Evening Sacrifice

Would you transfer the success of your morning devotion to your evenings?That was the voice that whispered so gently within my soul.

I knew it was a direct declaration of war. I knew it was an announcement of a fight. My morning devotion was truly successful, and I took pride in it.

But my evenings were my own. To me, it was, “Lord, I have paid my dues in the morning. I can’t give You all, not all my time. That would be a very churchy thing to do.” I argued within myself.

Developing a truly devotional life in the evenings was one of the most challenging spiritual disciplines I struggled to maintain.

Well, they say bad habits die hard. Growing up, my evenings were mine. I did what I liked. I could watch TV until I fell asleep, dreaming about what I had just watched.

I could watch movies until I saw myself as an actor. I could watch football until I saw myself playing on the field.

And then came phones, giving me even more opportunities and flexibility.

If I didn’t want to keep up with the boring routines of TV programs, I could decide exactly what to watch and catch up with the latest trends.

As almost sinless and innocent as these routines were, they were not adding anything meaningful to my spiritual growth.

I knew it, but I argued that I needed more time for myself. And using technology was how I thought I could use that time with myself. 

Then I got a whisper in my spirit that said, “You seem to love hearing what men have to say until you have lost your taste for what God has to say. Would you turn things around?”

That convicting but non-condemning whisper is nothing but the promptings of the Holy Spirit. calling a carefree soul to come up hither (Revelation 4:1).

For Satan can never encourage me to listen to spend time with God. For he loves not the things that be of God but the things that be of men (Mark 8:33).

However, breaking and rebuilding routines to establish an effective evening devotional life was very hard.

Most of the time, I would just do a quick spiritual whitewash, enough to quiet my conscience. Oh, the Lord still heard those quick whispers.

However, He wasn’t calling me to mere compliance; He was inviting me into fellowship.

I knew the Lord wanted more of my devotion, for deep calls unto deep (Psalm 42:7).

So I had to strike a deal with Him, that He would help me, for He is a very present help (Psalm 46:1).

I said, “Please Lord, You help me. Give me the mental strength to push away the vain things that charm me most. Help me prioritize my evening devotion.”

At one point, I struck a deal with myself too: I would first do a little praying and Bible reading before straying into social media or whatever else I loved doing.

Giving all was a struggle. But God doesn’t take halves. He’s been asking for more ever since.

The more I give Him, the more I want to give Him. That’s the only “selfish” part of God—I must warn you!

The more of yourself you give Him, the more He will want you to give.

For those of you with a well-structured morning devotional life, what lessons have you learned that you can transfer to your devotional life in the evening and vice versa?

Perhaps in the morning, you easily switch your phone off for a few minutes to make room for prayer.

Can you try doing the same for a few minutes in the evening and spend that time in prayer? It could just be a very few minutes!

Maybe you have a specific, non-negotiable time for your morning sacrifice. Can you transfer that success to your evening sacrifice as well?

Have a specific time, after dinner and after the children are in bed, when the house is pleasantly quiet, then offer your evening sacrifice—even if it means starting small and keeping it consistent.