Patio Time With God

Sometimes we don't realize the extent of God's desire to meet with us. This 1-minute devotion offers some wonderful, comforting insights.


I'm sure it will be no surprise to you that I love communication.

I enjoy talking to my loved ones about feelings, ideas, life, and God.

I cherish genuinely spoken repentance; deliberate, persevering discussions to resolve conflict; shared sorrows and joys.

That's one reason I enjoy remembering a Saturday morning in 2013 when I sat on the patio with my granddaughters who'd spent the night. 

While they sipped my grammy coffee (milk flavored with a little decaf coffee and lots of sugar), we talked little-girl-Grammy talk.

They told me about the mistreatment of a handicapped child, someone's rude comments about a birthmark, and tattoos. 

And I told them about a problem I had in fifth grade.

We'd played grocery store, watched Veggie Tales, drawn pictures, and eaten out the night before. But this patio time was my favorite part. 

I think God feels the same.

He loves hanging out with us, listening to our stories, and telling us His (Revelation 3:20; Zephaniah 3:17; Psalm 34:18Psalm 147:11; Isaiah 1:18).

This sweet memory challenges me to daily schedule patio time with Jesus. How about you?

You might enjoy this 1-minute devotion which expands on this theme: 5 Benefits of a Coffee Date with Jesus.

Why not add some more of God's Word to your schedule by having a 1-minute devotion delivered to your email each weekday. Sign up for a free subscription to Bible Love Notes and get a free e-booklet. Find out more HERE.


How do we handle long-term problems in life?  Matthew 6:34 gives us wise advice to alleviate unnecessary stress and worry.


 

Sometimes we don't realize the extent of God's desire to meet with us. This 1-minute devotion offers some wonderful, comforting insights.


Bible Love Notes

16 comments:

  1. Your posts are always so refreshingly sweet!! I had that sort of time with my college daughter today with me sitting in the kitchen and her in the living room. She shared her thoughts and asked me about some things back a long time ago when I was in college (like what was my GPA-bleh!!). I think when we spend 'patio time' with God early as possible in our day we are most ready for 'patio time' with those we love most dearly.

    Great post and thanks so much for the heads up about your Linky Party!! I hope LOTS stop by to share in your community!!

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  2. I look forward to those "grandma days and years," Gail. I've got a 23, 19 and 17 year old with no serious prospects in sight, so I may be an "old" lady before they get around to it! Who am I kidding? I'm already an "old" lady! haha! Thanks for giving us a peek into precious moments with your granddaughters. They are sll so sweet looking! And thanks for hosting, my friend!

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  3. Very simple and to the point - like all of your lovely posts! It's only been the last decade or so when I came to realize that God really does take a personal interest in me and in my life. As you stated, he wants us to confide in him, ask for advice, for forgiveness and offer thanksgiving. And of course he was present there with you and your beautiful little granddaughters! (I think he might have passed on the sugar-coffee though!)

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  4. Patio time with God - love it! :)

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  5. What precious times you must have! How lovely that you can speak into their lives. My children are very close to my mom and they were close to my dad too, until he passed away. I appreciate and encouraged my parents to take an active part in their lives and I am blessed that they were willing to do that.

    I have friends whose parents have NO interest in spending time with their grandkids, and it's sad! One of my friend's mom won't baby sit, she said "I raised my kids. It's your turn to raise yours." Thanks for hosting!

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  6. Reading this dear Gail makes me realize how similar we both are, I too love conversations, connecting with people at a deep level . You are blessed to have your little ones to share with them so much wisdom God has giving you with. I truly hope one day I will be able to be surrounded by my own grand-kids.
    Love you and thank you for your example!

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  7. Endearing story. Especially love your last line and the idea of Him listening to our stories! :) "He loves hanging out with us, listening to our stories, and telling us His." ~ Pam, apples of gold, http://wordglow.wordpress.com

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  8. What a precious time spent with your granddaughters and the girl talk they felt free to share with you.
    Yes, I agree that God loves it when we share even the little things with Him. We do not need to wait until we have something BIG to share, but he is ever ready to hear our whispered bits of stories and thanksgiving.

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  9. Dear Claire
    I cannot agree more. Those precious, special times with our Pappa just like His little children we truly are! Thank you for reminding us how our Pappa is all for simplicity!!
    Blessings
    Mia

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  10. Thanks for the message you left on my site. May God bless you richly for your faithfulness in sharing him.

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  11. Gail....I agree with you that those sweet heart conversations are the most precious and heart changing. Thank you for the encouragement and for sharing at WJIM. Have a blessed week friend.

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  12. Ohhhh - so sweet! I love that! I may need to borrow this idea!

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  13. Great post, Gail. My wife, Gayle, is also called Grammy by our grandchildren. We have a close relationship with them and they can talk to us about anything. Gayle and our granddaughter, Alexis, now 19, are BFF. Our chats with them seem to have helped them through a lot of growing up problems. And, yes, we discuss God with them and His importance in all our lives.
    Rick

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    1. Love hearing how grandparents are impacting the lives of their grandchildren. You are blessed and your grandchildren are blessed to have you!

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  14. 10+ years later, and I stumbled upon this blog and it is DEF encouranging. Thanks, for sharing your story with your granddaughters (who are also 10+ years older ;-). Especially the bible verses. I included them in my "Salvation" scripture when I want to invite the unsaved to Christ.

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