Starting the day with Him...

Just thought I'd share something I wrote for a school assignment recently...kind of like a reflection...

I have never been a morning person. Even when I was a very young child, I would wake up really grumpy and unhappy, yearning to get back into bed. My mother had a hard time getting me out of bed. I am a heavy sleeper. Often, my head would spin and I would feel unwell if I have to get up too suddenly. I would tell my mother that I was sick and couldn’t go to school when I was actually just having a difficult time waking up. Morning is a time when I struggle most. I struggle to be awake, to try not to feel grouchy, to prepare myself to go to work or to school. And even after I became a Christian, I was convinced it was simply not possible for me to meet God in the morning to do my quiet time. My mind would not be ready at all.

There were many times when I did try to meet God in the morning – during youth camps or holidays, but I was never very successful. I simply couldn’t concentrate and sometimes, I would even doze off, so I just gave up altogether and did my QT at night, when I’m often more awake and alert.

Yet somehow, when I read about how Jesus would wake up early in the morning to pray, and I imagine how it would be like to wake up in the morning, and be fresh and alert, the very first thing in the morning, to seek the Lord, starting the day with Him, I secretly long to experience that. It was not until a few years ago, when I was really stressed out as a school teacher, knowing that my spiritual life was not at all healthy that I started to consider spending time with the Lord in quietness early in the morning before school started. I committed the matter to the Lord and prayed earnestly for Him to help me. I started waking up 30 minutes earlier than usual at 5.50am and arrive in school early, find a quiet corner and spent about 20 to 30 minutes reading the Bible, reflecting and praying. Though it was still much of a struggle in the beginning, since I always kept late hours, either marking or watching tv, I prayed and persevered.

I was able to do it regularly, and God’s peace simply flooded into me as I read His Word. Slowly, I became less stressed out and anxious, I yearned to read the Word of God more, and became more alert and cheerful in the morning before my classes started. I was revived…by God – His grace was upon me during that difficult period of time when I was in a rut and His Word encouraged and ignited a greater hunger to seek Him and please Him.

It’s been a great blessing to be able to wake up in the morning to seek Him and His Word. I am so glad that I was wrong, to think that I would never be a ‘morning person’ and do QT in the morning.
Thank you, dear Lord, for being so gracious, for changing me and renewing me, that I may be blessed by Your presence, refreshed by Your Word every morning...