by Rhonda Rhea @RhondaRhea

I’m all kinds of thankful that alarm clocks have come a long way. And by “come a long way,” I mean we hardly use them anymore. We now have phones to awaken us with our favorite song. Or a verse, a mantra, a cheer. Or with church bells. Or with hot coffee. Well probably not that last one. Yet. Waiting for an app for that. I’m hoping it’ll have a bacon feature.

Waking up to those alarm clocks of yester-year was the equivalent of waking up to a tornado siren. If your alarm didn’t send you bolting out of bed in a straight-up panic, it likely wasn’t a legit alarm clock. Those were the alarms that should’ve been sold with an accompanying defibrillator. So, yeah, maybe a little too legit.

Much better, there’s a legit alarm of the soul, of sorts. David sounded it in Psalm 57 with his version of: Hey soul! Wake up!

“Wake up, my soul! Wake up, harp and lyre” I will wake up the dawn. I will praise you, Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your faithful love is as high as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches the clouds. God, be exalted above the heavens; let your glory be over the whole earth” (vv. 8-11 CSB).

I love how David sirens at his soul, cheering it on, waking it up to the greatness and faithfulness and the glorious glory of God. Not only his soul, but David wakes up the instruments. He wakes the morning itself with enthusiastic praises of his great and glorious God.

How many times do I need an inspiring alarm to wake up my too-often sleepy-headed soul? David was making sure he called to attention—to thorough awakeness—that part of him built to praise God. He called to attention the rejoicing, praising part of his heart. And that fired him up for telling the whole earth of God’s great love, faithfulness, and glory.

There is great strength in an alertness to who God is, and to what He is doing. “Be alert, stand firm in the faith, be courageous, be strong” (1 Corinthians 16:13 CSB).

David didn’t wait for the perfect morning to sound the alarm. He wasn’t rejoicing in his circumstances. He was running for his life, hanging out in a cave, hiding from a king who hated him. Even when our circumstances aren’t exactly perfect (maybe especially then), it’s good for us to be ready to awaken our souls all the more to understanding the continuous goodness of God. Something wonderful happens as we sing praises to our Father from the deepest parts of our souls.

It’s not that we should never rest. Through the whole of scripture, we see a beautiful balance of the need for resting in Him (so important too), and the need to wake up. To be alert and attentive to what the Lord is doing. From the outside in, and from the soul out.

Resting or awake, smooth sailing or difficult waters, our God is great, and always, always inspires heart-deep celebrations of soul. Sometimes loud. Sometimes quiet.

Someday maybe with coffee. And bacon. Maybe even a blueberry pancake.

Rhonda Rhea is an award-winning humor columnist for great magazines such as HomeLife, Leading Hearts, The Pathway, and many more. She is the author of 19 books, including the popular romantic comedies co-authored with her daughter Kaley Rhea, Off-Script & Over-Caffeinated and Turtles in the Road. Rhonda and Kaley have also teamed up with Bridges TV host Monica Schmelter for the Messy to Meaningful books and TV projects. Along with Beth Duewel, Rhonda writes the Fix Her Upper series, and she also co-authored Unruffled: Thriving in Chaos with Edie Melson. She speaks at conferences and events from coast to coast, serves on many boards and committees, and stays busy as a publishing consultant. Rhonda says you can find her living near St. Louis drinking too much coffee and snort-laughing with her pastor/husband, five grown children, and a growing collection of the most exceptional grandbabies.