The 20-Minute Challenge

Step 1:  (Preparation)

Turn it off, we're taking a mini-vacation from counting our "likes" on Instagram. Let's silence our phones, and lay them on a surface with screens facing down. This step is for anyone, like myself, who may twitch at the sound of an alert.

·      You may also want to clear the area around you in case this is distracting for you as well. Find a quiet place, and close the door if you can.

·      If you have a favorite devotional book, you can pull it out to read a small portion, or follow the one I will provide in this challenge. Pull out your Bible too.

Step 2:  (5 minutes of prayer)

Close your eyes and tell the Lord why you’re taking this “break” from distractions. Take as much time as you need to tell Him if there are any troubling thoughts, worries or concerns on your mind at the moment.

You may find this takes more than 5 minutes, and that is perfectly fine. In fact, open communication between you and the Lord is worth the time spent, so don’t rush the conversation. Ask Him for clarity, peace, and wisdom as you begin to listen to what He has to say in His Word.

Step 3:  (10 minutes of reading)

Read John 1:1-18

Read John 16:16-33

Read 1 John 3:1-10

·      Underline what stands out to you.

·      Write down any connections you make.

Step 4:  (5 minutes of reflection)

Take a minute to comprehend the plan of God, aside from thinking about your own life. Try to understand the perspective of His will and Christ’s work for the world and for believers. Now, bring your own life to the table.

·      How important are your plans compared to God’s?

·      Whose plan have you been working to accomplish?

·      How big is God’s plan of salvation? How much did He choose to love you?

·      And what do you think you might do about that today?

Congratulations on completing the 20-minute challenge! By now you have probably realized that the time spent in prayer, reading and reflection went quickly because you have tasted and seen the Lord’s goodness. It becomes less of a challenge to avoid distraction and more of an annoyance to keep a 20-minute time frame. But before you open the door and grab your phone, remember that feeling of quiet rest and make a choice to come back soon. It could be the same day, tomorrow or the next, but know that it is never wasted time to be refreshed by the Spirit and the Word. And when you do come back to this place of rest, good luck keeping it at 20 minutes!

20-minute Challenge for the Technology Twitch

Before I forget what this post is about, I want to share a quote about being sidetracked by technology. Nicole Whitacre, daughter of Pastor and author CJ Mahaney, contributed this perspective on her mother and sister’s blog, girltalk.

On how easy it is to revert to Facebook at any moment, she said, “I once heard a woman—some time management expert I think—suggest that the reason some office workers check their email compulsively is because they don’t know what to do next. Without a clear understanding of the purpose of their job, what it takes to get it done, or, for that matter, much desire to finish it, the noise announcing a new email becomes a welcome interruption.”

In 2013, we no longer day dream between tasks; instead, we look to our email and Facebook and Instagram and Twitter and text messages and – why hasn’t that person responded – check again, check again, you never know!

Our thought patterns are constantly interrupted, and we are pulled from the present into another conversation or idea that wasn’t around a second ago. So if you find that such convenient communication and information begins to cloud your vision for today, consider taking the 20-minute challenge. 

Click on this post's title to be redirected to the challenge!