Jesus seems to have been in the habit of getting up around 4 or 5 AM to begin the day in prayer. We should follow in His footsteps. Maybe we don't need to get up quite as early, but we should have daily prayer early in the morning.
When we awake, the first word on our lips should be "Jesus," and the first moments of our day should be focused on Him. We should say with the psalmist: "To You I pray, O Lord; at dawn You hear my voice; at dawn I bring my plea expectantly before You" (Ps 5:3-4). "The favors of the Lord are not exhausted, His mercies are not spent; they are renewed each morning" (Lam 3:22-23). Instead of dawn waking us, maybe we should wake the dawn. The psalmist boldly states: "Awake, O my soul; awake, lyre and harp! I will wake the dawn" (Ps 57:9).
There's something especially blessed and uniquely beautiful about the early morning before dawn. The Lord often speaks to us in a special way at that time. Isaiah prophesied of the Messiah: "The Lord God has given me a well-trained tongue, that I might know how to speak to the weary a word that will rouse them. Morning after morning He opens my ear that I may hear" (Is 50:4).
Jesus will open your ear with a word that will rouse you. After all, it was at this time of the day that He rose from the dead.
| PRAYER: | Father, may I go to bed and get up when You want me to. |
| PROMISE: | "The Lord came and revealed His presence, calling out as before, 'Samuel, Samuel!' Samuel answered, 'Speak, for Your servant is listening.' " –1 Sm 3:10 |
| PRAISE: | Joan awakes every morning thanking God for waking her one more morning. |
Reprinted with permission from Presentation Ministries, a lay association of the Catholic Church that focuses on evangelization and discipleship through Bible teaching, daily Mass, the charisms of the Holy Spirit, and Small Christian Community. Their ministries include:
· One Bread, One Body
· Daily Bread Radio Program
· Annual Bible Institute
· Discipleship Retreats
· Guadalupe Bible College