How to Meet with God When You’re Not a Morning Person

To say I’m not a morning person is a massive understatement. I stumble out of bed, bleary-eyed and trying to avoid running into walls as I make my way to the bathroom first, then to the kitchen for a tall glass of water. It takes me a good 20 minutes to get my head clear and be able to speak coherently. How do you meet with God in the morning between the hazy and lazy? If only you knew how to meet with God when you’re not a morning person?

When I tried to have my quiet time with God first thing when I rose in the morning, I’d either fall asleep (as you can see in this video) or find my mind wandering in an effort to stay awake. I felt guilty for not being excited and alert to enter God’s presence.

So for a while I’d do other things first, like check my phone, go for a walk, or put dishes away, but more often than not, one thing would lead to another and my quiet time would slip away with only a hurried, “Good morning, God! Sorry, gotta rush. See you later!”

But then I discovered how to meet with God when you’re not a morning person

But recently, as I was scrolling through my Facebook feed through hardly-opened eyelids, a thought occured to me: if I can gradually awaken my mind and body by thumbing through updates, why do I feel like I can’t gradually awaken by worshipping God? What if instead of feeling like we need to turn up bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, we came to His throne boldly and humbly, to receive mercy and grace to help in our need?

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Hebrews 4:16

So last week, I pitter-pattered to the sunroom, and stood, hands lifted and face turned heavenward, singing the first song that came to mind, “Holy, Holy, Holy.”

Holy, holy, holy! Lord God Almighty!
Early in the morning our song shall rise to thee.

I felt sheepish, kind of like in one of those dreams where you wake up at work only to look down and realize you forgot to put on pants–so embarassed, out of place, and wanting to crawl in a hole in the ground. I was sure God was displeased with my disheveled appearance, when all around the world bright morning people with hair done and makeup on were sipping their morning java and reading the Bible. Everything in me screamed “Stop! Don’t you realize you’re insulting the King of Kings?!”

But you know what? God didn’t strike me down with lightening because I jumbled some of the words. He didn’t give me the cold shoulder because I was yawning every other line. He met me, right there as I was, in my bathrobe and with bed hair, singing my heart out to Him. His presence warmed me as my mind woke up with each new stanza.

It wasn’t a ground-breaking moment, but it was an extremely personal revelation that God wanted all of me, because He already knows every part of me.

Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You. Show me the way I should go, for to You I lift up my soul.
Psalm 143:8

 

Related post: A Prayer for First Thing in the Morning

 

For those of us who aren’t morning people, perhaps the following reminders would help:

1. God wants all of you

God sees us when we lie down and when we get up, and He knows all of us. There’s something to be said about giving God our best, even in treating our daily quiet time as an appointment to be kept and respected.

Give God your first vulnerable minutes before your thoughts are straight and He will direct your path. 

2. God looks at the heart

Our Father would rather have our first five minutes, bleary-eyed and yawning, with a sincere heart to seek Him, then a prim, picture-perfect I-have-it-all-together attitude 30 minutes later.

Open your heart to God first thing in the morning, greeting Him with love, worshipping Him through a song, and trusting Him with your day. That doesn’t mean you can’t then wash, get dressed, and grab a cup of coffee and sit down again to pick up the conversation where you left off. Keep the conversation going all day.

3. God accepts creative worship

I’ve heard some morning people lay awake in bed and pray for the first five minutes of their day. Ha! That’s a sure recipe for more zzz’s on my part. For this night owl, anything that doesn’t get my blood pumping will get me snoozing.

So I’ve learned to try creative ways of worship, like singing, dancing, stretching, and prayer walking. God is a creative Being who delights in variety and uniqueness; worship Him with your unique personality and quirks! 

This experience, along with others in my recent journey toward deeper intimacy with God, has made me realize that some of the preconceptions keeping me from a deeper relationship with God are all in my head. But push through them and you’ll discover joy unspeakable as you enter His gates with thanksgiving and praise, first thing in the morning, morning breath and all.

How about you? Are you a morning person? What does your morning worship routine look like?