I knew I needed to get up if I was going to have my morning quiet time. Tempted to crawl back into bed, I got as far as the edge, reasoning with myself “please, only 5 more minutes!”
Finally I resisted, got my coffee and God led me to Mark, Chapter 1. This was the scene where Jesus spends more than half the night healing people from the entire town. The next morning, He still gets up early to go and pray. After the disciples sleep in (that may very well have been me), they go out looking for Him. When they finally find Him, they frantically explain that the whole town is anxious for Him to come back. Determinately, Jesus says, “No, I must go to the other towns. That is why I came.”
As I read this, I realized something. If Jesus hadn’t gotten up (and out of bed) to pray, and He certainly had a good excuse to sleep in, He may have returned to minister to the people in that town. And why not, it sure sounds like something God would want, right? Yet, had He done so, many others may never have heard the good news!
It is tempting to roll back under the covers, especially when we have a good excuse! But if we do, without the fresh insight from God each morning, we may not realize that when we do good, we may in fact have missed the best!
Shadia Hrichi
