Dotsie, I know what you mean with all of this. There have been long stretches of time in my life (the single years) when God was everything - my entire day and life revolved around Him - but those were also the times when the loneliness was most suffocating. And then hubby came along, and there were long stretches of time when I was so busy that I completely "forgot" to spend any time with Him at all - but those were the stretches of time when I was the least lonely. I figured that the absence of that suffocating loneliness was also a gift from God, so I didn't worry too much about not being able to spend as much time with Him.

Now I have time and energy to find better balance...and am finding that it's never the same two days in a row. Some days I'm in constant awareness of God even while attending to hubby and the needs of the day. Other days life gets hectic and I "lose sight of Him"...and miss Him terribly. I think you have the answer, in carving out special time together...just as we do for hubbies and children and other loved ones, so too for God. Some days I crave more of Him, so will find pockets of time throughout the day to just sit still and be with Him; other days I feel His presence throughout the day's activities and it's enough.

I think that when we're in tune to it, something inside of us, perhaps the Holy Spirit, helps us to find the balance that fits our yearnings. It comes down to listening to that voice deep inside of us, then carving whatever amount of time will allow us to spend "enough" time with Him, whatever "enough" is for today.

How to do that around husbands, children, work, chores and day-to-day living is, well, I guess it involves some understanding that we ARE human (and meant to be human!) and perhaps (I'm addressing this part to myself here) I need to lighten up and enjoy the great life He's given me without worrying about Him so much...if that makes sense.