The 20 Minute Challenge

Let me set the scene for you.

It’s a standard Tuesday evening.

Nothing ever happens on a Tuesday evening.

I come home from work.

Kick my shoes off.

Grab a bite to eat.

Throw myself onto the sofa.

Turn on my laptop and start watching a sport documentary on it.

Turn on my PlayStation and try to become the Madden 12 master.

Turn my phone onto loud to make sure I can hear all the messages from friends I think I will receive.

And just sit.

Sit all night multitasking my PlayStation, laptop, phone and fridge.

Playing PlayStation.

Frequently checking my phone for text messages.

Glancing at the background noise of the sports documentary from my laptop.

Tuesday evening.

Standard.

My “After work evening routine.”

Same thing every night.

Without fail.

Sitting on my sofa.

And that is the exact same place I would be if I hadn’t taken the 20 minute challenge.

Let me explain.

It was all a bit of blur.

My phone wasn’t doing me any favours.

No messages.

No whatsapps.

No texts.

No emails.

Nothing.

So I turned to Facebook.

Without fail you can have a conversation with anyone on that.

So I logged on.

And waited for someone to want to talk to me..

And waited.

And waited.

And waited

Waiting for someone to want to have conversation with me.

To tell me the latest gossip, to ask me my opinion on the sports story’s of the day, to ask for advice or guidance on a matter on their life.

Still nothing.

Nobody wanted me.

Just when I was about to sign out and admit defeat a good friend who I had the pleasure of meeting on a summer camp in Canada called Muskoka Woods popped up and asked me “good day bro?”

This was my chance.

I quickly moved the conversation from Facebook to skype so we could have some banter actually face to face even with the ever dodgy Internet connection and began to chat.

Nothing deep.

Nothing too serious.

Just chat.

Just about each other’s day.

Just general…..’stuff.’

By this time my daily “after work routine” was starting to dawn on me that it maybe wasn’t all that productive.

So I casually dropped it into conversation with my friend and asked him to inspire me.

To inspire me to get up off my sofa, to cook a gourmet dinner, to do 1000 press ups, to wash and iron every item of clothing I have.

To do something productive.

I just laid it out there, “inspire me man.”

And these were his words.

Nothing flashy.

Nothing over the top.

Nothing grand.

One simple question.

One question that has led me to write my first blog to you in over 2 months.

“Have you read the bible today?”

Simple as that.

“Have you read the bible today?”

As I quickly tried to blame the poor Internet connection for my delay in response I began to think, “read the bible today?!?!?! I haven’t read it in months!!!”

How was I going to maintain my outward Christian persona of the ever dedicated Christian who studied his bible day and night when deep down inside……I was ashamed to admit it how little thought it had even crossed my mind to read it.

There was no point lying.

No point putting on an act.

No point trying to hide it.

So I admitted it.

Admitted that I hadn’t read my bible for months.

I was ready and waiting for A WHAT!?!?! Reaction.

For shock.

For disappointment.

For hundreds of questions along the lines of “and you call yourself a follower of Jesus Christ yet you haven’t read your bible in months?!?!?”

However they didn’t come.

Not one.

However what did come was the 20minute challenge.

A challenge at first I turned my nose up at.

A challenge I brushed off.

However a challenge that has lead me to tell you all about the 20 minute challenge.

Let me tell you.

The 20 minute challenge is a simple challenge for a very simple guy, me.

My friend challenged me to spend 20minutes with God.

He told me to set my alarm on my phone for 20minutes, put it away, block out all outward distractions and spend 20 minutes of time with God.

Easy.

Simple as that.

Well.

Not so easy as it seemed.

When the Skype conversation was over I thought of every stalling technique possible to delaying the 20 minute challenge.

I turned on the TV.

Started replying to text messages on my phone.

I even started to fold clothes and make my bed.

Things were getting desperate.

I then realised how much I hate tidying and I couldn’t stall anymore and decided to step up to the challenge.

I found myself thinking “it’s only 20minutes, easy.”

I set my alarm for 20m, left it in the kitchen.

Jumped onto my bed and closed my eyes.

And began to smile.

Now if someone was to walk past me and look at me they would wonder what the heck I was smiling about but honestly, I was smiling because I knew I was in the presence of God.

After months of not even considering spending a quiet time with God he had me smiling within seconds.

I prayed a very simple prayer asking for God to just take over the next 20minutes and let happen what he wanted to happen and we would go from there and every time I pray that prayer he always responds.

You see, God has a funny way of popping up in just the right moment in my life.

So many times I can think of instances when what I have needed most, God has provided.

God has been there.

Tonight I picked up my Christmas present from my wee sister, a book called “The Air I Breathe” by Louie Giglio and started to read.

Now if any of you know me that is a rather big challenge for me because I am not much of a reader.

Give me the back pages of the news paper to read the latest sport new and I will read it within seconds.

But books.

Especially religious books.

No good.

I opened the book and read the first line.

“Don’t read The Air I Breathe unless you want to re-examine your life to see whom on what you are truly worshipping on a daily basis.”

Wow!!!

Never have I had a book ,which has told me stay away!

This was a challenge.

A challenge to me.

Was I willing to re-examine what did worship on a daily basis?

I had to step up to the mark.

As I nervously but eagerly turned the pages I was constantly challenged.

With each page a new perspective.

But with each page an underlying definition.

“Worship is our response to what we value most.”

I have now sat for 10 minutes thinking how the heck do I explain this but honestly the book does it better than I ever could so give it a read.

“that’s why worship is that thing we all do. Its what we’re all about on any given day. Because worship is about saying this person, this thing, this experience, this whatever is what matters most to me…it’s the thing I put first in my life. That thing might be relationship. A dream. Friends. Status. A name. some kind of pleasure. Whatever name you put on it, this thing or person is what you’ve concluded in your heart is worth most to you. And whatever is worth most to you is – you guessed it – what you worship.”

Big words.

I sat in silence after I read it.

I was honest with myself.

Recently I have not been worshipping God.

Because recently I have been valuing other things over him.

I have been worshipping my job, friends, status, girls, sports, computer, phone, PlayStation, food, car, social life, money, possessions, desires, dreams, wants, needs.

I have been worshipping my own desire to feel wanted or needed.

Simple was that.

To feel wanted.

But deep down I could never find it.

No matter how many hours I put in on Facebook trying to like everyone’s status or how many hours at work I put in trying to please my bosses.

I didn’t feel wanted.

I was worshipping the wrong things.

And I still am worshipping the wrong things.

Until I took the 20 minute challenge.

You see however simple and childish you may think it is, the 20 minute challenge has just gotten me to spend 1 hour with God.

1 hour more than I wouldn’t have spent if my friend didn’t challenge me to read my bible.

It challenged me to finally write a blog.

To get over my writers block of not having a ‘cool’ enough story that everyone would want to read of a funny YouTube video that everyone would comment on.

But the most important thing is the 20 minute challenge reconnected me with God.

Not any old God.

My God.

My God who showed up on a Tuesday evening.

My God who challenged me to think about my priorities in life and what time I was truly spending in worshipping him.

My God who helped me through the 20 minute challenge to realise that I need to be spending more time in God’s incredible glory to truly worship and learn about his incredible love and plan for my life.

And my God who has challenged me to share my 20 minute challenge story with you.

So the question is.

Are you ready to take on the 20 minute challenge?

Set an alarm for 20 minutes.

Get rid of all outward distractions.

And spend 20 minutes with God.

20 minutes.

For the 20 minute challenge.

Are you ready to take on the challenge?

 

Psalm 145:3

Great is the LORD! He is most worthy of praise! No one can measure his greatness.

 

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