Focus Verse: ‘I rise BEFORE THE DAWNING OF THE MORNING, and cry for help; I hope in Your word’, Psalm 119 verse 147.
I suspect that most of us have heard the expression, ‘I am not a MORNING person’. This does not necessarily mean that those who say it are lazy; indeed, they may simply be pointing out that there are other times in the day, when they believe that they can be more focused and productive than in the mornings.

The Psalmist‘s desire in today’s focus verse is to rise from sleep BEFORE THE DAWNING OF THE MORNING. He knows that each day brings forth new challenges and he will not be able to face or overcome them in his own strength. He does not, like many of us, put off preparing to meet them until the last moment, when a host of other things crowd in on us and lead us to forget and neglect the most important issues.

If we had been in his house each day, before the dawn broke across the horizon, we would have heard him praying to God to seek His help. Indeed, the word ‘praying’ does not do him justice. He tells us that he ‘CRIED FOR HELP’. In reality, his prayers could be heard all over the house and may well have motivated others to follow him! Once the day dawned he was ready to face all the issues that confronted him.

It is important to know that all his cries to God were based on His Word ‘I hope in Your word’. If we want to pray effectively and in line with God’s will, we need to listen to what He has to say to us in His Word, the Bible. It is interesting, therefore, that this focus verse is set in the longest chapter in the Bible, Psalm 119, where almost every verse refers to the word of God!