Sunday Snippets: Seeking God in the Morning

Isaiah 33:2 O LORD, be gracious unto us; we have waited for thee: be thou their arm every morning, our salvation also in the time of trouble.

Psalm 5:2-3 Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: for unto thee will I pray. My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O LORD; in the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.

Psalm 88:13 But unto thee have I cried, O LORD; and in the morning shall my prayer prevent thee.

I love the book of Isaiah so much...there are such gems of wisdom all throughout it. I also find it interesting how so many verses in the Psalms go exactly hand in hand with those in Isaiah. God's Word truly flows together perfectly, as He intended! Anyway, we find quite a few instances in The Bible of people calling on God early in the morning, seeking Him, etc. Even our Lord rose up "very early" multiple times to go and pray. I don't think it's an accident that it's mentioned so many times. I have found in my personal life that if I do not read a portion of Scripture, however small, and pray in the morning, my day seems to slide downhill very quickly. It is SO important (for me personally, at least), that I get that strength in the morning to be able to face the day! When I truly realized this a couple of years ago, I was talking to a dear friend about it. I will never forget what she said: "Mykaela, if this is something that you are struggling with, I truly want to help you out. Is there a way that I can help keep you accountable in this area?" WOW. Friends like that are such an incredible blessing, let me tell you. We set up a time, and for at least six months after that, she would text me every day around noon, just to check and see if I had spent time with The Lord yet. That accountability got me into a daily habit that I still hold onto to this day. Her practical help in this area has stuck with me ever since!!

Now, I am definitely not saying that we must do our personal devotions in the morning, and only then. Of course not! :) In fact, I usually have more time to devote to that in the evening before bed. However, I would just encourage you this week to try it...Read a small portion of God's Word even before you check your phone in the morning. Satan tries so hard to trip us up as soon as possible, it seems! I think of it like this: If we are to dedicate to God the first fruits of our money, our time, and our families...shouldn't we also give him the first fruits of our day? Shouldn't He be the first and last thing on my mind? Interesting thought. 

Anyway, this is just something that I've been considering lately, and I hope you'll forgive me if it sounds a bit disjointed written out. ;) I hope all of you have a blessed Lord's Day and week to come!
Mykaela