In the Morning

TEXT:

‘In the morning You hear my voice, O Lord; in the morning I prepare [a prayer, a sacrifice] for You and watch and wait [for You to speak to my heart].’ Psalm 5:3 AMPC

THOUGHT:

I have just started my new Bible which has a larger print to make it easier on my eyesight. Although I have had it for a few months I wanted to finish reading the New Testament in my old Bible before opening the New! It has that lovely smell of leather. So I started reading Psalms and my attention was drawn to our text which speaks about talking to the Lord in the morning. Why is this important and well-worth doing? Why spend time reading the Bible and praying?

• It was something Jesus practised – ‘Very early the next morning, long before daylight, Jesus got up and left the house. He went out of town to a lonely place, where he prayed’ – Mark 1:35 GNT

However busy the previous day and evening had been, Jesus still got up early the next day to spend time with His heavenly Father before facing the hectic demands of a new day. He said to His apostles, ‘Follow Me’ – Matthew 4:19; to the hesitant disciple, ‘Follow Me’ – Matthew 8:22; and again to a distracted Peter, ‘Follow Me’ – John 21:22. If Jesus thought it important enough to first spend time in prayer each morning, then it is something we can all imitate as we follow Him.

• There are special promises for the morning – ‘For his anger lasts only a moment, but his favour lasts a lifetime! Weeping may last through the night, but joy comes with the morning’ Psalm 30:5 NLT. ‘The Lord’s unfailing love and mercy still continue, fresh as the morning, as sure as the sunrise’ – Lamentations 3:22-23 GNT.

Whatever kind of day you had yesterday, it can be different today. Why? Because God’s blessings are new every morning! God provided fresh manna on a daily basis to feed the Children of Israel in the wilderness. They did not live on stale bread. For us there can be a fresh revelation from God’s word every day to motivate, inspire and reassure us.

• It reveals a sense of priority

It is another way of putting God first, in the same way as tithing does concerning our finances. Even if you get up late you can still make the morning a priority by reading the Bible and praying on the way to work or as you arrive before getting stuck into the busy day’s schedule. With today’s technology there are many ways you can do it, but none of them will work unless there is first the desire to determine it will be done.

• It will help to avoid crisis-praying only

I prefer to bring God into the start of my day rather than asking Him to patch it up at the end. This way gives Him more opportunity to direct my life. ‘We should make plans—counting on God to direct us’ – Proverbs 16:9 TLB. When watching a film, at the end there is a list of credits mentioning everyone who helped in the making of it, but the one name that is the most important is the Director. That’s how it should be with my day as a Christian. Whatever I have done and whoever has helped me or I have been involved with, God has been able to direct my life, so ultimately He takes the credit.

• It helps to start the day in peace

Time first spent with the Lord helps to bring a sense of peace and calmness to the rest of the day. Manic mornings can become tranquil if we do this, ‘Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything; tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank him for his answers. ⁷ If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will keep your thoughts and your hearts quiet and at rest as you trust in Christ Jesus’ – Philippians 4:6-7 TLB.

When I do this I am really saying, “Lord, I have placed my day in your hands, now let your peace guide my decisions and directions, my actions and reactions”.

I have learnt from experience that however early  I am starting my day, it always goes better if I have spent some time with the Lord first. God honours those who do this and any lost sleep will be more than compensated with a surge of energy and blessing.

Now that we have started the New Year, make a resolution to start each day with God in first place. If you keep to it, you will not regret it!