Why Are So Many Pushing Back on Quiet Time… and Are They Right?
Key Takeaways
(Short on time? Start here.)
➤ The Bible Means Something Before It Means Something to You.
➤ Method Is an Act of Humility, Not Control.
➤ Faithful Interpretation Requires Patience Before Obedience.
A friend recently sent me an Instagram reel of Jen Wilkin being interviewed on a podcast. In it, she says, with unmistakable conviction, “I am on an absolute rampage against quiet time culture. An absolute terror.”
I laughed at first. Then I leaned in. My friend Caitlyn added, “This reminded me of something you’ve been talking about lately.” And she was right. Not because I’m opposed to time with God. Quite the opposite. But because I’ve felt, for a long time now, that something about the way we talk about “quiet time” doesn’t quite sit right.
Jen goes on to describe the familiar scene: fifteen minutes, half-awake, in the dark, trying to get coffee down before reading a verse or two. She acknowledges that something can happen there. But then she names the deeper problem. Quiet time culture often makes a false promise and a false threat. If you do this, your day will go well. If you don’t—pow—it won’t.
This is where I paused. I agree with her in that “quiet time” should never function as a superstitious tool to keep us compliant in our spiritual disciplines. But I part ways slightly with the conclusion; not in opposition, but in emphasis. Time with God is not a talisman we rub to make the day go better. And yet, it is also not neutral. Scripture consistently teaches a quieter, sturdier truth: we reap what we sow. If we do not sow attentiveness to God, if we do not plant ourselves in Scripture, prayer, and presence, then the question is not whether consequences follow, but what we are actually cultivating instead.
This isn’t superstition. It’s formation. You don’t read Scripture to secure a good day. You read Scripture because over time it reshapes what you love, what you notice, and what you trust. The effect is not immediate reward, but slow reorientation. To be fair, I don’t think she’s arguing against that reality. I think we’re circling the same concern from different angles. She’s guarding against fear-based discipline. I’m guarding against the idea that habits don’t shape us at all.
That’s the conversation I want us to have. The question of how to “quiet time” and why.
What Quiet Time Is and Isn’t
Quiet time was never meant to carry the full weight of Christian formation on its own. Somewhere along the way, we quietly asked it to do far more than it was designed to do. For many women, quiet time has become the place where devotion, discipline, guilt, growth, and faithfulness all collide. And when life is loud, when mornings are foggy, when you’re already tired before the day begins, it can start to feel like one more place you’re falling short.
Most women I know don’t avoid Scripture because they don’t love God. They avoid it because the way they’re engaging it no longer feels life-giving. They read out of obligation instead of attention. They rush through chapters, retain almost nothing, and walk away feeling vaguely disappointed in themselves. Not convicted. Just tired.
That matters.
Because spiritual habits sustained primarily by pressure eventually lose their power to form us. What was meant to draw us into communion can slowly become a performance to complete or a task to resent. The danger isn’t reading too little. The danger is turning something sacred into something hollow.
Scripture never asks us to rush. It asks us to dwell (Colossians 3:16), to meditate (Joshua 1:8), and to let the Word of God take up residence in us (Deuteronomy 11:8). Reading less and actually attending to God may shape us more deeply than reading more and remembering nothing. Quiet time was never about giving God the most impressive slice of your schedule. It was about learning to order your life around His voice in a way that is honest, sustainable, and real.
Is It A Sin If I Don’t Read My Bible Every Day?
So let’s talk honestly about guilt. No, Scripture does not give us a daily reading quota. However, we must keep in mind that the people who first received God’s Word did not own personal Bibles. Scripture was heard aloud, repeated, memorized, spoken, carried in the heart long before it was held in the hand. God was not less present then, and faithfulness was not thinner.
That context matters. Especially for women who already feel like they’re constantly behind. But the conversation can’t end there. Because habits shape us, whether we acknowledge it or not. And people quite literally gave their lives so that you could hold Scripture in your own hands. Missing a day is not a sin. But neglect is never neutral. Over time, quiet drift forms us just as surely as intentional practice does.
Which means the question is not, “Did I check the box today?” It’s, “Is God’s Word being given any space to live in me at all?”
Scripture doesn’t warn us most often about missed disciplines. It warns us about hardened hearts. And hearts harden far more frequently through slow inattention than through open rebellion. Also, to not read your Bible is to not know your God. You cannot know someone you never listen to. And you cannot meditate on a Word you never take in.
This is why reading AND meditation matters. Not as a mystical add-on. Not as an advanced practice for serious Christians. But as the way Scripture was always meant to be engaged. Biblical meditation is not emptying the mind. It is returning to God’s words again and again until they begin to stay with you. Until they accompany you through your day. Until they quietly shape how you see, think, and respond.
Which means the question is not, “Did I check the box today?” It’s, “Is God’s Word being given any space to live in me at all?”
The Two Extremes
Right now, many women are caught between two unhelpful extremes. One is performative devotion, where long quiet times become proof of seriousness and guilt fills the gap when life no longer allows for them. The other is devotional minimalism, where “something is better than nothing” quietly becomes an excuse to stop pursuing depth altogether.
Both miss the heart of it. God is not after impressive fruit. He’s after real fruit. And real fruit grows slowly, in season. Winter does not look like summer, and faithfulness does not look the same in every stage of life. Ten minutes of real attention can be deeply faithful. An hour without hunger can still be avoidance. What matters is not duration, but desire.
And this is where I want to be very clear.
I am not saying, “Read however you want.” Scripture matters, and how we engage it matters. If you need help getting started, check out our blog 5 Ways to Stop Skimming Scripture and Actually Start Getting It. But I am saying this: read without self-contempt.
Because shame has never produced holiness. It only turns our attention inward, toward our failure, when Scripture was meant to draw our attention outward, toward God. Guilt may spark movement for a moment, but it cannot sustain love. And the Christian life is meant to be sustained by love.
Scripture was not given to haunt you. It was given to draw you near. So stop approaching it like a tribunal where you stand accused, and start approaching it like a table where you are invited. Sit down. Stay awhile. Let God speak without rushing Him.
And finally, remember this. You were never meant to do this alone. Scripture was written to be heard together, wrestled with together, returned to together across seasons of life. Quiet time matters, but it was never meant to carry the full burden of formation by itself. At The Bold Movement, we are not replacing quiet time. We are simply relieving it of expectations it was never designed to bear.
So find one person. Read together. Talk about what you notice. Think out loud. Let someone challenge you. Let someone help you see what you missed. Don’t just consume Scripture. Let it form you in community. Try it. Not to prove anything. Not to keep up. But because your faith deserves more than pressure, it deserves attention.
Next Steps
● Circle: Low bandwidth, high desire
If this post felt like relief to you, don’t carry it alone.
Next step: Share this post with one friend and ask, “Do you want to read something short together this week?” You don’t need more time. You need companionship.
☐ Square: High hunger, ready for depth
If this stirred something in you, you’re likely ready to linger.
Next step: Explore Ashborne. Ashborne is for the woman who wants Scripture to slow her down, not speed her up. It’s not about covering ground. It’s about staying put long enough to be changed. If you’ve been craving depth without noise, this is where we’d send you.
▲ Triangle: New or rebuilding confidence
If this made you feel less behind and more curious, start here.
Next step: Visit our blog that shares the 4 Things No One Tells You When You First Start Reading the Bible. You don’t need to master Scripture yet. You just need to learn how to walk with it.
❥ Heart: Studying with someone else
If this made you wish faith felt more shared, try this together.
Next step: Read one post or plan aloud together this week. Formation deepens when Scripture is heard, not just read.
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