The Heart Behind Rise and Glory

To Rise and Glory is the greatest gift we can give ourselves in the morning.

I am not a morning person. I am pretty confident in saying that my brain does not function 100% in the morning. And I'm sure it has nothing to do with staying up so late;-) But... I find it incredibly hard to get up and be motivated to do anything! My poor kids, the school secretaries know us so well.

I have always heard starting your day off with God is wonderful but I convinced myself that It would be useless since my brain isn't at max capacity. And I do it at night so why does it matter when I do it? I am laughing just reading how silly this sounds, but I certainly let it control my time in the morning. I would scroll through the newsfeeds and check the weather because the light would help wake me up, (can we all just stop and laugh a little?) but everyday I would feel a little empty. It's like eating potato chips for breakfast, tastes pretty good, but quickly leaves you hungry for something of substance.

“I was starting my day off without true soul care. Without nourishment. And I was left wanting more.”

And just a quick word about those ol trendy words, "soul care." When we get a new product, we most often open it and read the best, most efficient way in how to use it. And we want to know how to take care of our souls but we spend so much effort listening to how the world tells us to do it when we could and should be asking the one who created our soul and gleaning from His words in the Bible to us. My soul care means that I look less to me and look more to Jesus.

"For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth..." Colossians 1:16

And then it all changed

I knew my brain was incapable of doing a deep study first thing, but my soul needed Jesus! When you have tasted the goodness of the Lord you discover that nothing else satisfies like He does. So I started reading a Psalm each day upon rising and simply worshiping my creator, and you guys! It changed my day! Look at this,

"I love You, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, my fortress, and my deliverer. My God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; so shall I be saved from my enemies." Psalm 18:1-3

What an incredible reminder that my perspective on my struggles completely shifts when viewed through the lenses of the Bible. And that no matter what I face in my day I remember that God is my strength, He is my rock and will deliver me. I can take shelter with Him and it was He who saved me - just remembering that he saved me every morning is a breath of fresh air to my soul.

I rise and I give Him praise, and I am reminded how great God is and that He is the same God yesterday, today and will be forever! I want to glorify Him with my whole day and every breath I use! And when I view life that way - from a heart of worship, my focus is not on my issues as much as it is on Him, and I walk comforted knowing that He is in control.

So rise and worship the King of all Kings, the one true God with me, and see if your day isn't better too.