Choosing Each Day

        What do you do when you wake up in the mornings? I always see things talking about how important your morning routine is, so I started to rethink mine. I decided I wanted to start this year off on a good foot and reorient how I spend my mornings. I almost always go on my phone and spend 15 minutes on Instagram, but this week, I challenged myself to read a devotion! The one I choose to start 2018 is from YouVersion and titled Choosing Each Day! It is super short, only 3 days and the devos themselves aren’t long, so it was a great way to ease into this routine!
        Choosing each day means choosing God each day! To do this, you have to ask where your thoughts go as your mind becomes alert. For me, that is to school work, instagram, my friends, my family, what I’m wearing that day, what I want for breakfast, what I have planned, my to-do list, and how I look. Notice that God is not on that list. The first step in choosing God each day is to wake up and actively seek him!
        The steps to seeking God are to first thank him for the new day, then acknowledge his sovereignty, and finally spend time in the word and in prayer. One thing you can do is put a scripture where you will see it in the morning to remind yourself to do these things. I also recommend making a christian pop playlist that gets you moving! Spotify has a good one called Workout under the Christian genre, but there are so many other good ones out there!
        Now, all of that seems easy in writing, but it isn’t so simple in practice. There are some things you can tell yourself to help you get through the hard days. The first is to remember that each day belongs to the Lord! We are simply giving what is already his back to him! Then, know that his grace covers all and that we can only do all of these things by grace! If it weren’t for grace, none of this would be possible! Another important thing to remember is that it takes moment by moment focus to reorient our wandering minds on him! It does not come easy because it is not in our nature, we sometimes need to work towards the Lord. Make it a habit to check in on your thoughts and direct them back to the Lord!
        Each day we are presented with a choice between ourselves and God. Focusing on ourselves causes us to become discouraged because we cannot accomplish anything on our own. Focusing on God brings is peace, hope, and renewal. “Humanly speaking, it is impossible, but with God all things are possible.” Matthew 19:26 Focusing on God puts our whole day in perspective and brings immense joy and purpose into our lives!
        Here are some scriptures to remind yourself that each day you are given the choice to worship God!
        "Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD." Joshua 24:14-15
        “Because of the LORD's great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail.They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Lamentations 3:22-23
        “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” Colossians 3:1
        And here’s a closeup of the pages I journaled my notes on! I love journaling devotions like this because I can be creative, but also have a clear reminder of what I learned that day!

        What do you do first thing in the morning to make God the center of your day? Any tips would be greatly appreciated!