Morning Routines Were Actually a Thing Before Jesus
The Proverbs 31 Woman + the 5 AM Club
Did you know that in 2019 people who stuck to a strict morning routine earned a whopping $12,500 more per year vs those who took more of a casual approach to their awakening?
I know it’s not about the money but I couldn’t help but to share that amazing fact + all the other benefits like how morning people may have a lower risk of breast cancer and have stronger mental health. In other words, it really does pay to have a morning routine!
But how does one get there?
Instead of Google, Let’s Try the Bible
Don’t get me wrong, Google is awesome to find the facts you need but a morning routine is more than just physical and mental; it’s also very spiritual. And it’s one of the top reasons why I started sticking to my morning routine more strictly.
Talking to God is important and probably the first thing you should do when you wake up; followed by some good exercise.
By praying first thing, you have the opportunity to pray over your day before it even begins. This means you have the chance to pray against the temptation the enemy wants to hurt you with, you can pray for forgiveness and pray for God to help you forgive others before you even know what the situation is. And you have now made time for the other routine I know you have thought about that goes hand-in-hand with this so well.
The Daily Bible Reading Plan
How many times have you attempted to do the 365-day challenge? Is it a goal of yours to read the Bible everyday and actually find a daily Bible reading routine that you can stick to? If you have ever struggled to find time to study the good book you are definitely not alone. But by following the steps that I’m about to share with you will shift your perspective by helping you understand the importance of reading the Bible as a whole; as it should be.
I’m a firm believer that God wouldn’t of added a book in the Bible if He didn’t want it there. Everything in the O.T. is something we can still learn from. Like the Proverbs 31 woman. Yes, we are going to talk about her today.
Mainstream for a Reason
The Proverbs 31 woman had time on her side. Indeed, she was apart of the 5 AM club. She got up before the rest of the world and she made the day work for her instead of letting it work her. She knew how to be in charge because she’s the one who took it. This is how she made her morning routine and also how we can apply it to our modern everyday lives.
Snooze You Lose
Of course we know she was woke. But that didn’t happen overnight. She took baby steps to get there. Do you think she woke up around 8 each day and then all of a sudden 5? No. That’s hard and you burnout easily if you don’t work your way up to it. It’s much better to set a goal of waking up at 7 then 6 and then 5. I learned this the hard way and quickly realized I will never get out of bed unless I have my phone (my alarm clock) sitting across the room away from me, that way I have to get up out of bed to turn the oh-so-annoying noise off and not keep hitting snooze.
1. Schedule Your Morning
You may think this is too precise and unreasonable but it’s actually the total opposite because this is the time that you have time for! This is the time that you have made for yourself! You did it for self-care, self-love, to be productive, to set your goals and then reach them. This is ultimately the best time to schedule out what you want/need to do while you have it.
So the night before or whenever prior to the morning that you’re going to wake up at 5 AM, make a list of what you’re going to do and get done. I personally have my one on one with God. I study my Bible and I pray. I workout and I work on my blog or writing posts that I want to publish that week. We should get this done first thing so it won’t be the thing that holds us back when we tackle on our day.
“She rises while it is yet night and provides food for her household” — Proverbs 31:15, ESV
2. Pick Your Plan & Work With Willing Hands
We have been created to work and we have been created to plan. For me, I find things to be much easier if I already have a plan. Let’s break down the next verse I want to talk about from this chapter.
“She seeks wool and flax, and works with willing hands.” — Proverbs 31:13, ESV
- “She seeks…” Also means she plans!
- “works with willing hands.” She has been created to work because she has a willingness inside her!
By all this I mean once we have decided what we are going to do in our morning routine, we stick to it. Yes, it means work but what doesn’t? Work should be our joy! And we should be willing to put in that work.
One of the biggest reasons why we are not always that willing is because we don’t see the prize at the end of the race. But the Proverbs 31 woman did. But it was because she was also willing to do something else…
She was willing to search for it. So what does it mean to be willing to search for your prize? Well, that’s the beauty of it. She knew she wanted the best for her family and for herself. What strong woman doesn’t?
3. Search Then Study
“She considers a field and buys it; With the fruit of her hands she plans a vineyard.” — Proverbs 31:16, ESV
Yeah, Proverbs 31:16 and Proverbs 31:13 go hand-in-hand together so well. Did you catch my joke there? Please don’t back-hand me. Yes I am making jokes about hands. Trust me, it comes in handy sometimes. Ok, I’ll stop.
But it’s true, they compliment each other so well. Not only do they mention her willing and fruitful hands, they both refer to planning.
Keep in mind, this is YOUR time and no one else’s. You have gotten up early for you (and God.) You have to be the one to determine what is the best use of your time. We can see in the verse above that the Proverbs 31 woman was in search of something that would prove to be worth her valuable time; she considers. And once she found it, she studied it. This way it can be a part of the plan.
She understood the concept that whatever she applied to her life had to be worth her time because both time and life is a precious thing. That she would never be in the same moment ever again and there was no time to waste but to make of it.
4. Document Where You Are Going
Document your Bible reading, anything (positive) you’re reading. Keep it in your journal. If you don’t have a journal, get one. If you plan on going on a journey then you will need a journal. Journey = journal. Just trust me on this. I can’t tell you how many times I have looked back on all the Bible verses, quotes from books or even my own quotes that I have written down when I needed the inspiration that I couldn’t get from Pinterest.
Focus on the long-term. Never short-term. Focus on all the “F’s” in your life. Allow me to explain. Your faith, family, and future.
- Your faith comes first because without it nothing else does.
- Family comes second because what do you have without it?
- Your future is third but it is never something you should put last because you need something to keep getting you out of bed.
“She is not afraid of snow for her household, for all her household are clothed in scarlet.” — Proverbs 31:21, ESV
5. Remember, Don’t Give Up
Don’t get discouraged either! That’s if you end up missing a day or two of sticking to your schedule. There’s no need to be so hard on yourself. After all & above all else, fear your God. Because only then would we know the beginning of understanding and knowledge.
“Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Give her of the fruit of her hands, and let her works praise her in the gates.” — Proverbs 31:30–31, ESV
Pray and ask God to help you establish your morning routine the way He intends for it to go. That every morning you will wake up feeling excited because the first thing that you get to do will be the most important part of your day. Before you know it, a morning routine will become the habit you never want to break.
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