Beloved,
Have you ever woken up on the wrong side of the bed?
It happened to me this morning after a bizarre dream about a gregarious priest who was drawing away Cornerstone members to join his church. I woke up from the dream envious of this man’s charisma and anxious over the state of the church (was this fictitious dream perhaps a window into a real heart problem?). To make matters worse, I woke up because one of the other members of the Thompson house turned a light on which added a mild irritation to my envy and anxiety. If that was not enough, I woke up after a late session meeting, experiencing the physical and emotional “drag” that so often follows. All that to say, the first conscious thoughts and feelings in bed this morning were all wrong. Had God allowed it, I could have and would have carried that wrongness into the rest of the day.
But I immediately took off my mouth tape, got on my knees beside the bed, and cried out to God for help, asking Him for grace to live from out of my identity as an eternally loved son of God in Christ. It lasted no more than a minute, but that simply act of posturing myself in servitude before the Lord, confessing my sin, and casting myself upon God’s mercy in Christ has changed the whole morning for me.
I always have my private prayer time after my Bible reading and meditation in the morning. But recently I have begun getting on my knees first thing after waking up to briefly commit my life and day to God and to reckon with who I am in Christ. It is one of a few take aways from a book I’m working through by Justin Whitmel Earley titled The Common Rule: Habits of Purpose for an Age of Distraction. The book is structured around 4 daily habits and 4 weekly habits that Earley proposes as a path to a less hurried and move loving life. The first daily habit he suggests is “kneeling prayer at morning, midday, and bedtime,” similar to the example we see in Daniel (Dan. 6:10). I decided to implement this simply act of worship immediately after my alarm goes off. This has not replaced my normal morning prayer time, but it has been profoundly helpful.
To have the very first conscious act of the day be to direct my heart heavenward and to embrace my identity as beloved, adopted, justified, and sanctified in Christ.
To have my very first physical movement be one of prostration before the King I am called to serve.
This 30-60 seconds has been a real gift, especially on the mornings when I wake up on the wrong side of the bed. How easy it is to carry the anxiety, envy, frustration, and sluggishness into the day, instead of repenting and casting myself upon Christ. But what liberty and joy comes through the fresh realization of His new morning mercies!
I don’t know how your morning has gone so far. But if your soul is in a wrong frame like mine was when I woke up this morning, may I suggest taking a few moments to get on your face before God to petition Him and to preach to yourself His gospel grace? Our God delights in reseting our trajectory, reorienting our vision, and rekindling our joy.
Sometimes all it takes is a few moments of humble prayer to change your entire day.
Yours in Christ,
Pastor Nick