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TT.003: How Do You Normally Start Your Day?
I don’t know about you, but my least favorite time of the day used to be waking up in the morning. It is such a rude reality that we cannot spend our entire day in bed where we are safe, warm, and comfortable. Inevitably the time for rest always ends and we are forced into a new day of work and responsibilities. I said that I used to hate this time of day the most. I still have my mornings where I wish I could stay wrapped in my blanket cocoon for all eternity but for the most part, lately, I have been learning to appreciate my mornings. I am not consistent in this but I am getting better at it, when I wake up in a bad mood, I try to pray first thing and remember these words from Psalms and Lamentations:
“Listen to my words, Lord, consider my lament. Hear my cry for help, my King and my God, for to you I pray. In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly.”
Psalms 5:1-3“Yet this I call to mind and therefore have hope: Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. I say to myself, ‘The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for Him.’”
Lamentations 3:22-24These passages are just a couple from God’s word that help us to know the best way to start our day, which is in prayer! Let God be the first one you speak to each morning and I assure you that your day will go better! He hears us all the time but in the morning, when we speak to Him first thing, He listens and honors our devotion of our day to Him from the start. The end of both of these passages also point out a critical follow up posture to maintain throughout your day that is, expectancy and waiting.
When we invite God into our day with us, we must then wait expectantly for Him to show up. If you invited a friend to meet up someplace and spend the day shopping or exploring a new area with you, you would expect them to show up and go with you right?! And if you expect that, you would also wait for them at the place you planned to meet. You wouldn’t leave without them or return home instead, you would wait. I think too many of us have been let down too many times by unreliable friends. This inhibits our ability to expect follow through which in turn makes us unwilling to wait but God is our most dependable friend, He will always show up and follow through! Wait on Him and when He arrives, go with Him!
His mercies are new each morning. You don’t need to carry the pain, frustration, or problems of yesterday into today. He will give you new strength for each day to face its problems. Don’t look back and harp on the past and don’t worry about tomorrow, focus on today and look for God. He will meet you where you invite Him and with Him by your side, you can face all things!
Blessings FAM!
How do you start your day? If it is not in prayer, give it a shot! I promise you it will change your life! Where have you needed to invite God to meet you? Maybe you have invited Him to those places. If so when you are in that place do you look for Him? Or do you get caught up in the stress and check out? Don’t be a flaky friend to God who invites Him someplace but then doesn’t show up or wait for Him themselves. He will be there if you ask Him to be. You need to show up too! Expect Him to be there and wait until He shows up!
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MM.001: Do What You Can & Let God Do The Rest!
I like to break things down and think about the significance of each word in a phrase like this. It can sound cliche or oversimplified on it’s own. When you stop and dig into what each word is really talking about, you gain context for a richer meaning behind the phrase as a whole. So lets expound on that sentence.
“Do” – Do not just sit around and wait for life to happen. God’s promises only come after an action of obedience to His plan.
“what” – Know what you are being called to do. The only way we can know this is by being familiar enough with God and His will to recognize His voice so we can hear what He is calling us towards.
“you” – Do not worry about what God is calling other people to, you are not responsible for them. You can only control yourself and what you do!
“can” – We all have different gifts and it helps to be honest with ourselves about what we are truly good at. Not everyone can do everything. Find your thing and own it!
“&” – Once you have done your part, that is not the end. Let’s be honest, It would all turn out pretty crappy every time if that were true. Be expectant for God to show up and fill in the blanks. Pray for it, wait for it, look for Him at work in everything!
“let” – You may find Him at work doing things in your life that are uncomfortable, scary, or just overwhelming. Be still and wait. Let Him finish His work and you will see His plan shine through even the darkest of circumstances! He uses the hard things to grow us the most. Be patient, growth takes time.
“God” – Remember who He is and His love for you! He is in control and His plan is for our good.
“do” – He is powerful and able to do immeasurably more than we could ever ask or imagine.
“the” – He knows exactly what needs to be done in every circumstance. We may not understand it from our point of view but He sees the bigger picture and knows what is best for us.
“rest!” – He will not stop until His good work is finished. He began a good work in each of us and will always see it through to the end.
When we do our part and wait expectantly for God to show up, He will show off! He works all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. Rest today and everyday knowing that our best is good enough and God completes the work He calls us to when we obey and step out in faith!
Pray right now for God to make it clear to you this week, exactly what it is He is calling you to accomplish. It may not seem like much but even the smallest things we feel called to do are an important part of His bigger picture. On the other hand, it may be something that seems huge! Just remember how much bigger your God is! Nothing is too big for Him to help you through. If you seek His will and Pray for Him to guide you, you will know what He is truly calling you to do. Once you know it, do it! Then sit back and watch how He uses it to grow you and advance His kingdom!
Blessings FAM!
