"Let the morning bring me word of Your unfailing love, for I have put my trust in You. Show me the way I should go, for to You I entrust my life."
Psalm 143:8 NIV
It takes time and love to devote to making a good pot roast. Random, I know.
You can whip one up relatively quick, skip the gravy, skimp on the seasoning to save a few steps, and throw in vegetables that could've been cut a bit smaller. You'll still have a roast, but not one you devoted all of your efforts to.
In contrast, when I start early and take my time and put in the effort, with all the essential ingredients, and let it cook a few extra hours, the roast is amazing! It satisfies some deep void in me that only delicious, soulful food can fill. However, if I hurry through the prep work and I rush through it, just dumping everything into the croc-pot; the roast is still okay, still fills my belly, but somehow it just misses the mark.
Our time with God can be compared to this roast process, if you don't mind me making such an analogy. We must get up early and take the care and time to search God's Word and spend time in His presence, gathering all of the essential ingredients for the day. That way we can simmer for the next several hours on what He has taught us. Just as a roast takes time and care to be delicious, our time with God requires our attention and care to produce a harvest in us.
Don't sell yourself short by only reading a quick passage here and there and spending minimal time in prayer before it is time to carry on with your day. Once the day begins, all the distractions of life come along with it. Don't get me wrong, better late than never and a passage or two is better than none at all, but getting started early in the morning gives you time to prepare your heart and mind to receive what God is giving you that day, just as getting a roast started early allows time for sufficient prep work and plenty of cooking hours.
With both a roast and our time with God, we can bust it out quick, which can still fill us, or we can rise early and take our time. Setting aside precious moments to commune with God more greatly fosters the intimacy with Him that we truly need. As God's children, if we want to walk closer with Him, then we need to set aside that sweet quiet time in the morning, allowing our encounter with Him to simmer, releasing into the day the sweet aroma of a heart surrendered to the Holy One. So the saying goes, “In the morning when I rise, give me Jesus.”
Stay hungry, stay humble, and keep choosing the Good Portion!
"However, if I hurry through the prep work and I rush through it, just dumping everything into the croc-pot; the roast is still okay, still fills my belly, but somehow it just misses the mark." (emphasis mine) "The Hebrew word most often translated as 'sin' in our English Bibles is the word chata'ah (חֲטָאָה) which means 'missing the mark,' as an archer might miss his target when shooting an arrow. Chata'ah [pronounced kha-ta-ah] is an error, a mistake, or a case of 'missing the target.'" https://hebrew4christians.com/Meditations/Chata_ah/chata_ah.html