Is it really necessary for us to spend time in prayer in the morning?
I think so.
How many posts have I done on this one thing? I don’t know, but it has been a common theme here because it is so important for each of us, and yet it can be so easy to put off. Early morning prayer is important because it will set the tone for the entire day, it will help us to focus on what is really important in life instead of being pulled here and there by things that are urgent.
Important or urgent; entire books have been written on the difference between the two, and still we skip the important in favor of the urgent. Prayer in the morning is important.
Jesus spent time in prayer at the beginning of the day, and for me this really underscores how important a habit this is to develop. If it was important enough for Jesus to do, how could it be that I can skip it? We should ponder this point!
In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.
Mark 1:35
Life Project Blog 
Wow, how strongly I agree! But for so many, prayer seems like “work”, and that seems hard to bear before coffee. Prayer so often gets such a “bad rap”. When I think THIS kind of prayer, this morning start of the day prayer time, is much more a “spend quiet time in one another’s company… maybe a cup of coffee… think over the coming day… maybe check the ToDo List, maybe not… sort of thing.
More than anything, I think… at least for me… is the time where we mutually assure one another, we’ll be there for them… me for Him, Him for me… throughout the coming day, good or bad.
Dunno if that makes sense or not… but whatever it is… “work” it is not. Companionship, it is. (That’s just me, not saying it must be so for anyone else, by any means.) I personally couldn’t function, I don’t think, if He didn’t “start my engine” for the day.
Grace — LM
It makes great sense; couldn’t agree more!
In the morning, O Lord, You will hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to You and eagerly watch. — Psalm 5:3. One of my favorite verses. Thank you for the reminder and it’s importance for a spirit filled walk in the world.
Excellent reminder, Don. Prayer should be a two-way conversation with God. Most important component — ask him, What do you want to do today, Father? Pray that.
Absolutely right! I mention something about that in the podcast tomorrow…
Am I allowed a coffee first. I can’t really think until after the first coffee
I know what you mean!
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Totally agree, I wish I would do it more.
🙂
I heard a minister in a conference first one to speak say, that in his message that he wanted to strike the right chord or tune for the rest of the day. I think getting the right tune for the day would surely start with prayer and continue that tune all day ..”pray without ceasing.” Thanks for a true and blessed article! 🙂
Yep, that’s it
I believe the reason prayer sometimes feels like work is because we stereotype what prayer should be – long, elaborate, even fanciful. Whereas prayer could be as simple as a heartfelt whisper of “Thank you Lord for another day” as soon as we awaken to consciousness in the morning.
Well said
Thank you for your post.
Because I never really know where to start, i think prayer is work. Because I flounder, I have never developed any real discipline. So I just take a few moments thank God for getting me safely to work and to ask Him to help me through the day. I suppose i could begin the day by listing each of the things I expect to do and present them to the Lord, request His blessing upon my labors. That would still be work, but it is something I ought to do anyway.
I have regretted not taking my troubles and concerns to the Lord, but I have never regretted stopping to pray.
What I do do with more rigor is study the Bible. That mediation is prayer, but I guess we need that of a more personal nature too.
Tom you’ve described a very common thing here, and first and foremost, I hope that everyone will realize that Jesus meets us where we are, and all of us experience relationship with Him a little differently. You may not be up for a ‘project’ but in case you are, you might check out the links at the top of the page under “The Journey, Spiritual Practices’ that goes through a lot of these things…
Over the last several years, I’ve developed the habit of spending time with God first thing in the morning. I don’t even call it prayer, though it is. I take my cup of coffee, read a couple of devotionals, look through my Bible as I’m lead to do, and take out my prayer journal. I also have a small box of 3×5 cards bound for each day of the week for intercessory prayer. The days I miss are rare, and I feel like I’ve not kept an appointment with a friend. I look forward to mornings because it’s my quiet time alone with Him. Sometimes it’s 20 minutes; sometimes it’s an hour. Either way, my day just doesn’t feel right unless I begin it in the company of my God.
Amen
Prayer is really something that can be done throughout the day. In the morning it sets the tone for the day. During the rest of the day it allows us to receive wisdom for the various tasks at hand. At the end of the day it is one of the best ways to bring peaceful rest.
Amen!
Prayer defines our relationship – if we are married and fail to speak to our spouse when we are both awake is that a recipe for a long lasting relationship? As parents would we fail to speak or contact our children (even our grown children – we recognise the need to talk to them regularly)?
Our closest relationship the one that fills our whole identity is our link to God, not as a crutch or as though we are unable to support ourselves but as genuine children seeking approval and guidance.
Many things are taken for granted in our lives and yet as those who have recognised the importance of God in our lives and that Jesus is critical to our salvation we need to pray continually. So from the first conscious thought in the morning we need to think about our relationship with our provider and protector and then talk to him.
Pray followed by Bible reading (even just one verse) with careful reflection and meditation will set us up for the day.
One of my personal friends once said that he didn’t want to miss any opportunity to talk to God because there will be a time when it is his last time and he’d hate for it to have been last week or last year.
Regular times for prayer throughout day are good discipline and keep our Christian values in front of us all day.
Thanks for the post – echo the sentiments
Great points as always, thanks!
Pray without ceasing. When I owned businesses – or did they own me? – I used to play a game with myself. I would see how long it would be that I went without thinking of Him. Now, thankfully, I think of Him all the time. He is so sweet… not toothless and weak, but loving by His own decision, and because that is who He is. I devote my first time to His word, it sets me right, it washes me clean and fresh every morning.
Bless you Don, and thanks for visiting my blog.
Thank you Franco; great blog and a great comment!