I am not a morning person. I have an aversion to waking when it’s still dark outside. I’m like some nocturnal creature that burrows deep into the covers and nests in the pillows. By morning, I have made a comfy little spot for myself, all warm and toasty. I find the time it takes to get school started with my kids keeps getting later and later because mommy needs to sit and hold her coffee cup and everyone just needs to leave her alone and make no sudden moves until that caffeine takes effect.
Why is morning so evil? Ummm, because I stay up way too late. I have claimed the time at night as my own. It’s my precious. After the kids are in bed, I fight going to bed like a cranky toddler. It’s my “me” time. I write posts, work out home school lessons, sew, read, clean. It’s quiet and no one requires anything of me. I’m sapped after a long day homeschooling, cooking dinner, cleaning up the house, and constant interaction with the kids.
I don’t usually study my bible, pray, exercise, or spend time with the Lord at night because I just want to decompress. He’s gotten nudged out of my schedule. And even the things I do enjoy doing I’m often too tired for so it usually boils down to Pinterest, Facebook, reading blogs, or writing posts. I force wakefulness until I finally relent and fall asleep only to be intruded on in the morning.
I have had the conviction to get up and establish a morning routine but that alarm clock has a very convenient snooze/off button and I can accurately push it without even opening my eyes. I know I need to do it but parting with my night-time has been a very difficult thing to do.
We are more likely to impact our families with a morning on our knees than a late night on the ‘net. Kat- Inspired to Action
Hello Mornings Challenge
So I joined the challenge. I made nice with my alarm clock. I resisted the snooze button and it was awe inspiring.
No, it was not!
I was groggy all day, I slogged through the study. I had a headache and felt withdrawal symptoms upon leaving my cozy bed.
I read my accountability groups post on their breathtakingly blessed times with the Lord, their invigorating morning workouts, their renewed zeal for the shepherding of their children’s hearts. And I resisted the urge to post a snarky comment and crawl back into bed.
Because here is the honest truth for me. I knew it wouldn’t be lovely and wonderful at first or I would have done it all along. My body is in shock reacting to the morning like some foreign thing. My time with God was awkward, like meet and greet at church, mumbling introductions and making small talk, only with eye boogies, wrinkled jammies, and morning breath.
So why do I say all this? Because the payoff isn’t always immediate and that’s o.k. I know God has called me to be present and intentional for my kids in the morning, to spend time with Him, and to be a better steward of my body. There is no way I can do that with my current schedule. I am committing to this for the long run, not for the immediate benefits which so far amount to a splitting headache, foggy brain, and some possibly incoherent posts as I adjust my writing schedule. If you wake energized and enthusiastic, more power to you! I’m not criticising you if you have been blessed right from the get go. Although, I might think it secretly in my brain early in the morning, just excuse me. I know not what I do before 8 am and coffee.
For me, it will be an acquired taste. A retraining of my body and mind and a commitment to persevere for the sake of my convictions, not for the glorious sunrise or euphoric feelings of the sleep deprived. The feeling of my toes hitting the cold floor in search of coffee wouldn’t be worth it if God didn’t promise to come through in the long run.
