Every day that has ever been and that will ever be has begun and will begin with dawn, the morning. It is true that morning may coincide with the dawning of the Sun, however, for the purposes of this dialogue, morning is the preparatory part of the day. Morning sets the tone and color of the day. If morning is rushed, all day will be spent catching up to it; if it is lethargic, all day will be slowed to a snail's pace; and if it is filled with strife or unease, the only hope for relief may be in fact tomorrow. The point is that how we handle and use our mornings can have dramatic and significant effects on the whole of our day.
Morning marks a new day. This straightforward assertion, though obvious, can be neglected for the simplicity of its truth. Many people treat morning either as a time for preparing the flesh (shower, clothes, breakfast, makeup, etc.), and others as a transitionary period (a time of transitioning from sleep to responsibility like the time between getting out of bed and going to the office). The truth is, because of the significance that morning can have over the whole of the day, a more intentional attitude towards morning begs development.
A simple question might be in order: what constitutes the ideal day? Not simply arbitrary, the perfect day is dominated with an outpouring of love for God, meaning that the perfect day has us fulfilling the two greatest commandments with fervor, loving God and loving others (Matt. 22:37-39). In essence this is the life manner of Christians, to live by the Spirit and thus fulfill His commandments (Rom. 8:4; Gal. 5:17, 24). Therefore, because walking in the Spirit is to love God and loving others selflessly should be the posture and tone of our very beings, it makes great sense to consider imprinting these traits into our mornings.
As the scenarios of morning can be the dominating pall or overwhelming joy over a day, integrating these key components of Christian life into our mornings is thus essential to ensure our morning does not set the course of our day for mourning but for love. There needs to be an intentionality to the morning, just as there is to be an intentionality to our lives. For this, a brief discourse on method is in order, focused on the routine of morning.
Because worship and love is to be the trait that characterizes all of Christian life, we need to make our mornings times of worship and love, preparing us for days of praise. Although not exhaustive, there are basically three elements needed to take this attitude among us: (1) prayer, (2) praise, and (3) preparation.
The necessity of prayer is clear, we need to pray for God's provision and for His care to keep us throughout our day. Praise, a part of prayer, is a practice of worship. In the context of the morning routine, praise means acknowledging who God is and what He has done with thankfulness, an obvious necessity to the Christian life. Preparation is a two-part endeavor.
The first part is in study, we should make a habit and practice of Bibly study in the mornings as it will set our minds to meditate on the Word for the day. The second step of preparation is the focus on loving others, meaning that we will consider potential opportunities to love others as well as setting an attitude to love others.
Developing a sound morning routine that is focused on worshiping throughout the day is one of the most important ways to grow as a believer. Setting our days off right with prayer, praise, and preparation is a simple but necessary way to love the Lord with the intensity and seriousness that He desires of us. Let us then practice good morning habits as to press into Him!
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