Connections - Hannah Whitall Smith

1832–1911

What if you asked everyone you ran into today, “How have you been lately?” How many would answer, “Busy”? We are, as a culture, busy. Very busy.

We can go weeks without seeing the friends and family who mean the most to us. Sometimes we can go days without having a real conversation with the people who live in our house. Have you ever texted someone in the next room with a quick question? Go on, admit it. You probably have.

We say we want to take the time to form deeper connections with those who mean the most to us, but then we say we don’t have the time. In reality, we don’t make the time. It’s easy to have the same problem when it comes to spending time with God. This may seem like a modern problem, but it’s not.

In the nineteenth century, Hannah Whitall Smith wrote about this same problem. “How often we say about our earthly friends, ‘I really would like to have a good quiet settled talk with them so that I can really get to know them.’ And shouldn’t we feel the same about our Heavenly Friend, that we may really get to know Him? These thoughts have taught me the importance of the children of God taking time to commune daily with their Father, so that they may get to know His mind and to understand better what His will is.”

Author of the devotional classic The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life, Hannah was a popular author and speaker. Her “Higher Life” conferences inspired many believers to make time for God.

As we know from our human relationships, just saying we want to spend time with people doesn’t make it happen. The deepening of a relationship depends on a commitment to be with that person, no matter how busy we are. It’s the same with God. We can go a long time without spending serious time with our Creator. Oh, we might shoot quick prayers heavenward, as needed, and that’s fine. Better to have some communication with God, even if it’s quick. But Hannah Whitall Smith would urge us to focus on God, to dedicate the time necessary to truly connect with him—not only calling for help, but also intently listening to his wise guidance.

As the deer longs for streams of water, so I long for you, O God.

Psalm 42:1