11/24/2020
How should we begin our days as Christians? There are so many verses in the Bible that give us instruction regarding our faith as dawn approaches, and as we look towards the life of Jesus we find that He rose early each morning to pray, and was resurrected in the predawn darkness as well. So how should we meet OUR new day? Well, we should use the example set by our savior, and the songs of Psalms whose lyrics, and melody, are the sounds of early morning worship.
“O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch.”
Psalm 5:3 ESV
Psalm 5 reveals that we should pray in the morning, and prepare a sacrifice, but as Christians we don’t offer blood sacrifices like the early law required of the Jews, so we pray, and give of ourselves, and offer the Lord our works. Is this our personal habit of faith each morning? Is this how we overcome the sorrows in our lives... by praying in the early morning, and waiting on the Lord to answer?
“Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints, and give thanks to his holy name. For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.”
Psalm 30:4-5 ESV
Psalm 30 tells us that we might face the night in sorrow, but as we rise in the early morning we find that song, and joy, accompanies the rising sun. Lamentations tells us more specifically that God’s love is steadfast, His mercy is new every morning, and that he is faithful in this. Do we meet Him every morning for a close time of love, mercy, and faith?
“The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”
Lamentations 3:22-23 ESV
Psalm 119 tells us that not only should we love, and praise the Lord in our morning prayers, but also cry for help as we face the coming day, and meditate on His Word. Each morning it is my routine to rise before the dawn, then pray, read scripture, enjoy a time of devotion, and ask the Holy Spirit to inspire me as I write my own devotional message for all to read..
“I rise before dawn and cry for help; I hope in your words. My eyes are awake before the watches of the night, that I may meditate on your promise.”
Psalm 119:147-148 ESV
Now let’s look at the life of Jesus. Our previous Old Testament illustrations have been very clear regarding the importance of morning worship and prayer, but when we read the apostles, as they describe in their gospels how Jesus rose early and worshiped, and how He prayed before the sun rose, the importance of this quiet time to our faith becomes all the more evident to us. Listen to the words of Mark as he writes...
“And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.”
Mark 1:35 ESV
Have you established a quiet place in your home where you can go to kneel , and deliver your own predawn prayers? Perhaps there is a desolate place nearby that you can retreat to, and worship God... a solitary place where you can reveal the intimate secrets of your heart freely, and openly, to Him? Even with your earthly friends I am certain you find it difficult to have personal conversations with one of them where others might hear. When we want to tell our most intimate thoughts to God, and we are within close proximity to even trusted Christian family, it is impossible. Jesus didn’t begin His day praying with His disciples, no, He prayed alone where His personal relationship with God was made new every morning. Even one of the most personal of all His interactions with God occurred privately in the predawn hours... His resurrection.
“But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they went to the tomb, taking the spices they had prepared. And they found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they went in they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.”
Luke 24:1-3 ESV
In the early morning dawn the tomb where Jesus had been laid was already empty. Jesus had been resurrected in the early morning while it was still dark, and the world, like those who stood guard before the tomb, remained soundly asleep as the Angels unwrapped His body, and His face cloth was folded... and set aside.
“and the face cloth, which had been on Jesus’ head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself.”
John 20:7 ESV
I encourage you to prepare a morning place of prayer for yourself, and meet the Lord there each and every morning. Doing this will bring you closer to Him, and help you to better understand the fullness of the relationship He had with Jesus.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for the depth of our relationship, and the intimacy of our conversations that require perfect secrecy. Thank you for the dark predawn quiet when no one is near, and the silent places where we can meet together. Join us each morning Lord, and speak to us of your will. Allow us to whisper our most guarded thoughts to you, and to cry openly as our love for you overcomes our emotions. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who maintains the intimacy of our relationship, and secret conversations, in absolute confidence. We praise you for telling us every morning how much you love us, and what your will is for us that day. We praise your name Holy Father, for each morning we have been privileged to be with you. You are merciful, and so good to us Lord as we are shown how to pray by your Son Jesus. You are faithful as you hold our confidence, and trustworthy as you maintain the secrecy of ours prayers. Hear us Father as we confess our sins to you each morning, and in contrition ask you to forgive us of them. Wash us as we kneel before you in the blood of Jesus, and see His reflection as you look into our faces. Find us to be righteous as Jesus is righteous, and worthy as He is worthy, then upon our judgement open the gates of the New Jerusalem to us, and invite us to join you for eternity at your table.
Rich Forbes