A Covenant Over Your Mornings
"O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee." — Psalm 63:1
The Alarm Clock
Shortly after a season of heavy warfare, the Lord spoke to one of His servants about her quiet times and asked her to covenant with Him again.
He told her that He knew exactly how much time she needed to spend with Him each day reading His word and praying.
Then He asked her to get rid of her alarm clock and let Him wake her up. Whenever He woke her, she was to get up and spend the remaining time before work with Him.
She agreed to that covenant and did not use an alarm clock again.
What That Cost
Over the following two years, more often than not He called her at two or three in the morning. Many times He allowed her only one or two hours of sleep, and she spent the rest of the night in prayer and in the Scriptures.
He was training her to wake instantly at His call, at any hour.
And that training saved lives more than once — because when danger came in the night, she was already a person who woke up when God spoke.
She noted something honest about the early days of it: at the beginning, there were certainly times she woke when He had not actually called her. But she got up every time anyway, walking in faith, and as she did He trained her to become more and more sensitive to His actual call.
That is worth remembering. You learn to distinguish His voice by responding to what you think is His voice and letting Him correct you — not by waiting until you are certain.
The Principle Behind It
You are unlikely to be asked to throw away your alarm clock. That was her covenant, not yours.
But the principle underneath is for everyone: God wants the first part of your day, and He will give you the time if you will give Him the hour.
"O God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee, my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land." (Psalm 63:1)
"With my soul have I desired thee in the night; yea, with my spirit within me will I seek thee early." (Isaiah 26:9)
"I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me." (Proverbs 8:17)
The Hebrew behind early carries the sense of diligently, with earnestness. It is about intent as much as clock time.
The Struggle Is Normal
One of the hardest things any believer does is get out of bed. Our flesh cries out for another hour, and the struggle to leave a warm bed feels enormous.
But stop and think honestly: one hour's sleep is not going to make you feel any different.
And there is a practical mercy available. When you are especially tired or ill, ask the Lord to help you wake. He is always faithful to do it. But if you do not respond to His first call, you will oversleep, and the whole day tends to go wrong.
Point to Ponder
You learn to distinguish His voice by responding and letting Him correct you — not by waiting until you are certain.
Verse to Remember
"I love them that love me; and those that seek me early shall find me." — Proverbs 8:17
Question to Consider
What is the first thing I actually do when I wake up?
Today's Practice
Make a specific, modest, sustainable commitment about your mornings — and make it today, in writing, with a start date.
Not a plan to pray for an hour if you currently pray for none. Fifteen minutes. A chapter and a conversation. Something you will still be doing in six weeks.
Then remove the obstacles in advance, tonight:
- Put your Bible where you will see it before anything else.
- Put your phone across the room, or in another room entirely.
- Decide tonight what you will read tomorrow, so you do not spend the time deciding.
- Go to bed earlier. This is the part everyone skips and it is the part that decides the outcome.
Then pray this before you sleep: "Father, wake me. And when You do, I will get up."
And when you wake — get up. Even if you are not sure it was Him.
Prayer
Father, I have given You the leftovers of my day and told myself I was too tired for anything better.
I have hit the alarm and rolled over and lost the hour, then wondered all day why I felt distant from You.
I am making a commitment about my mornings today, and I am asking You to hold me to it.
Wake me. And give me the will to get up when You do — not to lie there negotiating, but to put my feet on the floor.
Teach me to recognize Your call. Where I get it wrong at first, correct me patiently, and keep training me until I am the kind of person who wakes when You speak.
Early will I seek Thee. Help me mean it. In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.
One hour's sleep will not make you feel any different. That hour with God will.