How Early is Early Morning?

[S] Mark 1:34-35 --
³⁴And He healed many who were ill with various diseases, and cast out many demons; and He was not permitting the demons to speak, because they knew who He was.
³⁵In the early morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house, and went away to a secluded place, and was praying there.

[O] As Jesus begun His public ministry, He displayed the wonderful power of God through the many signs and miracles mentioned in verse 34 (and much more I'm sure). What a scene it would've been as a witness of these wonders He performed! As I wished I was one of the witnesses there, I'm also asking the question to myself: What would I be thinking as I was seeing these wonders? Would I just be amazed as one of the spectators as if I'm watching a magic show? Was I thinking that Jesus is the Son of God so of course He can do all these things because He is God? These would've been easy for Him to do, right? Something tells me it wasn't that easy as I read on to verse 35. Although Jesus was God, He was also present in a full human form and limitations, so He needed to connect with God in order to minister with such power and wonders. His prayer time early in the morning before the sunrise was the key vehicle for Him to draw such power from God in His human capacity. He chose the hiding place away from all interruptions and prayed. This is both encouraging and challenging for me; encouraging because this means I, too, can carry out tasks that are beyond my own limitations; challenging because it'll require a tremendous amount of effort and discipline from my end to be in such a state.

[A] In verse 35, the key operatives that caught my attention are: "got up," "left the house," "went away," and "praying." Perhaps getting up is the greatest challenge for me at the moment because unless I get up, the rest is history! Yesterday on Sunday, our pastor guided us, during this period of Lent, to give up something that my heart latches on to whatever it may be. As I thought about that, I was convicted to give up my morning sleeping-in hour which I enjoy :-) (i.e., get up earlier despite how I'd be more tired during the day). And guess what passage God shows me this morning? Jesus getting up early for His own devotional time with God in order to carry out the God-sized ministry. So, I'm going to take this as God's cheer-leading for my commitment during this Lent (and hopefully continue on!) and try my best to keep it going.

[P] Thank You, God for responding so positively to my meager commitment of getting up earlier to have the devotional time with You. It's such a wonder to know that the God of this universe still cares about just one of me. I look forward to meeting You "early" in the morning. In Jesus' name. Amen.