“It is good to give thanks to the LORD, to sing praises to your name, O Most High; to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night, to the music of the lute and the harp, to the melody of the lyre. For you, O LORD, have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.” (Psalm 92:1–4, ESV)

Many employers these days are encouraging their employees to live a healthier lifestyle. It is good for the individual and good for the companies. My employer focuses on health for 6 weeks each year and provides incentives for exercising and eating healthy. I always participate.

This year I have really been focusing on exercising. I am pretty active, but I do routine activity. I need to do varied exercises so I can work different muscles. So I have been trying a lot of different kinds of exercise. The other morning I got up and first thing, I went out and turned on the Wii. I started the fitness disc and weighed myself, listened to a health tip and played a few exercise activities.

Although I knew this wasn’t enough exercise for the day, it was good for me to focus on a healthy day first thing in the morning. I noticed that I ate healthier that day. I thought about burning calories, and I pushed myself a little bit harder that day. It was good for me to think about a healthy life first thing in the morning.

In the evening when I reflected on the day and realized I had focused my mind all day on healthy choices, I was amazed. It all started by making fitness my first choice and fixing my mind on healthy choices early in the morning.

If what you do first thing in the morning sets the mood for the whole day, it is only logical that our first thoughts should be of God. It reminded me of the many times in the Bible where it speaks of praying, praising or seeking God in the morning. It makes sense that starting the day with prayer, praise, and thanksgiving was a habit of the faithful throughout history.

I looked at Psalm 92 and was amazed at the Psalmist’s experience. He also discovered that what he thought about first thing in the morning set the mood for the whole day. The writer of this song would praise God for his love in the morning and at night he was compelled to think on God’s faithfulness.

Thoughts of God brought a song to the Psalmists’s heart. My desire is for my heart to be full of songs and praises for God. That means that I need to start first thing in the morning. So this is my prayer for the morning, “Let me hear in the morning of your steadfast love, for in you I trust. Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul.” (Psalm 143:8, ESV)