Jesus: The Bright (and Early) Morning Star

Random fact about Jesus: He was an early bird. While on earth, Jesus was all the time getting up early and spending time with his Father. Mark 1:35 speaks directly to this: "Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed."

Even if He wasn't waking up at the crack of dawn to spend time directly communing with God the Father, He was up and about. When the Sanhedrin wanted to crucify Jesus, they made their decision then "they bound Jesus, led him away and handed him over to Pilate" (Mark 15:1). The Sanhedrin didn't have to go wake Jesus up, they found him awake, early in the morning. Chances are he was probably spending some QT with the Father. And a few days later, where was Jesus? He was risen and (drum roll) awake early in the morning! The women who went to anoint Jesus' body a few days after the crucifixion got up early in the morning and went to Jesus' tomb - only to find that he wasn't there. He was already up and about, just doing the usual, defeating death and whatnot. After his resurrection, Jesus went to reveal himself to his disciples, showing up early in the morning to do so.

Since school started, I've been trying to model Jesus' example in getting up early in the morning to spend time with my Father. Growing up, my Sunday School teachers always said to spend time in the Word everyday, whether that was in the morning or at night. And let's be real - no way were a bunch of 7th graders going to get up at 5:00 a.m. to read their Teen Adventure "Study" Bible. But, now, after years of trying to get in the Word at night, I know why I always felt like a quiet time wasn't really anything special. I was missing out on a super sweet time with Jesus because I was spending 10 obligatory minutes right before I went to bed when I was exhausted and had my to-do list for the next day heavily weighing on my mind. Spending time with Jesus in the morning really does make all the difference. If Jesus thought spending time with the Father at night was best he would have chugged a Monster, ordered Gumby's and settled in for the long haul. But he didn't. He rose early in the mornings at a intimate, quiet time to be renewed by the Spirit and commune with the Father before beginning ministry for that day. If waking up early and getting in the Word is good enough for Jesus, it's good enough for me (and you).

*Check out Clayton King's ministry secrets for more on this topic.