How to Spend Time with God: Finding Your Secret Place
Updated: Oct 16
I want to ask you something:
Do you have a secret place with God?
Not just a place where you occasionally pray. I’m talking about a place where you can get away from the distractions, get quiet, and spend time alone with Him.
Because I believe every one of us needs a secret place.
QUICK ANSWER
Spending time with God begins by intentionally setting aside distractions and giving Him your attention. Find a quiet place where it can be just you and God.
Pray, meditate on His Word, listen, and expect Him to speak to your heart.
Your secret place doesn't have to be a literal closet. What matters is that you intentionally make room for fellowship with God.
The goal isn't simply to complete a religious routine.
It's relationship.
Prefer to Watch?
Watch Pastor Jack R. Pidgeon’s teaching on finding your secret place with God and discover why getting away from distractions can help you hear from God, receive revelation from His Word, and grow in your relationship with Him.
What Is the Secret Place With God?
Jesus talked about going into your room, shutting the door, and praying to your Father in secret.
I remember reading that one time and thinking, Well, Lord, I haven't gone into my closet.
So I did.
I went into my closet and shut the door.
And I'm telling you—it was dark!
When you get in there and can't even see your hand in front of your face, you find out pretty quickly how dark a closet can be.
But you know what?
I heard from God in that closet.
Why?
There weren't any distractions.
There wasn't a television playing. There wasn't traffic going by. There wasn't music playing. There wasn't something else competing for my attention.
It was just me and God.
That's what I'm talking about when I say you need a secret place.
It doesn't necessarily have to be a closet. Your secret place is a place where you can separate yourself from everything else for a while and give God your attention.
KEY TRUTH:
Your secret place isn't about finding a particular physical location. It's about intentionally creating a place where it can be just you and God.
You Don't Have to Pray for Hours to Spend Time With God
Sometimes we make spending time with God more complicated than it needs to be.
Jesus prayed all night.
I'm sorry—I don't think I've ever prayed all night!
I remember getting to a place where I could pray for an hour. Jesus asked His disciples, “Could you not watch with Me one hour?”
But today, when I look at my life, I realize that I'm praying off and on all day long.
I'll see a situation and it causes me to pray.
Something happens, and I pray.
Someone comes to mind, and I pray.
Prayer becomes part of your life.
So don't think your relationship with God is measured by whether you can say, I prayed for three hours today.
Start somewhere.
Set aside time for God, and then learn to fellowship with Him throughout your day.
Spending time with God isn't about following a rigid schedule. It's about making Him a priority in your everyday life.
When we learn how to put God first, we begin making room for Him instead of giving Him whatever time happens to be left over.
God Wants a Personal Relationship With You
Think about Adam and Eve.
God created them, and then He came to fellowship with them.
He wanted to walk with them.
He wanted relationship with His creation.
And He still wants that today.
God doesn't want to be somebody you only know from a distance.
He doesn't want a pen-pal relationship with you.
He wants a personal relationship.
I like to describe it as a face-to-face, nose-to-nose, eye-to-eye relationship with God.
Think about how you communicate with someone you love. When you have a best friend, you want to talk to them. You want to spend time with them. You want to share things with them.
God desires fellowship with His creation too.
And that's one of the reasons the secret place is so important.
The Secret Place Positions You to Hear From God
When I go into that quiet place, I'm doing something intentionally.
I'm positioning myself.
I call it a posture of expectation.
My posture of expectation says:
I'm getting away from the distractions because I'm expecting to hear from God.
No television.
No traffic.
No music.
No distractions.
Just God and me.
There's an expectation that when I get quiet before Him, He can reveal something to me through His Word and speak to my heart.
That's very different from squeezing God into whatever little space happens to be left in the day.
You're making room for Him.
And if you've been struggling to recognize His leading, learning to hear God's voice begins with giving Him your attention.
Your Secret Place May Look Different From Mine
Your secret place doesn't have to look exactly like mine.
I had a young man tell me one time that his secret place was on a surfboard out in the ocean.
I had a little trouble believing that!
I like to play golf, and God's with me on the golf course.
But that's not a secret place.
That's a public place!
The point isn't that everybody needs to find a closet.
Maybe you have a room in your house. Maybe there's somewhere in your garage where you can get alone. Maybe there's another quiet place where you know you won't be interrupted.
Find the place where it's just you and God.
That's your secret place.
What Happens When You Get Alone With God?
Something happens when you remove the distractions and spend time with God:
You begin to see things in His Word that you didn't see before.
I remember spending time with the Lord and thinking about the passage where Jesus told His disciples to go find a colt that had never been ridden, loose it, and bring it to Him.
I remember thinking:
Lord, if You can use a donkey, You must be able to use ol' Jack Pidgeon!
But as I got quiet before God, I began to see something else in that passage.
Go.
Find.
Loose.
Bring.
That began to speak to me about the gospel.
Go.
Find people.
Loose them from bondage.
And bring them to Jesus.
I came out of that secret place seeing something in the Word that I hadn't seen when I went in.
That's why I believe God has a secret place for you.
When you get quiet before Him and give Him your attention, He can show you things through His Word that you need for your life.
The Secret Place Can Bring Clarity When Life Is Difficult
Maybe you're having a hard time understanding what's happening in your life.
Maybe you're struggling in a relationship.
Maybe you're dealing with something and you don't know what to do next.
Our first reaction is often to look everywhere else for an answer.
We talk to people.
We think through every possible scenario.
We worry.
We try to figure everything out.
But there comes a time when you need to shut the door.
Turn off the television.
Put away the distractions.
Get quiet.
And spend time with God.
If your thinking has become overwhelmed by everything happening around you, spending time in God's presence and renewing your mind with God's Word can help bring your attention back to what He has said.
Spending Time With God Isn't About a Religious Checklist
The secret place isn't about earning something from God.
It's about fellowship.
That's why I don't want you to read this and think, Well, Pastor, how many minutes do I have to pray?
That's not the point.
God wants you.
He wants your attention.
He wants fellowship with you.
He wants you to know Him.
There may be days when you spend a longer period of time alone with God. There may be other days when you have that focused time and then continue talking with Him throughout your day.
What matters is that your relationship with God becomes part of your life.
How to Start Spending Time With God
If you don't have a secret place right now, don't make it complicated.
1. Find a Quiet Place
Find somewhere you can be alone without constant interruption.
It might be a room, a closet, a garage, or another quiet place.
The location isn't the point.
Getting alone with God is.
2. Remove the Distractions
Turn off the television.
Put away anything that keeps pulling your attention somewhere else.
Create an environment where you can become quiet before God.
3. Bring God's Word With You
Don't make your secret place only about talking.
Spend time in Scripture.
Read slowly enough to think about what you're reading.
God's Word is powerful, everlasting, and it changes lives.
4. Pray
Talk to God.
You don't need impressive words.
You don't have to perform.
You're spending time with your Father.
Tell Him what's on your heart. Pray about what's happening in your life. Pray for other people.
5. Listen
Don't spend the entire time talking.
Get quiet.
Remember that posture of expectation.
You're not trying to force God to say something. You're positioning yourself to listen and allowing His Word to speak to your heart.
6. Expect God to Help You
Come expecting.
If you need peace, direction, wisdom, or understanding, believe that spending time with God matters.
You may not walk out of your secret place with every question answered.
But you're developing a relationship with the One who sees what you can't see.
7. Keep Talking With God Throughout Your Day
Your secret place shouldn't be the only time you acknowledge God.
Let prayer become part of your everyday life.
When something happens, pray.
When somebody comes to mind, pray.
When you need wisdom, pray.
Spend focused time with God, and then carry that fellowship with you throughout the day.
God Has a Secret Place for You
I believe God is calling us back to that place where it's just us and Him.
Maybe you've been distracted.
Maybe life has gotten busy.
Maybe you've been struggling with something and you can't seem to find the answer.
Find your secret place.
Shut the door.
Get quiet.
Open the Word.
Pray.
Listen.
And expect God to meet you there.
I believe God wants to reveal things to you that you need right now.
You have a purpose for living.
And as you spend time with God, He can help you understand that purpose and teach you how to walk it out.
Find your secret place.
And spend time with Him.
Ready to Grow Closer to God?
At West Houston Christian Center, we’re passionate about helping people know God’s Word, grow in their relationship with Him, and become the disciples He has called them to be.
We are a Go Ye church—making disciples, living by faith, and walking in love.
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