Then Jesus returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. Could you men not keep watch with me for 1 hour? He asked. Matthew 26 40 gethsemane was hard. It was the eve of Jesus arrest and crucifixion. Tomorrow would be a long day. Jesus had taken Peter, James and John with him, leaving them. At one point he went off by himself to pour out his anguished heart before God. While he was gone, the trio, no doubt emotionally and physically tired themselves, nodded off. When Jesus returned, he found them sleeping. Could you not keep watch with me for 1 hour? He asked. All of us have a lot to do maintaining a devotional time each day is not easy. With so much going on around us, there is a constant temptation to push devotion time to the bottom of our daily to do list. We need to resist that temptation. Our daily time with the Lord is critical. Taking a few minutes each day to read the Bible, pray and think seriously about life and spiritual things is a necessary part of the christian life. Without it, a persons relationship with the Lord will most likely grow stale and lifeless. George Stebbins urges us to take time to be holy, speak oft with the Lord, he says. Abide in him always, and feed on his word. It may help to use a good devotional guide. There are a lot of them available. My utmost for his highest by Oswald Chambers and the imitation of Christ by Thomas Akin campus are two of my own personal favorites, but there are many others. These devotionals usually include a scripture reading and a devotional thought to make you think a bit. Of course, I don't think you can beat a good daily Bible reading plan either. But no matter what you decide to use, guides like these can help keep you steady in daily devotions regardless of your very busy schedule. I know we all have a lot of important things to do, and I know that we are all pressed for time most of the time. But honestly, if we are too busy to spend a few minutes with the Lord each day, we are simply too busy. Jesus died for us. Can we not spend even a few minutes with him each day?

This has been your thought for the day with Steve Burkham, pastor of Community Christian Church in Stockton, California. If you have questions or comments for Pastor Steve, please send them to Daily thoughtspodcastmail.com dot. Have a great day and we hope you'll join us tomorrow as Pastor Steve opens God's word to bring us another thought for the day.