are rarely predictable. 

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be
called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world
does not know us is that it did not know him. 1 John 3:1

How about you? Have you tried something new during your quiet time? Please share in the comment section! 

 

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