February 3, 2014

Becoming A Morning Person Pt. 1

"Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise." 

My mother used to recite this popular quote by Benjamin Franklin when my sisters and I were little. We used to like staying up late to watch television and she would always use this saying to remind us that staying up late was never in our best interest. 

Speaking of my mother, one of the most beautiful traits my mother possessed was the ability to gently lead by example. My mom was born in Grenada, W.I. and naturally loved the heat. The laundry room was the warmest place in the entire house and so she loved going in there to study. She even had her own special couch in the room so she could be comfortable. Mom would do her morning devotion and then she would study/do homework (she was a teacher and was also in a Master's program at GW). She would do this routine every morning at 5 am. As a result, she was able to be successful in juggling her class load, achieving straight As all while managing a home, career, children and a husband. Even though she's not here anymore, my respect and admiration for her continues to grow daily. 



In Exodus, we read about Moses and his challenging journey with the Children of Israel through the wilderness. At one point, Moses communed with God and received the Ten Commandments (Exodus 31:18). However, when Moses came down from Mt. Sinai, he found the Children of Israel worshipping a golden calf. He was so furious that he threw the two Ten Commandment-inscribed tablets on the ground, breaking them to pieces. So since the Ten Commandments are pretty important and they needed them, God felt it was important to give Moses another copy. God is so particular when it comes to His instructions so it's important to listen when He speaks. So, In Exodus 34, God gives instruction to Moses on what to do next so that He can get the tablets. Verse 2 opens up with God telling Moses to, "be ready in the morning".  

Now, I know that God can meet with us anytime and anywhere. However, for some reason, I believe there is something special about getting into the habit of early rising. Many people who have achieved levels of success that they never dreamed possible have noted that early rising helped them get there. Upon further reading in Exodus 34, God instructs Moses to come to Mt. Sinai early and alone. There's something significant about communing with God without any people to distract you. Early mornings are the time when the world is the most quiet. A lot of people are still asleep and the business of the day hasn't begun quite yet. Even the Proverbs 31 woman gets up in verse 15, "while it is still dark." So she's up before the sun! Some of my most intimate moments with Christ have happened when I've risen early in the morning. Over the next few weeks, I'm going to share some great benefits to early rising and how to become an early riser. So, if you're like me and want to see some major growth in your life this year, stay tuned! 

God bless you!

-dani

8 comments:

  1. This has always been a struggle for me. Looking forward to reading how you get into the habit of it, and hopefully some of that rubs off on me *smile*.

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    1. Thanks, Tam! & Yeah, it can totally rub off! :0)

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  2. This is such truth. I used to get up in the mornings to make sure that I spent time with God and it would equip me with what necessary for the day. I really need to get back to it!

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  3. According to the book, "Rich Habits: The Daily Success Habits of Wealthy Individuals" b Thomas Corley, people who make >100k/year wake up three hours early than people who make less than 30k. There are many ways to spin such data, but I can testify that I'm most productive when I rise early.

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    1. Wow!!! 3 hours! Such a dramatically different outcome! & Rich Habits sounds like a book I need to check out too!

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  4. Mmmmmmm...i love this. smh. I need to get disciplined. God wakes me up sometimes early and I wake up thinking, "God you tripping. I have at least a solid half hour before my alarm clock crows." And yet I can remember the most productive period in my life was when I was waking up before dawn (remember when I was running around Huntsville like Rocky? hahah yeah then). Thanks for this gentle reminder.

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    1. LOL! The fact that you told God that He's tripping sounds so crazy but we all do it. As if He doesn't know better. smh. LOL! Help us, Lord!

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