There are many verses that talk about rising early to pray, but the one I have always held onto is Psalm 119:62–“At midnight I rise to give you thanks…”

I’ve historically not been a morning person.  I pray throughout the day and usually at night, although I tend to cut my time short at night because of sleepiness.  So what would it be if for 40 days I rose in the morning to spend an hour “praying in the spirit on all occasions?”  Would morning make a difference?

The forty days are done and I have to say the first 20 days were some of the best.  It really did set the tone for the day.  My spirit felt full as if I’d had a big meal.  The second 20 days I began to falter.  I am moving a couple thousand miles away in a couple of weeks and my tiredness has increased.  My hour prayer time was reduced to being spread out throughout the day as I was just plain tired!  It didn’t feel the same.  I still had my prayer time in, but something changed.

I still think we can be morning pray-er people or night ones.  David Wilkerson of Cross and the Switchblade prayed at night and out of it came his entire ministry.  But I think there is something special to the morning.  I just don’t know how to overcome the extreme tiredness I feel.  Going to bed early isn’t always easy because it doesn’t mean you fall asleep right away.  But I want to continue working on this one because as much as I hate to admit it, I think the morning birds may be on to something. 

—-

(The next 40 day experiment I think will be my hardest one yet.  Stay tuned.)