How to Find Extra Time in Your Day
Did you hear? There are 25 hours in every day! ????
OKAY, so there might not be 25 hours in every day, BUT you can have an extra hour every day by getting up one hour earlier!
I’m hearing the groans, but hear me out!
Did you know the most successful people get up earlier than their peers?
Coincidence?
I think not!
Big successes are the culmination of small, day-to-day habits.
Clear that schedule ????, and carve out the little windows of time that will get you closer to where God wants you to be!
How would you spend that extra hour?
Is watching Real Housewives on DVR coming to your mind? ????No!
Hallmark movie? No! (Even though I love them, too, LOL!)
Spend that hour reading more about your passions: starting a business, going back to school, gardening, whatever interests could be a clue about your God-given purpose!
Praying to God for the vision
Do you ever feel like you live to clock in and clock out?
Did I hit a chord? Not surprising! This is the “norm” in our culture. That is why one out of every six Americans are on a psychiatric medication! ????♀️
Truth: it is depressing doing life without a God-given purpose.
My suggestion? Before you decide to change your morning routine, get serious about your intentions.
Start your time by clarifying God’s vision.
Matthew 7:7 (NIV) tells us “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”
Ask Him.
Ask specific questions.
He will answer!
He will direct you and put you on the right path ????, just like he did for Gary and me when we were slogging through debt, depression, despair, and more.
Practicing Positive Thinking
(Yes, even for the most joyful, peppy Christians, positive thinking takes practice!)
P.S. – A little coffee helps, too, not as much as the Holy Spirit, but it helps with early mornings.
Just think, if you got up an hour earlier, you would have another 365 hours a year!
That’s another 15 days a year for pursuing the things you want to pursue!
If you start getting up an hour earlier and feel like you are waking up gloomy, pull out that Bible! Your Bible is your protection against negative thoughts.
The enemy is not going to like this new routine! Why?
Because he wants to stop you and get in the way of you achieving your God-given purpose, and negative thoughts are his language. That’s where God’s Word comes in. Test every thought against God’s Word!
Every time a negative thought rises up against you, go HERE and use any of these Bible verses to cast them down.
Here is my favorite:
“For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Hebrews 4:12, ESV).
Write. Write. Write. Then Write Some More!
Did you know that the majority of successful people keep a journal?
Hmmmm. ????Is there a clue here?
Thomas Edison once said “Never go to sleep without a request to your subconscious.”
You may have been surviving so long that it feels impossible to dream, but deep down, your spirit knows your spiritual gifts and knows exactly what you were meant to do with them!
Journaling at the beginning of every day is going to help you remember how to dream and force you to have the courage to put your dreams on paper. ????
My suggestions:
- Make journaling part of your extra hour in the morning, and pick the same place to journal: desk, bed, breakfast nook, whatever works for you.
- Journal goals as well as accomplishments! It’s important to allow time to feel pride in your accomplishments.
- Don’t stop at writing down accomplishments; you can write down things for which you are grateful as well.
- Review your goals! Don’t just write them down and forget them. Most successful people review their goals throughout the year to gauge their progress!
I just want you to know I am here cheering you on and praying for you!
I believe if you make this simple change to your morning routine, you will see amazing results!
To learn more about making your thoughts work for you, go HERE and check out my book Better Than You Think. I spent so many years letting negative thoughts run my life, and I want to spare you that lost time.
This amazing book is full of personal stories, encouragement, and practical exercises for living your best, happiest life.
