Celebrating Hope: Looking Back Stepping UpSample

Seeking God Early

You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. - Psalm 63:1

I have attended many midnight shut-ins as well as six am congregational prayer sessions. Psalms 63:1, which says, “I seek you,” has been one Scripture I thought of to justify my getting out of bed to pray during early hours I considered inconvenient. I associated seeking God early or earnestly with specific times like midnight and dawn. Until God asked me, Why do you limit me? Why not also seek me early in situations you face in everyday life? 

Psalm 63:1 is speaking in terms of time, but also regarding situations and circumstances. Scripture encourages us to cultivate our relationship with God in our youth, rather than pushing off that relationship until later in our lives. Whatever the circumstance, God wants us to seek Him rather than exhaust all other options. “You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water” (Psalm 63:1). 

College students and others have an intrinsic desire to stake claims in life and prove their independence. Now is the time to explore and interact with the world. Will we attempt to take on life by ourselves without seeking guidance or help from anyone, including God? —Juwan Easley

How can you make prayer your first response rather than a last resort?

God, guide us early so we can navigate life with Your guidance, wisdom, protection, and peace.