Up at the crack of dawn

“Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn.” Psalm 57:8

The idiom “up at the crack of dawn” means you are an early riser, starting your day before the sun even appears on the horizon.

I am an early riser. The older I get the less sleep I seem to require. Each morning is like the movie “Groundhog Day”. I get up, let the dogs out, turn the coffee pot on, feed the dogs, ……...then have my devotions.

Usually mid morning I head out for a walk with my girlfriend. The minute I put my shoes on, my dogs Piper and Cooper go crazy. They start pacing back and forth, then they swirl in circles because they anticipate a walk.

My dogs become gleeful at the mere possibility of a walk, you can physically see it. I want to be that excited with my daily walk with the Lord. Not necessarily swirling in circles but I want to have an uncontainable joy that overflows. A joy so complete others can see it.

I love how the Psalmist wrote this verse using exclamation marks. He’s shouting, "AWAKE, MY SOUL!" He’s singing praises before the crack of dawn and using instruments to celebrate God’s saving grace. We should all get up each day with a grateful heart. Spending time in the mornings with the Lord nourishes our souls and arms us for the day.

Psalm 23:1-3 reiterates how important quiet time is, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside still waters, he restores my soul.” David is metaphorically comparing us to sheep, with the Lord being the shepherd. A sheep only lies down when they’re content and the calm water quenches their thirst. God’s living Word does the same for us, it replenishes our souls and gives us a spirit of contentment. Reading the scriptures prepares us to greet each day with excitement even if we're up at the crack of dawn.