“She sets about her work vigorously; her arms are strong for her tasks.” (Proverbs 31:17)
Morning captures the early hours of our day. How we handle these first hours will often determine how the rest of our day will turn out.
A successful morning routine will often set us up for success or failure.
It’s crucial though to note that the success I’m talking about may not be evident until several days; perhaps a season has gone by.
That’s why a successful morning routine seems to elude many of us. We work at a given morning routine and quickly give up several days down the line.
The success we hoped to achieve didn’t seem forthcoming.
We live in a generation that craves instant results. From that quick cup of instant coffee to the quick grow rich scheme we want to adopt from our favorite YouTuber.
We hope that the routine we are adopting will get us where we want to be… like yesterday.
Is that possible?
Before we get into the 5 disciplines, let me reiterate that the results of an effective morning routine will take time. Success will not happen overnight. Consistency will be key if we have to experience success.
Consistency is the resilience to persevere through a rigorous discipline with the understanding of the benefits in the long term.
In this blog post here, I talked about how a woman girds herself with strength, focusing on 3 areas: the spiritual, physical, and mental realms. It forms a wonderful foundation for this post.
I am a SAHM by choice. I may therefore be biased towards the Stay-at-home mom’s life. I’m certain though that any other woman reading this will benefit as well.
So, what are these disciplines that would make your morning routine fruitful? Let’s get right into them.
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Quiet Time/ Personal Devotion
Quiet Time is a term that has been coined in Christian circles but has generally been widely accepted. It is that time that you set aside to commune with God in his Word and prayer.
As we pray and fellowship with God through his Word, God is working through his Word to strengthen our hearts and to give us clarity in doing his will.
He is doing exactly that because his Word is alive and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, penetrating to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow, judging the thoughts and attitudes of our hearts. (Heb.4:12)
His Word is a lamp unto our feet and a light for our path. (Ps.119:105) It is our very life. (Deut.32:47)
The mere taking it in daily accomplishes so much more than we might ever know, strengthening us for the task ahead each day.
In a separate post that you can find here, I talked about why it is biblical to wake up early in the morning. I however I’m hopeful that you will pick on a practical time for yourself each morning, a time where you can commit to fellowshipping with God in his Word and prayer.
You don’t have to set for yourself a huge chunk of time in the morning. I know that time, especially for a SAHM in a busy household can be critical. You need all the time you can spare especially in the morning.
You can begin with 15 minutes, and make it longer as your quiet time rhythm gets established.
You’ll be surprised what difference this will make. God is your strength. He wants to help you accomplish more for His glory. Taking in and depending on God’s Word will make such a huge difference for you.
Just recently, my reflection for instance, on Psalm 18, helped me understand that God is not only my strength, he arms me with strength too! (Ps.18:1,32,39) Communing with him who is my strength grants me the privilege of tapping into his strength to accomplish his will.
In case you’re wondering how to have a fruitful Quiet Time, you can read this post here.
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Prayer
Prayer looks rather obvious for the Christian woman. But how many of us find ourselves having come to the end of the day without having taken time to pray?
The Bible commands us to pray without ceasing. God knows why he made it a command. I’m certain he knows it is for our good, helping us tap into the inexhaustible riches of his grace; grace that we need to go through each day. He gives us strength as we pray.
I recall just this Sunday at the writing of this post when we celebrated Easter. My children and I watched the Jesus film.
I couldn’t help but recall the scene where Jesus earnestly prayed in the garden of Gethsemane, his sweat dropping to the ground as blood, giving us a glimpse into the earnestness of the moment. An angel came and strengthened him for the weighty task ahead.
How many times have you and I forfeited the strength that comes from God for the task ahead because we were not giving ourselves to prayer?
How many times have we handled our families… guests, wrongly because we were going about our responsibilities with the arm of flesh, because we wouldn’t depend on God in prayer?
I trust God to spend at least 30 minutes in prayer each day; sometimes longer when I can.
For a while now, I have combined my prayer time with exercise as I walk up and down a quiet hillside. Sometimes I’ll simply kneel in prayer in a less used part of the house and pray.
I will often fail to pray but I’ve noted that because I pray, God has come through and given me the strength to serve my family and guests.
I recall recently hosting over ten guests for 4 days. I could never have done it except that God strengthened me, enabling me to host this mixed group by his grace.
By the way, in case you would like to read a little more on the Proverbs 31 passage, I have written a book that’s expositional in approach, based on this passage. You can buy it right here on Amazon.
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Scripture Memory
When I understood from the scriptures that it was God’s will for me to let God’s Word dwell in me richly, hiding it in my heart that I might not sin against him, I began memorizing scripture.
Scripture memory wasn’t new to me. I however just thought it was an unattainable practice for some, me included.
The Lord however helped me to determinedly keep at it, being consistent as much as I could. Eventually, I could recite several verses from memory.
Part of the blessing of scripture memory is being able to pray God’s Word. when I pray back God’s Word to him, in light of my circumstances, for instance seeking him for strength, he will answer me because the prayer is per his will.
Because God’s Word is my strength, hiding it in my heart through scripture memory helps me strengthen my spirit man. I, therefore, have the strength to live a godly life.
As a SAHM, I have the strength to remain godly even when a teenage child wants to push my limits to just see how I’ll react in a given situation.
How do I memorize scripture? I hope to link here a blog post where I hope to share how I memorize scripture.
Don’t complicate the process though. Don’t begin memorizing chapters if you’ve never memorized scripture consistently. Begin with a verse or two and review it until you can memorize it from memory.
I suggest you begin with these verses: Joshua 1:8, 2Timothy 3:16-17, Hebrews 4:12, Psalm 119:9-11.
I recommended these verses because they will deepen your conviction about God’s Word being your life and, all in all.
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Reading
We were never created to be self-sufficient in everything. We were never created with the ability to possess all ability to make it in life. We need each other.
Coming to the body of Christ, we get to understand that we are each gifted by God differently. You need my gift and I need yours. We can never operate solely on our own.
Reading is one of those ways by which we can benefit from the knowledge and wisdom of others.
You may find that as a homeschooling mom, for instance, you may struggle to determine which curriculum best suits you in your circumstance.
Reading widely on homeschooling could help you benefit from the knowledge and experiences of others.
You will spare yourself days and days of hopeless toil and low energy simply because you learned from someone else how to handle a particular situation; for the reason that you simply read.
Your morning routine for strength may not be complete without incorporating a reading habit.
I like to plan to read a good book to stimulate me to wholesome thinking. I am presently reading a book by Jani Ortland that’s edifying me a lot in understanding biblical womanhood. The title is Fearless Womanhood. You can buy it here in case you are wondering what to read this season.
A warning shot: Don’t bite more than you can chew! Set a realistic and achievable goal.
As a stay-at-home mom, I like to read a chapter of the book I’m reading every morning. Even then, if I find the chapter too long, (like my current read) I will often split it into two sections. I then read it two mornings.
I’ve found it impractical to plan to read during the day. I rarely go back to my book once the day’s activities begin.
Setting aside 15 to 30 minutes of my morning, just after my devotion, helps me get consistent in reading daily.
After a month or so, I find I have completed a chapter without lots of hustle while gaining a wealth of knowledge on diverse topics that I have an interest in.
This knowledge equips me to handle my days with wisdom, and even strategically, in girding myself with the strength to accomplish more for God’s glory.
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Exercise
For a long time, perhaps just like you, I struggled to find a routine that would fit my reality, especially as a SAHM.
Just like you, I knew the value of exercise. The scriptures even affirmed this through such scriptures as this one:
“Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself to be godly. For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come.” (1Tim.4:7-8)
I am no authority when it comes to exercise. My reading on the benefits of exercise by those who have researched the same affirms the biblical position. No wonder the Proverbs 31 woman also girds herself with strength. Her arms are strong for her tasks.
Because I’m certain you know the benefits of exercise, we will not extend our scope to cover that. Instead, we will ask the question: How practical can I get when incorporating exercise into my routine?
Why don’t you begin by praying, just asking God to show you how to practically incorporate exercise into your schedule?
Because the how-to eluded me for quite some time, I prayed. God answered me.
Because I live in the countryside, I discovered that going up and down a quiet hillside for 20 to 30 minutes would work for me.
God led me to combine this with prayer as I walked, a practice that has helped me to keep at it for over a year now. I may fail to go for exercise a few days but on the whole, I have kept at it fairly consistently.
I keep looking to God to lead because there may come a season God will lead differently. But all in all, I look to him to be practical in girding myself with strength physically for the tasks ahead.
I’m hopeful that these disciplines will be very practical as you incorporate some or all of these components into your morning routine.
I have found myself accomplishing much, including this kind of writing each week as a result of a simple effective morning routine.
I pray you too will accomplish much for God’s glory in having a simple, workable morning routine for strength.