A hint of daylight is breaking through the window in my bedroom. The rooster is crowing.
The slightest rustles are being heard throughout the house as my kids begin to wake and
find their way into my bedroom. I stretch; I yawn. I reach over to my nightstand and grab
my phone.

I have heard it said that it takes 21 days to form a habit (although, I’m pretty sure research has proven that to be misleading). No matter, somewhere in the last few years I have formed quite the habit. I don’t know when I really started doing it or how long it took to become a habit. The moment my eyelids start to flutter and can barely hold themselves open…I reach for my phone and begin.

I scroll through – any missed text messages, new emails, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, my local news apps, and, of course, the weather app(s) on my phone. After I have had my “fix” – I dress for the day, I make my bed, get breakfast going, feed my kids and then, finally, take time to read my Bible and spend a little time with my Heavenly Father. Of course, as a mother of three little ones, this time is often interrupted.

So, later in the day, while the kids are napping (or having quiet reading time) and the house is silent, I try and delve further into God’s Word and have some serious one-on-one time with Him. This was my routine.

Then the Spirit moved.

I was convicted about my morning routine recently, during a ladies’ Bible study.  It was time to change. I became aware of the need to have my quiet time with Him in those first few moments of my day, while all was still. My children all wake up at different times, especially now in the summer months. My earliest riser is usually up by 7:30. So, I began to make sure I was out of bed, dressed, and in the Word between 6:30 and 6:45. I needed that time with just me and my Lord, no interruptions, before I began my day.

Yes – I will be honest – initially, it was very hard. I am NOT a morning person and giving up a perfectly good hour of sleep seemed…incredulous. However, the reward was more than I could hope for. He was my strength and joy when I truly did not have it.

Still, the Spirit moved.

One day, while listening to a favorite song of mine, my soul was yet again challenged. Again, He was further drawing me to a place of closeness with Him. I prayed and I sought Him. I began to evaluate my life to see if there was anything that I was placing in front of Him. I caught a small glimpse – a glimpse the size of an iPhone 6. It was in that moment when I understood that putting God first, meant putting God first. Up to that point, I had changed everything about my mornings except for my little phone routine.

I wake up every morning and still reach over to my nightstand, except now I keep my Bible
there so that it will be the first thing I reach for. I still want to mindlessly peruse through my phone first thing every morning, but I want to seek Him more. I wake up each morning at the hour I need to so I can have time with Him. I still crave more sleep, but I crave to know Him more. Every day, with His help, it gets easier. Every day, He proves to me that He is worth it. Every day, I want more and more to put Him first.

“My soul yearns for you in the night;

in the morning my spirit longs for you…”

Isaiah 26:9 (NIV)