By Karen Smith

Busy moms often struggle to find time to start their day with Jesus. Babies awake early. Teenagers keep moms up late. However, starting our day with Jesus is so important. Here are three easy ways to start your day with Jesus.

Busy Mom, Jesus Is Waiting For You

As a mom of young children that awoke early, starting my day with Jesus was near impossible. My day began when they awoke. As a mom of teenagers, their best hours are between 10 p.m. and 12 a.m. At least at my house, those were the times I had the best discussions with my children. Therefore, I did not want to arise any earlier than necessary the next morning.  

The struggle to start your day with Jesus is real. I always felt judged when I heard pastors preach about the importance of starting your day with Jesus. I knew they were preaching important facts, but I always thought they didn’t understand a mom’s life.

Thankfully, God showed me how to start my day with him and rid myself of that condemnation even inside a busy mom’s life. Here are the three ways this busy mom starts her day with Jesus.

1.  Change my attitude. 

When I start my day, instead of thinking about all the things I have to do, I thank him for all the things I get to do. A simple change in my thought pattern is an easy way for me to begin my day with him. Examples of my prayers: “Thank you, Jesus, that you have entrusted this toddler to my care.” “Thank you, Jesus, for that late night conversation, and I know that you are going to give me the strength I need to get through my day.” “Thank you, Jesus, for a job, which may not always bless me; however, it is a means that you have provided for my family.”

2. Shower prayers. 

I take a shower most mornings. Some mornings, my showers are quick, and other mornings my showers might linger a little longer. I learned that as I shave my legs and wash my hair, I could talk to Jesus. I didn’t have to sit on my knees, bow my head and close my eyes to pray. Prayer is a conversation with God. Those days that I might linger a little longer in the shower are the days that I need for sweet Jesus to respond to the prayers of my heart.  

3. Preparation Praise. 

As I complete my morning preparations, I can turn my heart to praise. With music on my phone, I can turn on a worship song while I curl or straighten my hair. While I put my makeup on, I can listen to Scripture on my YouVersion Bible app. I have also learned I can stand my iPad up on my water faucet. While I am doing my daily preparations, I can read the devotional for that day.

Do my shower prayers get interrupted? Yes, sometimes they do, and that means my prayers get interrupted. That’s okay. It’s not about having perfect prayers. My preparation praise may come in little spurts. Hair, break, teeth, break, makeup, break. Other days, I have the blessing of having uninterrupted praise time. Either way, my focus is on Jesus.

Today, with grown children and one at home that sleeps late, I often start my day with about an hour of quiet time, and it is precious time. However, there was no hour to be had in the middle of the preschool and the teen years. I needed sleep to function properly, and so do you. I know that as my eleven-year-old enters the teen years, some of my nights will contain late night conversations, which means I will revert back to this process.

Please remember, God cherishes our desires to be with him. There will be a day when our houses are quiet, and an hour-long quiet time is possible. Until that season comes, we do not have to wallow in self-condemnation.

Focusing our thoughts on him while we do our morning routine is starting our day with Jesus.

Wife Tip: Choose one of these three tips to implement today so that you can begin your day with Jesus.