Inside: Prayer is an important part of your quiet time with God and spiritual growth. Here are 3 reasons why early morning prayer is a good idea plus a little trick to help you consistently get up earlier each day!
I was really going to do it this year. I was going to get up early so I could have my quiet time with God before the day started.
Yes, I made that same commitment every year before that, and yes I always fell short every single year. But this year would be different. I had a plan. And I knew I could stick with it.
- Go to bed early so I’m not dog tired when my alarm goes off in the morning
- Have all my supplies ready to go right next to the bed
- Exercise during the day so I’m good and tired when it’s bedtime so I’m not up all night thinking about all the things
It was a good plan. I followed it perfectly. And guess what?
I woke up the first morning and promptly went back to sleep. The second morning I woke up and made it through my quiet time. The third day it just didn’t happen.
Consistency gets me every time!
I bet if you’ve ever decided to get up early or spend more time in the word you’ve had the same struggle. Big changes like that are hard to do even when you have the perfect plan and the best motivation.
But hope is not lost!
I found a little trick that helped me be more consistent. Not perfect. But I am doing better at getting up and starting my day with prayer and Bible study. I still have to do all the other things on my list but this one thing this what helps me see the most success.
Ready for it?
I get out of bed when my alarm goes off.
Yep, that’s it. I kick the covers off and stand up. Once that happens I grab my prayer notebook and Bible. It’s a simple step but it packs a big punch.
Related: How to Set Goals that You Can Actually Stick to
Sometimes we get overwhelmed by big goals and too many steps. One way to get over that feeling of overwhelm is to find something that will give you quick win. Something that you can do in 30 seconds that will get you one step closer to your goal.
Why 30 seconds? Because it’s enough time to make progress but not enough time to talk yourself out of moving forward. And it’s something that’s easy to check off your to-do list. Which then motivates you to keep going so you can check something else off.
For example, if you want to floss every day. A 30-second task that you can commit to is flossing one tooth each morning. Why? Because if you floss one tooth you’re not going to stop there. You are more likely to finish the rest of your mouth.
So the challenge is to figure out what is that one thing that you can do every day to achieve your spiritual goals.
My goal is to start my day with prayer.
I know there can be some controversy about if you have to do quiet time at a certain time each day in order to be in God’s will. I don’t want to get into that but if you give me a minute I want to make a case for starting your day with prayer.
3 Reasons Early Morning Prayer is Best
1. Jesus did it
Our main goal as Christians is to be more like Christ. So it’s important to take our cue from Jesus when it comes to our quiet times.
Mark 1:35 NLT – Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray.
Jesus rose early in the morning to have time to talk with this Father. I don’t believe that God is calling all of use to rise before daybreak to pray but I do believe that He wants to hear from us first thing in the morning.
2. It’s the perfect time to get instructions for the day
One thing that I pray for daily is that God will lead and guide our day. I’m not prideful enough to think that just because I have a plan in place that things will go smoothly. Remember my plan for getting up early?
Psalm 5:3 NLT – Listen to my voice in the morning LORD. Each morning I bring my requests to you and wait expectantly.
God already knows what we will face that day before we even open up our eyes. Why not take a few minutes to ask Him what that plan is? Do you have a BIG day at work … God has a plan for that. Spending the day taking care of your little ones? God has a plan for that as well.
God’s plans are perfect. And if we simply take the time to ask Him about it, He’s willing to share with us the right path to take.
Related: How to pray during hard times
3. Sometimes we need a little encouragement to put one step in the front of the other
If I’m 100% honest many times the reason that I struggle to get out of bed in the morning had nothing to do with how tired I was. Or my laziness or lack of consistency. Most of the time I just didn’t want to get up and face the day.
Psalm 119:147 NLT – I rise early, before the sun is up; I cry out for help and put my hope in your words.
Starting the day with prayer …
Talking to God about what’s on my mind and heart helped me put one foot in front of the other. Because when things are as bad as it can get the only thing that we can do it cry out to God for help and for mercy.
I always feel better when I spend time talking to God. He promises comfort when we need it and He never fails to deliver.
Make the commitment to start your day by talking to God. Make it even sweeter by spending a minute or two in the Word. And don’t forget to find that one thing that you can do in 30 seconds to make sure you keep that commitment.
