I awakened this morning to Day 4 of the Washington State Stay Home, Stay Healthy mandate. Wait, what? Has it really only been 4 days? Is it just me, or has time slowed to a crawl while the munchies have shifted into high gear? Seriously! What is up with that?? 

Like everyone else, our lives have been turned upside down by the COVID-19 restrictions.   Helping my husband shepherd our church family, communicate with our staff, and navigate the technical challenges of livestreaming our Sunday servi...

This is, perhaps, the most important tip of all. A difficult one to understand and believe, but if we allow its truth to sink deep down into our hearts, it is a game-changer.

Know that God is incredibly pleased with you.

That’s right! He is not looking down with scowl on His face and disappointment in His heart. He gazes on you and me with incredible love. “But, how is this true?” you ask. I’ve asked the same question.

How can God look down on me with full acceptance after I stayed up too l

...

This post is written by Courtney Cohen.

Every night before we tuck our toddler into bed, we read a verse on her wall: “She is clothed in strength and dignity and she laughs without fear of the future” (Proverbs 31:25). Until merely a week or two ago, these words for us were simply comforting declarations over the type of woman our daughter will become when she grows up. But, with the frenzy of the unknown we have faced in recent days, these words have reached a new level of profound effect my s...

This post is by Sabrina Gogerty.

“And they sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, ‘Great and amazing are your deeds, O Lord God the Almighty! Just and true are your ways, O King of the nations! Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship you, for your righteous acts have been revealed.’” (Revelation 15:3-4)

As I finish writing this blog post, we are on week two of no church gatherings due to ...

If you use your phone as a part of your morning routine each day, it can be a major distraction. The siren call of the ever-present notifications from various apps can pull your attention away from your well-meaning use of the Bible app or music-streaming app you intended to use.

Depending on what distracts you most, we have some simple strategies to help keep technology in its place.

Opponent: Phone Distractions

Tactic #1: Make your morning routine analog. Use a real Bible. Write down or print out...

Post by Jen Shultz.

Exodus 17:12

When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset.

I am tired. 

Like a bone deep, emotionally exhausted kind of tired. The kind of tired you feel when you are constantly bombarded by the same thing over and over. I have a feeling I am not the only one.

Our world, our nation, and our home states have been signifi...

There are so many factors that affect bedtime and wake time.

Boredom. Laziness. Exhaustion. Sickness. Sinful desires. Distraction. Forgetfulness. Children. Responsibilities.

It takes continual sacrifice, focus, initiative, and flexibility to create a successful early-morning routine, and it is super-easy to get discouraged when we don't have what it takes.

We must keep our "eyes on the prize" if we are to make becoming an early-riser a lifetime habit. And, we are wholly dependent on God's abu...

There's nothing more annoying than waking up before the sun, only to have my precious time cut short for one reason or another.

Some mornings it seems as if the seconds are just shorter! My time in the Word is not long enough, planning is squeezed in as kiddos arise from their sleep, and time to exercise eludes me. Usually, mornings like this occur because I didn't prepare well the night before.

Another morning-time-crusher that can be avoided by a bit of planning ahead is noise. Seems as if I...

 We've come a long way! Yet it is so easy to become overwhelmed and discouraged by our slow progress.

We need to celebrate every little baby step reached!

Night-owls don't become early-birds overnight, and if we are constantly looking at all we are not doing, we will never see the progress that is happening.

My kids did not begin toddling over night. It really started way back when they couldn't even keep from going cross-eyed. Each of them began to lift their little head and keep those eyeba...

 Jumping out of bed once, out of sheer determination and excitement for a new change is one thing. Rising early, day after day, month after month, year after year? That is a whole different ballgame.

Manage Your Expectations

This is so important, friends. We must see this change as a long-term, slow-going, delayed-gratification journey.

Transformation does not come overnight.

There WILL be days you hit snooze. You WILL stay up way too late. And just when you begin to gain morning-time-moment...

I have been through stretching seasons-- periods of sleepless nights and long days. Maybe you’ve been there too. Maybe you’re there right now. When we have a big transition or just struggle to get consistent sleep and fulfilling rest, how do we maintain our morning routine?

Should you sacrifice sleep to get up several hours early? (making you feel more behind on the rest you desperately want)



Good news! The answer is a solid no. 

The key to building a morning routine is creating the habit. Even whe...

When I first set out to take this get-up-early thing seriously, it seemed as if my kids had signed up for the HelloMornings challenge, too!

I kid you not—the very week I started getting up BEFORE them, they started waking up EARLIER.

This was incredibly frustrating.

A friend suggested a special alarm clock to help keep my kids in bed while I was getting up. My first thought was, “no way I am going to spend $30 on a dumb clock!” But after a few more weeks of frustration—and failed attempts to ...