Cairns - The 6 Minute START

It's hard for me to find my own "cairns" in God's Word and provide "cairns" for anybody else around me if I stumble through the first minutes of my day. Let's face it; there are so many things that can trip us up (literally) in the first moments of our day ....
... the news on tv, an infomercial on tv (this is when we are just HOPING for a distraction), realizing the alarm was set wrong, the weather, no clean underwear :), no hot water, a sick person in the house, a phone call ... the list goes on. I knew a woman once (only once) who told me she had never hit the snooze button in her life. I felt sorry for her. :) "Snooze" is a joy we should all experience! For most of us, mornings can be the first hurdle of the day.

Doesn't Proverbs 31 say, "She gets up while it is still dark; she provides food for her family and portions for her servant girls"? I think of this verse almost every morning when I rub the sleep out of my eyes and ask, "Where ARE those servant girls?!?!?!" I need a plan for the first minutes of my dawn (or close to it ...) that is realistic and doable in order to get up and moving in the right direction each morning. When my start is positive, I am more likely to be a crafter of peace in the lives of those around me.

So, I do what I like to think of as the "6 Minute START." Here's how it works:

6 Minute START

S - Straighten yourself
T - Tidy the room
A - Assess your space
R - Raise the shades
T - Talk to the Lord

These all happen before I leave my "space". And here is what I mean:

S - Not the time to do a facial, pluck those hairs, or touch up your gray. Just brush your teeth, put on a robe, brush your hair enough to go from Medusa to modest, and rub enough sleep out of your eyes to insure you don't fall down the stairs and really get off course. :)

T - I quickly make the bed (this means you can't have a mountain of pillows and bolsters and shams to arrange ala Southern Living everytime you make the bed), pick up any items on the floor (Jeff leave clothes on the floor? Never! :)), and put anything next to the door that needs to go to the laundry room or main floor (cups, chocolate wrappers :) or papers).

A - Assess and mentally take note of what needs to happen when you're fully awake (aka post-coffee) and in action: toilet paper roll empty? (You should know by now.) Mirror needs a quick wipe down? Bring the feather duster back for later? Take the hamper out when you go? This is thinking ahead.

R - Raising the shades forces me to mentally shift that the day has begun, and the world is welcome in. The light is like a switch for my mind and heart, and I know there's no turning back (that would mean getting back in bed ... which DOES happen to everyone now and then, except maybe for that lady in paragraph one).

T - Talking to the Lord before I encounter anyone other than myself is a must do. When I haven't acknowledged His provision and power in my life, asking for His guidance in the unfolding of my day, His direction for the using of my energies .... I'm a dangerous gal. Watch out! Before I walk, I talk ... to the Lord. I often lay in bed just for a few extra minutes (careful, don't fall asleep again) and talk to Him before I even put a heavy foot on the floor.

Now, you'll have a START, and you're ready to go make some tea or coffee, start that first load of laundry, let the dog out, and grab God's love letter to hear His thoughts for you. Then you'll ready to be a conduit of His peace to those who will cross your path. "Come, have a peace"... starting in the first 6 minutes of your day. :)

May each new day be a great "START" for you ~

Cairns,