We talk about how to stay on your diet while on summer holidays. There’s chatter about keeping up with workouts and adapting your fitness routine while you’re on your trips. Have you taken a moment to think about your spiritual growth and how to stay consistent on vacation? I have four simple steps to help ensure that you’re still able to focus on God and have a great time on vacation this summer!
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Consistency is key. This is no secret, and we all know that this is true for all pockets of life. From fitness to diet to saving money to relationships, this is a common fact of life. Where does it matter most? I think you know the answer: it’s our spiritual life. It’s so easy to get caught up in health and fitness, which are important, but that doesn’t mean we forget to feed our souls. Episode 294 hits big on this if you need a deep dive. First, let’s look back through the Summer Thrive Guide episodes, so we can build upon our learning.
So far in the Summer Thrive Guide mini series, we’ve covered a variety of summertime topics. In each episode, God has been woven throughout, and I encourage you to make consistent steps in growing your faith and relationship with Jesus. Here’s what we’ve covered so far this summer:
- #291: 4 tips to thrive during May madness: This one is for the busy, full scheduled people. For the one who is feeling overwhelmed with all the things going on!
- #292: Grad gift guide according to early 2000s pop singer personalities: This is great for gift giving for your grads, and for those summer birthdays!
- #293: How to pack the car for a road trip: Some of us may need relisten if we heard this a month and a half ago, and are now about to hop in the car with the family.
- #294: 4 tips to stay connected with Christ during summer: Four simple strategies to help you focus on deepening your relationship with God. If your routine has gone out the window, this is for you!
- #295: Family fun night ideas! These are tested by the Collier kids, and they are 100% approved for a great night making memories. If you need ideas, this episode is for you!
- #296: 15 reason to watch The Chosen: The hype is real, y’all! If you’re wondering if you should binge this show, check it out!
- #297: 3 tips to stay consistent during summer: This is for those who’s Bible reading plan went out the window once summer started. This also goes for if your prayer life needs a boost, you’ve been missing fellowship with your life group, or have lost your umph when talking about Jesus.
- #298: How to balance fun and tasks this summer: Work still needs to get done, but you want to enjoy the summer too! Try out these strategies and see how they’ll help you find the balance.
- #299: 5 words to combat worry: I know this one seems random, but it may the exact thing you need to hear. These 5 words work any time of year. Don’t let worry ruin your summer!
Let’s Get Started
Here we are, episode 300. It’s time I officially declare Summer as the season that has no rhyme or reason. See what I did there? Remind me…how many different vacations and trips are you going on this summer? A day trip here. A week at the beach there. Oh, and since it’s so hot, we’ve got to head to the mountains, or at least not Texas. Whew! With all that back and fourth, we know it will be a challenge to stay consistent on vacation. With these tips, you’ll be able to do it! Just give it a try!
Coming in hot with the rapid fire questions today! Take a deep breath, and give yourself a second to acclimate to what’s coming. Be honest. Do you keep up with your Bible reading while on vacation? How about prayer? Dare I say, besides right before you eat? What about intentional fellowship that encourages you in your faith? Do you take the time to tell those you meet along the way about Jesus? Listen, I know these are straight up gut punch questions. I don’t get it right every time either. But, over the course of time and trial and error, I’ve found four steps that help me stay consistent on vacation with my relationship with God. It’s safe to say, I’ve felt more peaceful, grounded, and refreshed when I take the time to do these steps to stay consistent on vacation.
Step #1: Find 10 Minutes
Here’s my challenge to you: Can you find at least ten minutes a day while on your trip? Remember that you’re on vacation, so you’re pretty much in charge of your time. Take a moment and think about your trip. Here are some questions you can ask yourself to hone in on your prime time:
- When is the most down time in the itinerary?
- Are there pockets of time I can find available minutes?
- Is waking up early or staying up late good options?
If you’re a planner, great, go ahead and pencil in your time with Jesus since you’re in charge of the schedule. If you’re not the one planning the trip and attending, first, congratulations to you for not having to plan the trip. Second, how about send a quick text to see if the trip planner can schedule down time. Or, you choose to be the master of your own time and just give your vacation crew a, “Hey, I’m going to take a ten minute pause to be with Jesus.”
Perspective is also healthy here. You are on vacation, and you’re experiencing the world, that God made, all around you. Whether that’s beach, mountains, a backyard, or a staycation, make a moment in your day to appreciate the fact that vacation is even a thing for you right now. Pretty sure we can all sacrifice a few minutes in the morning to watch a beautiful sunrise on the beach and chat with God. Maybe you’re the night owl of the bunch. How about a hot tub and star gazing session with the Almighty around midnight? That sounds amazing.
As always, I’m going to encourage you to spend as much time as you can with God. I’m not saying exclude yourself, but if you can find 20 or 30 minutes, amazing! You can have some sunrise and sunset dates with Jesus. He made them for us to enjoy. How cool that you can talk to the artist while He’s making his sky art!?
Hint: There is a stage and age for everything. There may be some seasons that it’s hard to stay consistent on vacation, while others will be a breeze. I say this often: all it takes is some forethought. When you take a few minutes to just make a simple plan, you’re setting yourself up for success. Now is your chance to brainstorm ways to find pockets of 10 minutes (or more). If you’re stuck, sit tight, I’ll go over some examples in a bit.
Step #2: Find a Place
Now that you’ve been brainstorming ways to find ten minutes of time, let’s talk about finding a place. This doesn’t have to be fancy! You can do this one of two ways:
- Build it in to what you’re already doing on your trip
- Create intentional time to spend a moment with God
If you already have sunrise beach yoga on your itinerary, first that sound amazing! Second, use that time to meditate on scripture and pray. If it’s mountain biking through the trails, I feel like time in prayer and gratitude is good there. I know if I’m hypothetically biking crazy trails, I’ll be praying the whole time that I don’t die or get seriously injured. Good for you all you mountain bikers (that would be my husband). If you’re looking to stay consistent on vacation without altering the schedule, building it in is the way to go.
The other option would be to create intentional time with God to stay consistent on vacation. This can look like waking up early, going to bed late, or getting creative with down time in between events. There’s always some time alone. Now, it may be a five minute bathroom break or a ten minute shower, but there is always a way to maximize your minutes.
There is a bonus third option where you combine the first two options. You build in time with Jesus into the activities you’re already doing, AND you carve out time for on your own. Let’s have a brainstorm session together on what this can look like. I’ll get your started, and then you can carry this creativity over into your vacation. You can pull out that itinerary if you have one, or just make some notes in your phone. Side note: all of these ideas are listed in the show notes.
Here are a few ideas I have tried along with some of my crew. In true Brooke Collier fashion, let’s take a look at ways we can Read, Pray, Talk, and Tell in order to stay consistent on vacation. Remember, you can mix and match these options as the days go by. Flexibility helps!:
- Prayer walk on the beach: 5 minutes in one direction, then back to home base
- Hike a trail with a buddy and use that as time for discussion and encouragement
- Balcony or porch sitting before everyone wakes up and read your Bible
- Leverage your local grocery store run and have intentional conversations with strangers
- Throwing the frisbee in the ocean with a friend while you and God chat
- When you’re getting ready for a dinner out, play worship music or listen to your audio Bible
- Put the kids to bed and head to the hot tub for meaningful discussion with others or experience
Step #3: Find Support
Onto step three. We’ve found your ten minutes. We’ve found your places you can be intentional. Now it’s time to gain something pivotal that can make your time with God more consistent. Find support! Just like we know we all have the same 24 hours in a day, another common truth is that we’re better together, and we’re not meant to walk alone in this life. Finding support drastically increases your odds to stay consistent on vacation. Don’t miss this opportunity!
If you’re going on vacation with other humans, surely they love you, or at least like you. Otherwise, what are we even doing? When we can bring others alongside our spiritual growth, the results can be exponential. The best way to do this is to be upfront with your intentions, that way expectations can be set and met together. Doing this on our vacations has helped me stay consistent on vacation. If you’re looking to get some time alone with God, ideally there are more people on your trip that want the same thing. Taking turns isn’t just for kids. It’s for adults too! It can look like this:
- You take a ten minute prayer walk, then switch
- They take charge of the kid bedtime routine one night, then switch the next night
- While you take shower and blast the Jesus jams, they watch the kids, switch
- You get all the kids dressed and ready for the day, then switch the next day
I don’t know about you, but wouldn’t it be nice to take turns on some of these things in general? Maybe you’ll go back home from your vacation and keep up with the whole taking turns thing. Some of the ideas just listed take way more than ten minutes depending on how many tiny humans you have, and how much they can do on their own.
If you have multiple adults in your vacay crew, even easier to find support! The moms go take a walk and talk about their spiritual growth while the dads can handle dinner with the kids. Dads go toss a football in the yard and talk Jesus while the moms help the kids get ready for bed. Really, the options are limitless if you can get creative. Brainstorm together on this one! Remember, the goal is spiritual growth with the intent to stay consistent on vacation. Find ways on your trip to read your Bible, spend time in prayer, have intentional conversations with believers, and tell others about the good news of the gospel.
Step #4: Find Discipline
The fourth step to stay consistent on vacation is not some shiny, sparkly new idea. It’s one that has stood the test of time, and is the one thing that will keep you growing in the Lord. Find discipline. Woohoo! It’s so simple! God literally made this step of being spiritually disciplined accessible for all of us. That’s amazing news. He could have made getting to know Him difficult, but instead, He allows simple access 24/7. That’s so nice!
This step is the key to success (in any pocket of life), and I’m so glad it rings true with growing good relationships. When we can find discipline, and make time with Jesus a priority, learning to stay consistent on vacation (and every other season) will happen. God is ready for a deep relationship with you. He loves to spend time with you and talk with you. Any time you say yes to spend time with God, He is there and ready. This means, all you have to do is say yes.
Going on a trip has so many unpredictable variables, and keeping the flexibility piece top of mind is important. What if you want to switch from hiking trails to riding horses? Don’t say, “No, because I have to pray while I walk!” Instead, pivot, get creative, and stay disciplined. Enjoy your vacation, and enjoy your relationship with Jesus!
Let’s Recap
Now your turn! You’ve got the four proven steps to take to help you stay consistent on vacation in your walk with Jesus. Let’s recap the four steps:
- Step #1: Find 10 minutes
- Step #2: Find a place
- Step #3: Find supports
- Step #4: Find discipline
Going on trips during the summertime is amazing! Getting to be intentional with Godly growth on those vacations make it exponentially better! Better vacations, better you.
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