Bright-eyed & Bushy-tailed

“Work at beginning and ending your days with joy.” – C.H. Spurgeon

Hmmm… that sounds easy and hard at the same time to me.

If I have something important or exciting to do that day, waking up isn’t much of a problem. For instance, during my 24 years as founder and executive director of The Saints Prison Ministry, I had to get up early thousands of times in order to coordinate a prison trip. Many times, I drove our ministry van… many times I played on one of our teams… and many times I served as manager or coach. But knowing that I would get a chance to travel with my buddies, compete athletically at a relatively high level in front of hundreds of inmate spectators, share my faith, and enjoy some pizza and wings on the way home was motivation enough for me to toss back the covers and jump out of bed.

The same goes for when I have an early tee time on the golf course or, as in the case of our recent 100-Hole Golf Marathon, a full day of golf ahead of me. Some of the other things that make me “bright-eyed and bushy-tailed” in the morning are a day trip with Deanna, an adventure hike with our grandkids, and the opportunity to preach on a Sunday morning.

However, if there is a lot of yard work to do that day… or a trip to the dentist… or something else I dread, I would just as soon roll over and go back to sleep…Zzzzz!

Ending my day on a high note poses a similar conundrum. If things went well – such as going 4-for-4 in a softball game, burying a bunch of three-pointers on the basketball court, or sinking a handful of birdie putts on the golf course – it is easy to lay my head on the pillow and drift off to sleep. But if a ball went through my legs for an error or I missed a simple layup (or a 3-foot putt), I will toss and turn as I relive that episode over and over again.

So, here’s what I try to do every morning and most every night. I wish God a “Good Morning,” pray, and read the Bible. At night, I often recite to myself the 10 Commandments and the names of the 66 books of the Bible in order before nodding off. That gets – and keeps – my focus on God.

Oh, and one other thing that helps is waking up each morning next to the most beautiful woman in the world!

“Now in the morning, having risen a long while before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed.” Mark 1:35 (NKJV)

- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President