How to Focus on God Each and Every Morning

At a recent Bible study I attended, one man shared that he really struggled to get focused on God on Saturday mornings when his family schedule is so different that day. As a father of six, I could relate to that. Maybe you can, too.

But Saturday isn’t the only day it can be tough. Each and every morning brings its own challenges. As Jesus said, “Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” (Matthew 6:34) So how can you quickly and easily get your heart where it needs to be before work and the kids and life comes at you fast? One way might be to go to sleep earlier as I posted here — How Going to Sleep Earlier Can Transform Your Prayer Time.

Try These 5 Steps Each Morning to Focus on God

Here are a few practical tips that I’ve learned over the years to focus on God each and every morning:

1. Plan your first thought of the day. For many years now I intentionally think about God before my feet ever hit the floor. It’s not much, but I try to prime the pump to “think on these things.” A quick cry out to God for guidance and thanks will help ensure you’re always getting up on the right side of the bed. It doesn’t take much to harness the secret power of the drip.
2. Train your brain to think about God. After grabbing coffee and my Bible, I pause to think about God — but in a very specific pattern. First, I ponder God in His infinite power, then consider that He lowered Himself to become one of us. I envision Jesus as if He were sitting next to me. Then I think about His sacrifice on the cross before finally finishing the quick tour basking in the glory of His resurrection and current reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. This whirlwind theological tour takes all of 60 seconds most days but is genuinely powerful.
3. Just read the Word. We all know we should, but so few of us do. The Bible claims to be living, powerful, and effective. If we believe it, why wouldn’t we read it every chance we get? If we don’t, do we really believe it? Sometimes our actions speak way too much about what we truly believe. See my post How to Read the Bible Every Day and Enjoy It! and 3 Proven Plans to Read the Bible Every Day for more tips.
4. Choose your key takeaway. If you’re like me, your mind tends to drift. Make sure you’ve got a single truth or life application on which you can meditate throughout the day. Write it down on a post-it or tweet it out there to share. Find some way to take it with you and mull it over throughout your day.
5. Create a prayer focus for the day. It’s easy to say we should pray. It’s another to specifically plan to take hold of the garments of heaven and shake until the answer comes. I find that there’s often so much to pray for that the list seems overwhelming. Focusing in on one — maybe two or three tops — as my prayer focus for the day makes sure I’m at least chipping away with fervent and effective prayer.

These steps work for me. Maybe you can offer others that you’ve found to be helpful to intentionally live by faith each day.

Which of these steps might help you the most? What other tips can you offer to focus on God each and every morning? Leave a comment with a click here.