Wake Up Earlier
Waking up a few minutes early is an excellent habit to develop so you can spend those extra minutes with God. We have busy lives, but let’s dedicate some of that time to God. A good practice would be to set your alarm 15-20 minutes earlier than usual and spend that time reading the Word and getting a quick prayer in. This way, God will be the first part of your day, and you are acknowledging Him first. God recognizes your dedication, and as He sees your commitment to waking up and putting Him first, He will prioritize your wants and needs. So, if you feel that things aren’t working out in your life, examine the place you put God in your life. Is He first, or is He last? Think of it this way, why would God prioritize your requests when you don’t prioritize His? God is a jealous God and wants to come first in our lives. Being a Christian is a marriage between Christ and the Church, and as a wife prioritizes her husband, we are to prioritize Jesus. So, when you wake up, give God thanks, pray, read a scripture or two, and see God willingly be more involved in your everyday life!
Have a Prayer Schedule
Sometimes it can be challenging to know what to pray about, but making a prayer schedule can make that easier. Also, as I stated previously, we have busy lives and must be more diligent about incorporating God into our days. One of the ways to do that is to create a prayer schedule. The Bible says in I Thessalonians 5:17 to “pray without ceasing,” so we must continually pray and make petitions to God. It doesn’t always have to be about your needs or wants, but it can be about people’s salvation, the nation, spiritual growth, and maturity for yourself and others; the list is endless. But how do you pray about all these things? Well, don’t stress; make a list! Write down the days of the week in a journal, and underneath every day, write down what you want to pray for. Write down the times you will pray based on your personal schedule. For example, if I have time to pray before my shift at work at 10 am, I will write down “pray at 9 am” and then set a reminder on my phone. I will then pray about the things listed on that day. So, for 9 am Tuesday, I pray for my family and friend’s salvation and spiritual growth. This assures that I get my prayer time in and that all the topics I want to bring before God get the attention it needs. Prayer is a weapon that a lot of Christians don’t use enough! If you want to know more about prayer, read these posts! Guides: 4 Ways to Make Your Prayer Life Stronger and Important Things to Know about Prayer. God hears our prayers, and He loves to see diligence, so the more you are diligent in your prayer life, the more you’ll be rewarded by God! Nothing goes without a blessing from God! So be encouraged and start getting more serious about prayer today! It is the time that we get to talk personally with God, so start making scheduled time for it!
Acknowledge Him
Proverbs 3:5-6 says, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.” Regarding life, we are not meant to lean on our limited human understanding. If we do, we get frustrated because we do not know it all, nor can we without God. That’s why we must acknowledge God in all our ways to gain His understanding. This might offend someone’s pride, but we don’t know what is best for us; only God does. You only know what is best for you if you admit that God is best for you; otherwise, you know nothing. God knows the inner workings of our beings at all times, He knows the number of hairs on your head, and He knows the future.
He knows the danger ahead, and He can steer you away from it if you acknowledge Him in all your ways. So what does that look like? It looks like constantly asking God for direction throughout our everyday lives. We need to ask God about everything, even small things like, “What should I eat for breakfast?”. God will direct you toward safety, blessing, and peace! You’ll see that a day without God is draining and frustrating, mainly because we don’t know all that God knows! So, as you go about your day, ask God about everything so you can remain in His will, which is the safest place to be!
Keep Your Mind Stayed on Him
It’s easy to get our minds off God because of everything the world throws at us; nonetheless, we must remain God-minded throughout the day. So, how do you keep your mind on God during a hectic day? The way I do this is I remember and recite verses throughout the day. I’ll quote scriptures, ask God for direction, and listen to Christian music while driving, a number of things that remind me of His goodness. For example, if I feel myself getting upset and angry, I remember that the Bible says to be slow to anger and that one of the fruits of the Spirit is peace. In our everyday interactions with people, we are to mimic Christ and His character, and as long as we keep Him in mind, it’ll be easier to do that. Literately think, what would Jesus do? You can tell what’s on your mind by how you act, so be mindful of your actions and question if they are Christ-like. If they aren’t, then change your mindset and quickly get Christ-minded. Isaiah 26:3 says that God will keep us in perfect peace when our minds are stayed on Him. So, don’t think about petty drama at work or stress about school; think about God, His goodness, and the fact that He will carry you through. Through that, you will have peace, and as God sees this effort to be Christ-minded, He will bless you in more ways than one!
Give Praise and Thanks
Psalm 150:6 says, “Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!” You have breath, don’t you? So spend time giving God thanks! If you don’t, you will end up sad and ungrateful. Giving thanks and praise reminds us constantly of how good God is and doesn’t allow us to focus on earthly circumstances. Despite how any situation looks like, you have something to praise God for! It can be His character, how faithful and loving He is, and how He never fails! His mercy and goodness, for waking up this morning, having a roof over our heads, and food, you can thank God for anything! There is always something to be thankful for; the more grateful you are to God, the more He sees your love for Him. He sees that you don’t take Him for granted, that life circumstances are not higher than Him. Praise puts God above our problems and worries and makes Him the number one priority in our life! When you make God number one, above all your problems, that’s when you’ll see Him come through for you the most! The moment you get ungrateful is the moment you’re telling God that He isn’t bigger than your problems, and when you do that, you prevent God from helping you. God can only assist you if you recognize Him as the problem solver through praise! So, remain grateful always! It will bring blessings into your life!
I hope these tips help you put God first in your life and prioritize Him! God is a jealous God and wants to be first! But also, we cannot live a successful life without putting Him first! God is the only one who can solve all our problems and give us peace; any void you are trying to fill cannot be filled without God! So put these tips into practice and see God change your life! Be encouraged and blessed!
RefinedforChrist 
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