Deep breaths. A cup of coffee. Running my fingers over keys. A beautiful sunset followed by a starry sky. These are ways I make space in my life. 

Making space isn’t unproductive and isn’t the same thing as inactivity. Making space is intentional, and I would say critical. Why?  

When we don’t make space, we lose all margins in our lives. Stress levels go up, and we struggle to cover our family’s, friends’, and coworkers’ human frailties and differences with grace and love. We lose precious memory-building moments with those closest to us, sending them the message that they aren’t a valued part of our lives.  

When we don’t make space, our relationship with God suffers too, and without a vibrant, daily connect with Him, our lives reflect Him less and less. We become more like our human frailties and may find ourselves brittle and or even bitter. 

Making space requires planning, it requires prioritizing, it requires participation—our participation. How? Why? 

God is always calling us to make space. Not to be unproductive, not to be inactive, but to protect our treasures and show the world His glory. All the way back in Exodus, God gave us two tangible expressions of this: Sabbath and the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle was God’s way of giving His people—and all the other nations—a touchable, visible space to meet with Him. It was His way of saying, “You’re important to Me. Important enough that I choose to be with you.” The Sabbath was God’s way of saying, “You’re important to Me. Important enough that I choose to spend time with you every week—AND important enough that you spend time with each other.” 

Making space is something God called us to thousands of years ago, and something He is still calling us to today. It is by making space for Him that we are able to more clearly convey His character and presence to those around us. It is by making space for others that we show them value by investing time with them and offering grace when they act…well…human. It is by making space for ourselves that we can give ourselves grace when we act human too. It is by making space we can decompress and breathe deeply of God’s presence. When we make space for God and others, we make space for God to be God and do the things only God can do.  

It’s in the God space in our lives, that space where we end and God has to show up…or else…that God can be truly glorified. Can we do things in our own efforts and energy? Sure! But if we really want to see God do a work, we have to make space for it. We have to create space for God in our lives. We have to take steps of faith, radical faith, and believe that God will meet us there. We have to reach out to others with His heart of love, and believe that God will give us the words to say. We have to dream His dreams and know that His are always far bigger than ours—and far greater than we could ever accomplish on our own. It’s in the space we create for God in our lives that we see miracles and true transformation.  

Making space may look small—an evening of prayer, an afternoon of worship, a cup of coffee with Jesus and a friend—but making space isn’t small. Making space is huge.