Prep Time

You should see me get ready to walk each day. It's pretty comical. I don't just throw on a pair of shoes and walk my daily 2 miles. First I put on my walking shorts (stretchy and comfy), a snug jog bra, an old T-shirt I've cut the sleeves and collar off (instant tank top) and ankle socks. But no, I'm not done there. Then I slide my Ipod under my shirt with the ear buds coming out of the top of the collarless tank and clip it to my shorts. I also clip a retracting key chain with my house key dangling from it to the waist band of my shorts. I clip my cellphone case on. I put my hair in a ponytail and top everything off with my sparkly visor (whichever matches that day's outfit - I'm not kidding). Then I check the duct tape on the inside back of my walking shoes. The inside lining wore off (I always slip on the shoes verses untying and tying them), but the soles are still good, so the duct tape is allowing me to get more turf time with this pair. But the duct tape curls periodically, so I need to change it every few days.

I have found doing all this makes my daily walk much more enjoyable. I've got my music. My kids or husband can get a hold of me if they need to or I can have a 30 minute visit with a friend via cellphone. My face and eyes are protected from the sun via the visor. If I forget the key, I'm locked out. If I forget the visor, I'm squinting the whole time. If I don't check the duct tape, I can end up with a blister. Yes, it's quite a process to get out the door, but since I do this every day, it takes just minutes to get everything together. Then I'm good to go. Prepared, safe, secure, comfy ... I'm better for the walk. The prep time is worth it.


Recently I noticed that I had gotten too busy in the morning for my devotion time. Strike that. Make it "too lazy." I say too lazy, because honestly, I had the time, I was just not getting to it. I decided to turn things around a couple weeks ago. I asked the Lord to wake me as the sun rises so the first thing I do each day is spend time with him.

Now, you need to know, I am NOT a morning person. I'm the gal who kicks in about 3 p.m. I get more things accomplished, faster and more efficiently in the afternoon to evening hours. So asking God to wake me early was not my first choice. But I noticed that the sunlight wakes me up every morning anyways to my chagrin. And it's a beautiful time of day, so peaceful and sweet, watching the sun creep up over the horizon, that it feels like Jesus is starting the day just for me.

So I got myself a new Bible study and have been giving my Father about 30 minutes to an hour each morning in devotion, study and prayer. And it's been delightful. I have learned so much, had miraculous answers to prayer, gone through my prayer lists over and over again, been nudged by the Spirit to meet the needs of others, corrected some behaviors (okay, still working on those) and just basked in the glory and worship of the Son. Call it my day prep time.

I'm getting about four times more accomplished, I'm growing Spiritually and getting much better rest each night. What a blessing this morning devotion time has turned out to be for this very non-morning person. And honestly, like getting ready for my walk, it's not been difficult at all to get into the routine. The Lord has been faithful to wake me up early every day and I have stayed faithful to spend time with Him. It guards my heart, this morning time with Him. I need it and love it.

I have done devotion times at all times of the day, but I can say with all honesty, when I do it in the morning, the day goes better ... every time. My focus is where it needs to be. I love that prep time. I'm better for the day.

Prepared, safe, secure ... and comfy in Jesus.