Time with God

For many, daily quiet time with God is essential to have a successful day. On pp. 171-172 of Wild at Heart, John Eldredge goes into detail about why time with God is important:

Time with God each day is not about academic study or getting through a certain amount of Scripture or any of that. It's about connecting with God. We've got to keep those lines of communication open, so use whatever helps. Sometimes I'll listen to music; other times I'll read Scripture or a passage from a book; often I will journal; maybe I'll go for a run; then there are days when all I need is silence and solitude and the rising sun. The point is simply to do whatever brings me back to my heart and the heart of God. God has spared me many times from an ambush I had no idea was coming; he warned me in my time with him in the early morning about something that was going to happen that day. Just the other day it was a passage from a book about forgiveness. I sensed he was saying something to me personally. Lord, am I unforgiving? No, he said. About an hour later I received a very painful phone call -- a betrayal. Oh, you were telling me to be ready to forgive, weren't you? Yes.

God knows what we need. We just have to listen.

Risk taking with God

In "The Ultimate Treasure Hunt:  A Guide to Supernatural Evangelism Through Supernatural Encounters," Kevin Dedmon provides many interesting anecdotes about how God guides him to pray for specific people.

In one instance, however, God wanted to test Dedmon's willingness to take risk:

As I was standing on the curb, waiting for the teams to arrive, I noticed a young man walking toward me on the sidewalk. As he approached from about 50 yards away, a thought popped into my mind, 'Roger.' Is that a word of knowledge? I asked. All that I heard in response was, 'Roger.' By this time, the young man was about 20 yards away and quickly approaching. One more time I inquired, God, please let me know if this is a word of knowledge, and that You want me to minister to this young man. Once again, I heard 'Roger.'

The young man was now within ten yards, so I decided to take a risk and test out this word of knowledge I had received. So, as he began to pass me on the sidewalk, I said with as much confidence as I could muster, 'Excuse me, but is your name Roger?' I asked fully expecting that to be his name which would lead to an incredible divine appointment.

But, with a look of disdain, he jumped off the sidewalk, and said 'Noooo!' as if I were trying to 'pick up' on him. As he continued to walk down the street, I was filled with embarrassment, as it occurred to me how odd it was for a 45-year-old man to ask a 20-year-old if his name was 'Roger.'

Now, if his name had been Roger, I'm sure his response would have been different, but in this case, it just came off like I was some sort of predator. I thought about chasing him down to explain, but immediately realized that I would probably just make things worse. And then I thought, At least I did not say that God had told me that his name was Roger; at least I did not defame Christianity. He just thought I was a kook.

My next thought was, Thanks a lot, God. I just made a fool out of myself because I took a risk with a word of knowledge I thought You had given me. The response I heard shocked me, 'Kevin, I gave you the name 'Roger'.'

'What? You purposely gave me the wrong name?' I shot back. 'Yes, I did, because I want to see if you will continue to take risk even if you do not get the right information.' He went on to say that He was not interested in the success of the performance, but in the act of obedience, apart from the outcome.

For Dedmon, he considered this experience with God an indication that God is more interested in his risk taking than in his success.