Rise and Shine
Tuesday (December 30)
Rise and Shine
Psalm 143:8
Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.
What’s the first thing you do in the morning after you get ready? Do you pick up the newspaper to read with your morning breakfast? Do you open your laptop for news updates or check your phone for messages? Do you turn on the TV or radio? Do you open the Bible and spend time in prayer? I realize I’m preaching to the choir here, since you’re spending time in devotion right now—but even the choir gets out of tune sometimes. In fact, I’m a little out of tune even now as I write this. I was up till about 2 a.m. this morning working on new music in the quiet hours while my wife and kids were fast asleep, and I had planned on sleeping in a bit, but, instead, my six-year-old daughter came running into our room bright and early to inform us that her brother was outside playing with the brand new neighborhood boys that had just moved in down the road, which, is not okay since today is a school day. So, the morning so far has had that sort of unsettling ring to it. First, I was jolted awake, then I scolded my son and put him to schoolwork, then I fed the baby who is extra whiny today, and then I worked on a reading assignment with my six-year-old who is still struggling to distinguish between d’s, b’s, and p’s, and then I came upstairs to pray one of those desperate shotgun prayers, “LORD, help me!” before setting about to write. But I’ve upon reading the psalmist’s desire here in Psalm 143:8, “Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love,” the Spirit is pulling my heartstrings back in tune.
Friend, consider that over these next twenty-four hours, you’ll think thousands of thoughts, speak thousands of words, and do thousands of deeds. Let’s follow the wisdom and urgency of the psalmist here by marking this moment as a time of consecration to the One Who knows the way ahead and Who has already seen you through it. Praise Him right now, at the start of your day, so that when nighttime rolls around you aren’t filled with regret.