My morning routine is probably my favorite time of day. Maybe because it's usually the only time I get to drink coffee, but I think it's more than that. In the summer when I'm either at camp or nannying all day, I miss my morning routine. Yes, I still drink coffee - trust me I do -  but it isn't the same. I even find myself looking forward to the school year because I want to get back into my routine.

There's something special about it.

And not just for me, for everyone I think. Most people need routine, and we do it our own way. But I just wanted to share a little bit of what I do to get myself focused and ready for the day.

1. Read

Now, I know not everyone can have such a luxury every morning, but this is when I get some of my reading done for school! I have s mountain of classic literature staring me in the face this year, and why not tackle some of it when I'm not quite ready to move yet? Even fifteen minutes can knock out some pages.

2. Coffee

Yes, yes, not too much more about coffee, but you have to admit it's essential to your morning. And if its not for you, it is for someone you know and love dearly.

3. Podcast - The World and Everything In It

This thirty minute radio show has changed my life. Yes, I know that's a bug statement, but the people from World Magazine have made this podcast into excellent coverage of every corner of the news through a 'biblical worldview perspective.' Sip a cup of coffee and scroll through Instagram, and they'll cover everything from top stories to legal dockets to media reviews to politics, and culturally assessing everything along the way. I feel well informed and prepared to engage in discussion on hot topics of today. Thank you, World Radio.

4. Devotions - New Morning Mercies by: Paul David Tripp

Before I purchased this book, I never thought of myself as the dated devotional type. I am a goal setter, and if the reading of a devotional was going to be a never ending loop, I wasn't interested. Until now. I cannot list for you all of the devotional plans I started and never finished. After a while, I got discouraged in my devotional readings and would hold off on them altogether. The dated style of
New Morning Mercies (and several other devotional plans) is perfect for me. A quote from Anne of Green Gables comes to mind, "Isn't it nice to think that tomorrow is a new day with no mistakes in it yet?" Every morning is fresh. Today is October 3rd. It doesn't matter what I did or didn't read yesterday; this is what I am reading and meditating on today may it be encouraging, convicting, or simply thought provoking. This morning is full of new mercies.

5. Praise and Prayer - The Valley of Vision edited by: Arthur Bennet

Now, I only started this book today, but I loved it so much that I wanted to include it as if it were part of my everyday routine. This book is a collection of short, poetic prayers and devotions of many famous Puritan writers such as John Bunyan, Isaac Watts, David Brainerd, Thomas Watson, and C.H. Spurgeon. The poems are organized into series of study and meditation. I am thrilled to have found this book to round out my routine every morning. And to close my time here tonight and to further explain the beautiful, humbling style of this collection, I want to place an excerpt directly from the book's introduction: