2.28.18 Prayer Prompt: Time with Jesus

PRAYER PROMPT ••• Each night, I set six alarms to go off at various intervals between 5:10 and 5:45 AM, with all the snoozes in between.
Getting up this early doesn’t come naturally for me, but through the encouragement of my alarm clock(s) and my groggy husband shaking my shoulder to please-get-up-and-turn-off-the-alarms, I’m usually up by 5:30/5:45ish.
But most of all, my encouragement to get up at way-too-early o’clock comes from the opportunity to spend some time with my Savior.
Though I don’t go to work until 8:30, this is the quiet part of my day when I read my Bible and devotions, and write this daily post.
It’s the time before my phone starts dinging…
Time before emails begin…
Time before meetings and to do lists and everything else can distract me from the number one priority of my day.
Jesus Himself taught us this.
In Mark 1:35, it says, “Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray.”
The Bible repeatedly encourages us to spend time with God.
One example comes from Luke 10:38-42 when Jesus visited the sisters Mary and Martha.
Mary sat at Jesus’ feet while Martha tended to the cooking and household tasks.
After becoming frustrated that her sister had abandoned her to do all the work, Martha went to Jesus in a moment of sibling outrage.
“Lord, doesn’t it seem unfair to you that my sister just sits here while I do all the work? Tell her to come and help me.” (Verse 40).
I relate to her.
Not so much in wanting the help (because I don’t like help in the kitchen), but in focusing on what needs to be done rather than sitting at the feet of Jesus to listen and learn.
I imagine in her mind she was thinking, “This pot roast isn’t going to cook itself,” forgetting that she was with the One who fed 5000 from five loaves and two fishes.
Jesus replied in verse 42, “There is only one thing worth being concerned about. Mary has discovered it, and it will not be taken away from her.”
As much as I have on my to-do list, and as many reasons as I could give to not start my day this way, I’ve learned the joy of sitting at Jesus’ feet.
Early morning may not be the best time for everyone, but it’s what works for me.
And nothing is more important.
If I need to be out the door earlier, then I will set the alarms earlier.
I need this time with Jesus.
It’s the only way I can manage life.
Because knowing Him better and more personally is what sustains me through both ups and downs and everything in between.
In James 4:8a, it says, “Come close to God, and God will come close to you.”
Isn’t that amazing?
As Christians, we need to encourage one another to spend time in the Word and in prayer.
We need to be more like Mary and less like Martha if we’re going to grow in Christ and do more for the Kingdom.
Today, as you pray, thank Jesus that He wants to spend time with us!
Thank Him that He invites us to sit with Him.
Ask Him to keep you free from distractions while you focus on your time with Him.