Brenda Rodgers

How I Became a Morning Person

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Brenda Rodgers

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It’s hardest in the winter when just one elbow peaks out from under comforter and a ripple of shivers move throughout my body. And it’s even harder when my eyes open for the first time and the air is still as black as it was when I closed them. For a long time I would justify this by saying that we really weren’t made to get up before the sun comes up.
As my life got more hectic, though, with work, social, ministry, and then a husband, it became almost impossible to accomplish all that I wanted to do in a day, and it seemed that the two most essential, but not pertinent, tasks were the first to go – time with God and exercise. Wise people have said that people find time to do whatever is important to them. Wise people have also said that something doesn’t become important until it becomes a problem. My goal was to make time with God and exercise important BEFORE they became problems.
I realized that if I was going to accomplish these two tasks every day, I had to do them before the expectations of everyone else began. And that means I had to get up early, really early.

At the time I had to be at work by 7:20. It takes me longer than most people (blushingly) to get dressed in the morning. (I just don’t like to be rushed, right?) So, if I was going to pray, read by Bible, AND exercise I had to get up at 4:00 AM. 4:00 AM?? Yes, 4:00 AM, and believe it or not it became easier to do than you think! Now that I work from home I am blessed with sleeping one hour later, so these day I get up at 5:00.

I know this seems impossible at the moment, but trust me, you can do this, too, and the benefits (which I will address tomorrow) absolutely outweigh the few sacrifices!

1. Decide on your goals.

What do you want to get up early to do? Why do you want to get up early to accomplish these tasks? What are the benefits? I stated my goals above, but anything that you are passionate about accomplishing, but can’t seem to find the time to do during the day, can be your goal. (I do hope one of them is time with God because this one fuels productivity for the rest of the day.)

2. Pray for discipline.

It obviously takes discipline to get up earlier than you’re used to, and it also takes discipline to then do what you planned on doing after you get up. Discipline sometimes seems like a bad word, and of course we really, really dislike it, but in the Bible it says that after discipline there will be a “peaceful harvest of right living” (Hebrews 12:11 NLT)  Isn’t that what we’re seeking – peace from living the way we are shown is right? 

3. Get a wake-up buddy.

There was one time in my life when I paired up with a friend in my Bible study, and we decided to help each other with this by making a quick phone call to each other when we got up. We didn’t start talking.  We just told each other to have a good day and quickly got off the phone.

4. Go to bed early.

This one goes back to discipline. You will have to go to bed early or you will quickly find that either you won’t get up the next morning or you’ll be miserable the rest of the day. When I got up at 4:00 I tried to be in bed by 9:00 the night before. 

5. Wake up early on the weekends.

Now, I do not wake up at 5:00 on the weekends, but I do wake up earlier than I would normally. You will find that over time your body will naturally adjust to your new schedule, and it will become almost impossible to sleep late. On the weekends I do not set my clock (not even to get up to go to church on Sunday) because I naturally wake up at the very latest by 7:00, but most of the time around 6:00. For a while it might be a good idea to set a clock for about 7:00 just so you don’t have to completely start over on conditioning your body each week.

Here are also some helpful Bible verses that address getting up early:
* Mark 1:35
* Luke 4:42
* Psalm 5:3
* Psalm 118:24
* Psalm 127:2
* Proverbs 31:15

Photo Credit: Creative Commons

Do you want to become a morning person to reach your goals?  What is the hardest thing about getting up early for you? 

Comments

2 responses to “How I Became a Morning Person”

  1. Kelly Avatar
    Kelly

    I have to get up at 5:30 just to get the basics finished (3 kids to get ready) by 6:45. I *could* however cut down on that time by getting their clothes laid out the night before, having their snack laid out the night before, and putting my daily morning blog on the scheduled post (I usually just do it automatically which is ok… except for when I start linking it to other link ups lol). You are right. I *could* do better. Great post this morning. 🙂

    Reply
  2. Triple Braided Avatar
    Triple Braided

    Kelly, you have another great idea to prepare for the morning the night before! Which for me, again, takes discipline because I think of a million other things that I'd rather be doing or have to do. Also, I do not have children yet, so I know that that adds another huge task to complete! Thank you for reading and for your insight!

    Have a great day!
    Brenda

    Reply

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