Tag: prayer

Why I Meet With God in the Morning

How do you feel when you are out alone and discover your phone battery is low and you didn’t bring a charger? While this happens to all of us occasionally(or maybe just once, a lesson learned), none of us like to feel vulnerable and detached from those we love.

The lack of readiness and vulnerability the above scenario alludes to is how I feel when I miss my morning quiet time. Of course, there are mornings when it isn’t possible because, occasionally, life happens, something out of the ordinary like an early flight, a medical procedure, a hospital stay, and a variety of other situations.

Think about your typical morning routine. Do you wait until the last snooze to get out of bed? Is having an occasional morning quiet time all you expect of yourself? Maybe no one ever challenged you when you were a new Christian to set aside time every morning to spend with God.

Why am I writing about meeting God every morning? Because living life intentionally is important. Mornings are important. Your morning routine, or lack of one, can change your life. One sets you on a successful, Spirit-led trajectory—the other results in a sluggish, unfocused drift. Meeting with God first changes my life. Meeting with God first before you accelerate into your day should be a priority for every Christian. Over time this excellent habit will change your life.

Lamentations 3:23 proclaims that God’s mercies are new every morning. We hardly know this when we rush to leave the house. We cannot run on automatic and expect to see God working in our lives. The Bible says that God loads us daily with benefits(Psalm 68:19). Our spiritual eyes are alert to see all He gives us on any given day when we spend time with Him each morning.


My phone illustration reminds me I want to stay connected to the Source. I want to be connected to God through reading His word and prayer. I want to absorb His Word and use His Word to pray for His desires over my life.

My relationship with God is first. My relationship with God is a friendship, and friendships require time and investment. But this relationship is not like meeting a friend you haven’t seen in a while and catching up on things. Not at all. The all-powerful, all-knowing God, Creator of the heavens and the earth, your soul rescuer, your Redeemer, the One who died for your sin and is alive today to be your Helper and Comforter, He is the One you meet. The One who provides you everything you need to love and serve Him on earth, and to keep you faithful because He is faithful(Hebrews 10:23) until He comes again.

That old quote about we become like those whom we keep as our company is true. We become like our closest companions. My dearest companion is Jesus. My first priority of the day is to meet with the One who saved my soul. I Corinthians 15:33 says, ” Do not be deceived: ‘Bad company ruins good morals.'” “Whoever walks with the wise becomes wise, but the companion of fools will suffer harm.” (Proverbs 13:20). I will become more like Jesus as I spend time with Him.

Today, I’m writing to persuade you to consider adjusting your morning routine to include a morning quiet time in your home before you leave to begin your day. Even if you have to change your alarm, sacrifice a little, and wake up before anyone else in your house, I can testify that this is one habit you won’t regret. Solitude, alone with God, is transformative.
Just getting to this point, I’ve given so many reasons! I could name a hundred. But here are 5 reasons I meet with God in the morning:

  1. I get to meet with God, the Creator of the universe who loves me. Like the music director said in Psalm 42:2, … “When can I go and meet with God?” The author of this statement longed to meet with God. If you don’t have that longing. It’s ok. Show up. And one day, you will. Meeting with God each morning gives me time to worship, let go of worries, and strength to wait on God’s plans. It also gives me comfort and guidance to start taking His steps into a new day(Proverbs 3:5-6, Proverbs 37:23). Truly, God’s Word is a lamp and a light(Psalm 119:105) showing me the way.
  2. The Bible tells me sinless Jesus often went away for prayer and to be alone with the Father. It stands to reason that if Jesus needed to meet with God, then we who are sinners need to meet with God(Mark 1:35). How can I take up my cross daily and follow Jesus if I don’t look to Him at the beginning of each day(Luke 9:23)? Jesus gave me an example in His life that I can follow.
  3. Philippians 2 urges me to imitate Christ. Surrendering and choosing humility are settled in my time with Him. My wrong thinking, bad attitude, and rebellious spirit dissolve and lose their hold on me as I confess my sin and let His Spirit reign in me. God changes my heart, and it needs it every single day. Any real change in my life comes not through a rushed or skipped time with God but through self-examination, cries to be changed as I pray scripture and pour out my heart, and worship to the only One with transformative power.
  4. Jesus promises to be with me always, but when I choose to meet with Him, I sense His presence. Through the Holy Spirit, He responds to my willingness and provides all I need to follow His plan in this quiet time. I get to gaze upon His beauty, majesty, and splendor(Psalm 27:4). I would miss this joy if I were in a rush, flying down the road to work.
  5. I need the Lord. My time with Him brings me emotional and spiritual health. I need the spiritual protection of Ephesians 6 to stay alert to the devil’s schemes. When suffering and trial come, the investment I’ve put in to meet with God pays off because I can trust God. Meeting with God equips me for the day that He knows all about and that I know very little about. The Lord desires me to grow up in my salvation( I Peter 2:2). These few reasons I’ve given here can’t be achieved in exhaustion at the end of the day or midday rush. I often meet with God throughout my day or even at night on my bed. Those are extra times, not the main time. If every day is a trip, then I need to consult my Guide before I take the trip.
  6. BONUS REASON: “He who runs from God in the morning will scarcely find Him the rest of the day.” John Bunyon
    The above quote might be a one-sentence summary of this article! Having a morning quiet time has nothing to do with works unto salvation. God has a plan. We are Christians. Jesus told us to follow Him, which means He is the Leader. A leader is a first position, meaning you meet with your Leader first. Intentionality, a desire to understand God’s plan, and a desire to get a sound mind before heading out into the dark world are intelligent actions. Learning to lean on Jesus and longing to hear from Him bring honor to Him and spiritual reward to your life. I know myself and need the Holy Spirit to change, transform, and prepare me to go out in the dark world. I must take spiritual responsibility for my life. Jesus already did the work of achieving my salvation. The very least I can do is meet with Him. Why not start a new, life-long, redemptive, results-driven habit to meet Him every morning?

“My quiet time is not a gift I give to God.
My quiet time is a gift God gives me.
I don’t offer him my quiet time. I simply offer him my time, my self. He’s the one who provides the quiet spirit.”
― Emilie Barnes, Fill My Cup, Lord… With the Peace of Your Presence

©Valerie Rumfelt

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The Practice of Prayer

If you are a Christ follower, then you know that spending time with the Father through Bible reading and prayer is not a legalistic exercise, but you cherish this practice; it is life to you.

As carelessly as some followers approach reading His Word, there can often be little attention given to prayer unless in a crisis. A Christ-follower can engage with God through the power of His Holy Spirit in prayer. If you only go to God when something immediate is wrong in your life, then you are no better than the characters on a soap opera. I used to watch them, and characters prayed only in a crisis to a god they didn’t know. So, how do we keep from being or becoming people who only pray in crisis?

  1. Expect results. Prayer is a discipline. I know that sounds like “eat your vegetables,” but to get out of “crisis mode only” with prayer, you will need to practice. Now that is not to say you can’t pray at other times. You can pray all day long, anytime. But praying as a choice is necessary to learn how to pray effectively.
  2. Expect to hear from God. We all fear that God might speak to us in our prayer, and we aren’t sure we want to hear what He has to say. But once you pray intentionally, you become fearless. Your faith strengthens and you are willing to accept any instruction, comfort, or guidance He gives. Even if something is hard to hear, you can pray about it.
  3. Expect better relationships. Prayer keeps you honest before God. It stands to reason that if you are honest before God, your relationships will get more honest, and more peace will be produced in your life. Every relationship problem may not be solved, but you will have more peace.
  4. Expect to use the Bible in your prayer time. Use the scripture you read earlier in devotions. Or find a passage particular to your situation. Praying scripture is a submissive choice to agree with God that His Word is true and true for you.
  5. Expect answers to your prayers. God honors those who honor Him and He is waiting to hear from you. The more you pray, the more answers you will get. He will answer prayers that are for your good and His glory which is directly connected to His will for your life.

None of this means that you’ll be spared suffering. God is not a genie. But a fervent prayer life will sustain you in suffering. True followers of Christ will suffer in this life. That is theologically based right out of God’s Holy Word, but your prayer life will give you strength and wisdom for each trial.

Do you need to get on your knees?

I choose to get on my knees because something supernatural happens there. It’s a humble posture; once again, I have no trouble thanking God for who He is. Praise comes out of my mouth easily. I confess my sins. Isn’t this what you’d expect to do in prayer? It goes from being a stiff “have to” step in my quiet time to a desire to know Him and enjoy His presence.

I hope these tips will encourage you to enter into God’s presence with expectation and gladness.

“True prayer is a way of life, not just for use in cases of emergency. Make it a habit, and when the need arises you will be in practice.”

Billy Graham

©Valerie Rumfelt

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The Serenity Prayer

We’ve all heard of the Serenity Prayer. Familiar as the Lord’s prayer to some and part of our culture for decades, yet most don’t know the prayer in its entirety.

We are familiar with the shortened mass-marketed one, seen in every bookstore, on every card table at garage sales, as plaques in thrift stores, and inscribed on mugs across the world. This overproduced version is only a portion of this reflective and meditative prayer.

God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.

Have you ever seen the entire Serenity Prayer?

I learned about the full prayer when I began the curriculum of Celebrate Recovery years ago.

The prayers’ author is Rienhold Nieburh and his daughter, Elizabeth Sifton says her father was a deeply committed Christian and social activist. She asserts that he also was an evangelical who believed not so much in liturgical prayers but in prayers that were motivated by the Spirit.

The prayer was not intentionally written for addicts, as it is now mostly applied in our modern times. Alcoholics Anonymous adapted the prayer, but only the first portion of it. Celebrate Recovery has the prayer, in its entirety, in the front of its step books.

A significant discovery I made when exposed to the entire prayer was it gives honor to Jesus. Jesus is the only One who can understand our human suffering. Likewise, He’s the only One who can redeem suffering, though this does require our cooperation through surrender. This is the entire prayer.

God, grant me the serenity
to accept the things I cannot change,
the courage to change the things I can,
and the wisdom to know the difference.
Living one day at a time,
enjoying one moment at a time;
accepting hardship as a pathway to peace;
Taking, as Jesus did,
this sinful world as it is,
not as I would have it;
trusting that You will make all things right
if I surrender to Your will;
so that I may be reasonably happy in this life
and supremely happy with You forever in the next. Amen.

Perhaps this prayer can serve as a tool for your walk with the Lord. It is not scripture, though scripture can apply to the principles mentioned. It is not magical and carries no power, but it can serve as a reminder of our humanity. Indeed, it clarifies who our Higher Power is, or may I say, who the Highest power is.

His name is Jesus.

For some additional information behind the story, you may enjoy this interview from Nieburh’s daughter from a few years back.

https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4284976

 Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. Matthew 26:41

©Valerie Rumfelt

Please press subscribe and enter your email. It would be my joy to have you as one of my readers. You will receive an email alert each time I publish. Welcome.

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