Mornin', Sleepyhead

Read Psalm 5:1-8

Context: This is a morning prayer written by David. It was most likely a hymn, and it was to be accompanied by flutes.

Text:
1 Give ear to my words, O LORD,
consider my sighing.
2 Listen to my cry for help,
my King and my God,
for to you I pray.

3 In the morning, O LORD, you hear my voice;
in the morning I lay my requests before you
and wait in expectation.

4 You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil;
with you the wicked cannot dwell.

5 The arrogant cannot stand in your presence;
you hate all who do wrong.

6 You destroy those who tell lies;
bloodthirsty and deceitful men
the LORD abhors.

7 But I, by your great mercy,
will come into your house;
in reverence will I bow down
toward your holy temple.

8 Lead me, O LORD, in your righteousness
because of my enemies—
make straight your way before me. (NIV)

taken from www.biblegateway.com

As I write this our boys have just gotten out of bed. I'm usually still at the computer when they wake up, so they come straight to our room and climb under the covers in our bed while they wipe the sleep from their eyes. While I don't usually get a morning hug from them (they are boys, afterall), it warms my heart to see their sleepy little faces (while they still look innocent...that doesn't last long) and to know that they want to spend some time with me as they get ready for the day.

Does God feel the same way when we start our morning with prayer? Does it make him smile to know that we want to be in his presence and that we are asking his advice for the day? Does our praise feel like a warm hug, and do we still look innocent in the morning? I'm pretty sure he smiles a little at our bed heads...

When I remember to pray right away my day seems to be smoother than when I oversleep and don't get to my prayers until later. I doubt that I have any less trouble than I would have had if I didn't pray, but I'm much more capable of dealing with that trouble if I've checked in with God.

Now if I can just learn to finish my prayers without falling back asleep...