Mornings

Mornings are pretty special for Vicki and me. I guess that's probably been truer since the kids arrived on the scene, since those first couple of hours are generally our "quality time" together for the day. At about 8am the house wakes up and life begins.

I guess we should be thankful, however most of the time that's not quite the feeling we have, for our little black annoying dog. He's like the most annoying, persistent alarm clock one could ever own. Anywhere from 5:30-5:50 (no, too rarely after 6 to count) he wakes up and begins to let us know that he's ready to get out and eat. The whining and digging eventually are too much to bear and we get up, head downstairs, feed the dogs, take them out, and return. That's when things get good.

There's something about the morning and a cup of coffee. Maybe you feel the same way. Vicki and I grab our favorite mugs, fix up our cup of fresh joe (mostly thanks to my mom for sending over great coffee for us to enjoy), and grab our Bibles. It's quiet. No traffic going by outside. It's so nice. We've had some of the best conversations during those times. I'm calmed just thinking about it.

This morning I was reading again in Colossians...this time parts of Chapter 2. Most I read from the New Living Translation. I did that this morning and then wanted to see how things sounded in The Message. Check out verse 6-7:

You received Christ Jesus, the Master; now live him. You're deeply rooted in him. You're well constructed upon him. You know your way around the faith. Now do what you've been taught. School's out; quit studying the subject and start living it! And let your living spill over into thanksgiving.

Isn't it easy to feel like we're not ready for something? Not ready to share Christ with someone...not ready to lead a Bible study group...not ready to commit to something...not ready to disciple someone...not ready to experience rejection when sharing the Gospel. It's so easy to think that the time will come when one day we're ready...we've been completely equipped...nothing will surprise us or take us off guard.

I think Christ wants us to know that we're ready. Obviously, that doesn't mean we're prepared for everything. But it's not like you or I are being asked to become the President. Most of the time we're not being faced with possibilities that we are unprepared for. It's just that oftentimes we lack the boldness and self-confidence (not in who we are but in who HE is in us) to step out and live it.

The way that text is written in The Message is pretty clear, isn't it? We know so much about The One whom we follow. We know what he'd do (thanks to the WWJD? craze)...we know his words...we know his character. But enough with the pursuit of knowledge already. It's time to live him.

I love mornings.