Laying the Foundation for Your Morning Routine65reading, writing, and arithmetic. From a young age, we need
basic ability in multiple areas to get through our day.
The same is true in our grown- up daily lives.
That’s why in Hello Mornings we tie three essential areas
into one habit: God, Plan, Move.
Each element is important to a well- lived life. Of course,
our time with God is by far the most important, but the ability
to plan and manage our energy is also integral to walking out
our faith and living life well.
God time, Plan time, and Move time all work together
to help us walk out our faith. To develop perfect, in- depth
morning routines in all these areas could take a lifetime of
work. But we can’t wait a lifetime to connect with God, to live
purposefully, or to take care of the health God has given us.
Just as with reading, writing, and arithmetic, the power
is in starting now and starting small. While one minute of
prayer, planning, or exercise each day might seem silly, the
impact of being a person who “exercises each day” or “plans
every day” or “prays every day” cannot be overstated.
Even if it is for a tiny amount of time, the more we con-
sistently repeat a routine, the more we identify ourselves as
action- oriented people who are constantly growing. Imagine
after just one month being able to say, “I started every single
day with Jesus for this whole month, and I was purposeful
with my time, and I exercised every day. For a whole month.”
These may be small habits, but there is power in laying a solid
foundation— and in knowing that you can be that person. It
will bleed into the rest of your life in unexpected ways.
When I first met my husband, Jimmy, in college, it affected
how I organized my day. If I knew he was going to be at the