I wake early.
“The early bird catches the worm.”
That quote lingers, hangs overhead, wooing me to motivation and I wonder at how birds need those worms to be full. To feast on the fruit of labor found early in the morning. Is this my reward? To rise early to get it all done. To quicken my pace to accomplish all that lay before me?
I don’t want to rise early to strive.
Jesus said, “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they?” (Matthew 6:26)
The birds are fed by the very hand of God. They catch because He provides.
I am not a morning person, but I want to rise early to meet Him. And some days I do.
One particular morning, my eyes opened in the chill of the sun beginning to dawn. I looked around as friends slept soundly on wooden bunk beds in our white washed room. Tiptoeing past, I open the large wooden door with metal hinges to a wide, open, misty sky. I made my way past the barn, past sheep huddled together in slumber and past the garden at the edge of the house. There on a bench, under a willow tree, I sat in awe at the green rolling hills that seemed to have no end.
There, miles and miles past busy London, I sat and worshipped the Lord in the quiet of morning. No worms to catch, no checkboxes to mark off my task list.
On that quiet hill it was only me and Him as I worshipped loud for all the angels to hear.
I remember a trust. Trusting Him to guide my day as I witnessed to people I didn’t know. Trusting Him to guide words spoken to friends. Trusting Him to lead toward the exact place He desired.
If a bird feeds on a worm early in the morning, perhaps I must begin there.
Feasting.
“Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man does not live on bread along, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)
His table is always prepared with the finest. All I have to do is come with a longing heart ready to trust Him and receive.
I remember that morning of long ago and how sweet it was to be present with the maker of Time, as He unveiled a trust anchoring my soul to His once again. The same trust I needed on the mission field many yesterdays ago is what I need this day and everyday thereafter.
Whenever I rise, may it not be to accomplish more, but to be more present with the One called, “Jehovah Shama - The Lord is Present.”
