I was on door duty at church yesterday, meeting and greeting folk as they arrived. In a quiet moment near the beginning of the service, there was a raucous noise from within the bushes in front of me… it was a magpie, not the most sociable of birds. Instinctively, I muttered the old English greeting, “Good morning, Mr. Magpie,” but I withheld the salute that older folks may offer. This comes from a time when Magpies were seen as harbingers of bad news, such as death. Thus, it was thought wise to be polite, maybe warding off any such bad news. To be clear, I do not believe such superstitious folklore. But in that brief moment, I remembered the One whom I had greeted first thing that morning – my Father God.
For many people, their first greeting each day is their mobile device and social media. The older folks may opt for music from the radio or news from the TV. And of course, we greet our loved ones each morning, right? But the Word of God points us to our Father God; morning prayer and the reading of God’s Word is the most sound spiritual way to begin the day – touching base with our Creator and Father God.
Dear Reader, who received your first morning greeting today?
But I, O LORD, have cried out to You for help,
And in the morning my prayer comes before You.
Psalm 88:13
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Devotional Treasures
