The alarm goes off, rousing me from sleep. Groggily I roll over, groping for the off button. I don’t want to get up to start a new day. Instead I would rather pull the covers back up and hibernate from the challenges I might face in the hours to come.
Even at this early morning hour I find myself fighting off this weight, this heaviness of heart. I don’t want to start the morning complaining about the tasks ahead. I want to embrace it with joy.
The Lord brings a portion of Psalm 118 to mind, “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it.” (vs 24)
I want to rejoice in this day that God has made. I don’t want to start complaining before I even get out of bed.
As I lay there in the darkness I began speaking to myself silently, “I will rejoice in this day that God has made. I choose to rejoice.” Over and over until I found the perseverance to rise.
Perhaps there are times and seasons for you when you feel that weight of heaviness on you – keeping your head buried under the covers – hiding from the day that has come.
Being aware of this feeling is good because it means you can fight it (with God’s strength, the Holy Spirit and His Word).
Do you ever wonder why you wake up ‘on the wrong side of the bed’ like this? There are several reasons why you might wake up melancholy.
- Bad dreams
- Poor sleep
- A food you ate the night before
- The season – during the winter it can be harder to wake up with a positive outlook.
- Spiritual battle
- A situation or circumstance that is bothering you in your subconscious
Whatever the cause you don’t want to carry this around with you all day! Moodiness causes a downward spiral in our thoughts and can be the onset of depression.
Every thought you think forms a pathway in your brain or reinforces a current pathway. The thinking that stems from a negative outlook of your day impacts your brain and how you will react for the rest of the day. There is a reason God said to take captive your thoughts and make them obedient to Christ. (2 Corinthians 10:5) [ For more about renewing your mind ]
One way to take our thoughts captive is to reframe the thought. Share on X This can be done by simply changing our words from ‘I have to’ into ‘I get to’. Rather than say ‘I have to drive to work today’ you could say ‘I get to drive to work today.’ This is a mental reminder that it is a blessing that you have a job and a car. You don’t necessarily need to verbalized this outloud (though you can) but even more importantly is speaking it to your thoughts.
Tehila, at WomanAbiding.com writes more about 3 phrases like ‘I have to’ that we should change to reframe our thoughts.
Isaiah 61:3 speaks of putting on the garment of praise for the spirit of despair or heaviness (depending on the translation you look at)
Praise is the solution to a heavy heart. Share on XLife coach moment
* Recall the last time you woke up feeling melancholy. Why do you think you woke up that way?
* How did this feeling affect the rest of your day?
Renew Your Mind in Truth
Meditate of Psalm 100 for this week. Journal out the verses. Ponder them. Ask God to write them on your heart. When you feel that cloud of darkness surrounding you don’t give in but put on the garment of praise.
Shout for joy to the Lord, all the earth.
2 Worship the Lord with gladness;
come before him with joyful songs.
3 Know that the Lord is God.
It is he who made us, and we are his[a];
we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.
4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving
and his courts with praise;
give thanks to him and praise his name.
5 For the Lord is good and his love endures forever;
his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Prayer:
Father I feel overwhelmed by this spirit of despair. I believe it is not of you. Thank you for your many blessings which you pour out on me day after day. Thank you for your great love for me. For the rest of the day it is my desire to put on praise. Thank You for the strength to praise You even when I don’t feel like it. Amen.
Self-talk Point
I will not live in the spirit of despair today.
I choose to reject the dark thoughts and turn to praise.
This post is part of several linkups
- Mask Waiver - April 2, 2020
- Volunteer Application - March 24, 2020
- Lord Are You Willing? - October 3, 2019
YES! Praise and gratitude help us overcome bad attitudes! It’s scientifically proven, that God created our brains to rewire themselves when we practice thankfulness! Blessings!
Yes Liz, sounds like maybe you have studied this topic a bit as well. Blessing to you too!
Stopped in my tracks by (and sharing) that thought about “reframing.” I love the way it communicates the balance of feeling all our feelings while not allowing them to direct our lives. So crucial that we let truth inform our feelings.
Michele, Thank you! It was the Lord who gave me the wisdom to word it that way! I’m always praying that He would show me how to communicate effectively
Some days it can feel like both sides are the wrong side of the bed, can’t it? 🙂 I spend time in prayer when I wake up and that helps so much, doesn’t it? Just talking to God about my concerns and handing them to Him as I start my day is so comforting. Thanks for sharing Psalm 100. Beautiful words to live on today. 🙂 ((hug))
Brenda, Amen! Prayer does help as we start our days!