I love asking people of faith about their practices.
Cathy says she is reading through the whole Bible with the Moody Bible Commentary by her side. She also reads a daily devotional called Jesus Calling.
Susie writes verses on index cards and places them on her car’s dashboard and the bathroom mirror. She is memorizing God’s word so His voice can speak into life’s trials and joys.
Judy uses a free app called ‘First 5″ which provides a short reading and commentary “so you can exchange whispers with God before shouts from the world”.
Donna loves an app called “YouVersion” where she creates verse images to send to friends. This app offers Bible studies on joy, grief, marriage, leadership, loneliness, whatever life throws at you.
Donna also sets her phone alarm for midday; not to remind her of an appointment, but to play a hymn and display a message such as, “Do not worry. I am with you. I love you. Jesus”. Her grandson may hear it and squeal, “Hey Mimi, Jesus is calling you!”
My brother, Charles, prefers a more liturgical approach and uses the Book of Common Prayer. But this never replaces actual Scripture which he has by his side.
The tissuey pages of their Bibles are worn – highlighted, underlined, and filled with notes. Some have the initials MV (Memory Verse) sprinkled throughout. Some pages chronicle answers to prayer.
These godly folks may also have devised “prayer closets” in their homes. The idea comes from the movie, War Room. It’s a place where you speak to God in private, write down your pleas and praises, and just BE in his presence.
As for me, I don’t have a closet, but I’ve been know to sit on Jared’s old skateboard in a basement corner. And being a bit ADHD, I’ve used journals, apps, Bible paraphrases, commentaries, studies, post-it notes, index cards, prayer boxes. I’m certain God gets bored with all these clever tools of mine!
For these devices are meaningless unless they draw my attention to the Creator and remind me of my chief aim in life — what I was created for – what gives true joy.
Q – What is the chief end of man?
A – Man’s chief end is the glorify God and to enjoy him forever.
John Wesley is reported to have said, “I have so much to do, that I must spend several hours in prayer before I am able to do it.”
Time well spent I’d say.
Shadows and Shelters 
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