3/23/13 by Mary Wilson

I was born in the morning and have always loved the morning as well as morning food like coffee and toast. I am a “morning person” even when I stay up too late or don’t sleep well. I love sunrises and roosters...or any early tweeter.  Over the years I have found Psalm 143 verses 8-12 a great companion for starting any day because they remind me of my need for daily surrender and trust.

 ( Let the morning bring me word of your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in you. Show me the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul, verse 8.) Read all the verses for best effect!  

 I have always identified with David’s desperate cries for deliverance, even though I am not hiding in a cave or being chased by crazy King Saul. My enemies are just as real and rarely take a day off.  My husband’s love for Westerns has rubbed off on me, so much so that when I think of my enemies , I think of a gang of bandits on horseback with gunslinging pride and idolatry as the leaders followed by their slimy cousins jealousy and envy and that  no-good varmint worry always brings up the rear. They come in a group and work as a team, wreaking havoc in my heart.  When I hide myself in the Lord, by focusing on his boundless and eternal love for me and the daily grace he supplies, I am rescued. I am ready to learn his will, ready to ride with His Good Spirit on the level ground instead of those backwoods bandits.  Best of all,I am filled with an infectious gratitude that opens my eyes to all the things I have to celebrate. Just as surely as the sun rises each day, I need another dose of this surrender, trust, and rescue.  In fact I need this kind of love therapy all day long which is another reason why this psalm is such a good prayer.  You can easily substitute  “afternoon”  or “evening”  or “KIDS HOPE”  or “Sparks Meeting”  or “mission trip”  or “family vacation”  for the word  “morning “,  and you still have a powerful petition!  I like the way 19th century poet/novelist George MacDonald describes our need for the daily surrender that leads to the right focus.

But he who would be born again indeed,

Must wake his soul unnumbered times a day,

And urge himself to life with holy greed;

Now open his bosom to the wind’s free play;

And now, with patience forceful, hard, lie still,

Submit and ready to the making will,

A thirst and empty for God’s breath to fill.