developing a passion for prayer

  my blog my accountability ~ in a previous post in another blog i wrote about coffee with the king. here is a link in case you're interested: http://onthesunnysideatthevillavillekulla.blogspot.com/2011/03/coffee-with-king.html if in case you're not, this post is simply about how at one time in my life i used to wake up early, sometimes very early and have my morning coffee while i had my quiet time with the Lord. it was a precious time in my life and i have been trying (although not hard enough) to get back at it.
  their is always something i can blame for not getting up early to spend the crack of dawn with the maker of the whole universe, but really? is their anything other to blame then laziness? selfishness? my honest to goodness list could go on and on but i won't let it.
  instead i'll tell you about a book that really convinced me that waking up early to spend time with the Lord was not only important but a "privilege". elizabeth george wrote the book life management for busy women and in it is a chapter called developing a passion for prayer. oh boy, did it ever develop a passion for prayer in me. every time i try to get back to it something is always in the way, my alarm clock braking, my children being up all night, not having coffee filters for the pot that sits by my bedside (yes, a small coffee pot gets set the night before so that when i turn my alarm off i can also just push brew and lie there and wait as it perks) these answers are all just ploys of an enemy that does not want me to have communion with the great I AM. sound silly? it's not really.
  so this week that is my big challenge. i know it doesn't seem like much but let me tell you, i really like to sleep. this morning went pretty well. i had my coffee pot and alarm clock set the night before - intentionally so that i could get up early. at 7:00 a.m. i was startled awake and wondering why i didn't have one of those clocks that somehow monitor your heart rate and breathing and wake you up at a not so sound sleeping point. jarring is not quite strong enough of a word to how i felt when it woke me, but i woke nonetheless. except - i fell back to sleep forgetting my intention was to push brew and actually wake up! this goes to show how long it's been since i've had to wake up with a clock - lucky me! thankfully only ten minutes slipped by and i woke up and instantly remembered my coffee date. pressing brew i got up and got dressed.
  it was a beautiful morning on our front stoop, coffee in hand and eyes turned up. i have to say i only got 47 minutes alone with the Lord until i heard my daughter crying in her crib. that's okay though! those 47 minutes are 47 minutes more then i have had alone with my Heavenly Father in a loooong time!
  so for now, that is my big intentional challenge for the week. along with it, i will practice my doing my all, one thing at a time, for the Lord, and for no one else. this also ties in with my non-multitasking on top of my multitasking. which lends itself to s-l-o-w-i-n-g down. let me tell you - i have loved that whole s-l-o-w-i-n-g down thing! today i slowed down so much that i fell asleep! at least it was while i was nursing my daughter before nap time. we ended up napping together while my son snuggled up and watched thumbelina right beside us! who knew s-l-o-w-i-n-g- down could be so comfy?
  throughout the week i'd like to share some from this elizabeth george book that really convicted me of the importance of early quiet time with the Lord and also fill you in on how it trickles down throughout the rest of my day, and throughout the rest of my family.
  being that i'm getting up earlier now, i'm also having to get to bed early too - so with that in mind - goodnight!