There’s a particular kind of morning I’ve come to love — the house still dark, coffee in hand, the day not yet asking anything of me. Just me, my prayer book, God’s word, and a little quiet before the world wakes up.
If you’re a mom, a business owner, or both, you know how rare that feels. And you probably also know how much you need it.
A consistent morning quiet time has become one of the most stabilizing things in my life. It anchors my day in God’s will and guidance before the distractions jump in — before the inbox, before the kids, before the mental to-do list starts running. It’s my peaceful moment in what can otherwise be a very full, very loud day.
Here’s how I built this habit, what my actual routine looks like, and how you can make it work for your season of life too.
Why Morning (and Why It Matters)
I want to address the “I’m not a morning person” objection right away — because I hear it a lot, and I don’t think it’s really the issue.
The morning matters not because there’s something magical about 6am, but because first matters. Whatever gets our first attention tends to shape everything that follows. When I start my day in prayer and Scripture, I’m orienting myself toward what’s true and good before I’ve had a chance to get pulled into what’s urgent.
That said, I’ll be honest: I used to spend this quiet window working out. For years, early morning was my exercise time. And I still feel that pull sometimes — the conviction that I should be using this hour for something more productive.
But I’ve come to see quiet time as its own kind of productivity. It produces clarity, peace, and a groundedness that no workout has ever given me. I’m not saying one is better than the other — I’m saying that for me, this is what I’m choosing to steward first.
What My Quiet Time Actually Looks Like
I wake up at 6am, make coffee, and settle in for about an hour before my girls are up. Here’s the rhythm I’ve landed on:
Prayers from my prayer book — I start with a few prayers from Mother Love, which gently draws my heart into the right posture before anything else.
Liturgy of the Hours — I use Word on Fire’s subscription book and work through at least a portion of the daily office. This connects me to the universal prayer of the Church, which I love being a part of.
Daily Mass readings — This includes passages from the Old Testament, New Testament, a Psalm, and the Gospel. Reading the readings before Mass (or on their own) has changed the way I engage with Scripture. I’m not rushing through — I’m sitting with it.
This first block takes me about 15–25 minutes depending on the day.
Spiritual reading — With the remaining time, I read from a spiritual work I’m moving through slowly. Some of my rereading favorites are “Searching for and Maintaining Peace”, “The Imitation of Christ”, and the Magnify 90 Devotional.
Journaling — I close with a short prayer of gratitude and/or intercession, and I write down anything that stood out to me — a quote, a line from Scripture, something that landed. This is my way of not letting the reading just pass through me.
The whole thing is simple, unhurried, and flexible. Some mornings I have 45 minutes before the girls wake up, some mornings I have an hour and fifteen. I work with what I have.
How to Build the Habit
Start with the conviction, not the routine
Before you figure out what to do during quiet time, you need to settle the why. If a morning quiet time is genuinely important to you — if you believe it’s formative, not just nice to have — you will find the time. Motivation follows conviction, not the other way around.
Ask yourself: what would it mean to begin every day anchored in God’s presence before the noise gets in? Let that be your reason.
Start small and protect it
Don’t begin by trying to carve out an hour. Start with fifteen minutes. Just fifteen. Put it on your calendar like an appointment you wouldn’t cancel. Guard it.
As the habit solidifies, you can extend it naturally. But a short, consistent quiet time is worth far more than an elaborate routine you abandon after two weeks.
Keep it simple
You don’t need a complicated system. A prayer, some Scripture, and a few minutes of silence is enough. Add structure as you go, but don’t let the setup become a barrier to starting.
Figure out your window
For me, it’s before my daughters wake up. For you, it might be different. Here are a few options depending on your season:
- Early morning — before kids wake up, before devices come out. This is the most protected window for most moms.
- Naptime — if you have a baby or toddler who still naps, this is a genuinely good option. Resist the urge to use that window for chores or work every single day.
- Family quiet hour — this one I love for families with older kids. Schedule a mid-morning or afternoon quiet hour where everyone rests. You read or pray; they read or play quietly in their rooms. You’re building the habit in them at the same time.
There’s no perfect window — just the one that’s realistic for your actual life right now.
Have grace with yourself when you miss it
You will miss days. Seasons will come where the routine completely falls apart — a new baby, illness, travel, a hard stretch. That’s not failure; that’s life.
The goal isn’t a perfect streak. It’s a practice you keep returning to. The returning is the habit.
A Few Things That Have Helped Me
- Physical books over my phone. This one matters more than I expected. If I’m holding my phone, I’m one notification away from losing the quiet. Dedicated books keep me present.
- Coffee first. I know this is small, but having a ritual that signals “this is quiet time” has helped my brain settle in. For me it’s making coffee and sitting in the same chair.
- Not checking anything first. No email, no Instagram, nothing. Quiet time is genuinely first — not after a quick scroll. This is still a struggle for me some days!
- Keeping my journal simple. I’m not writing essays in the morning. A few sentences of gratitude, a name or two to pray for, a quote that stood out. That’s it.
You Don’t Have to Have It All Figured Out
If you’re reading this and you don’t have a quiet time habit yet, I want to be gentle with you: you don’t need to start with an hour. You don’t need the perfect prayer book or a beautiful journaling setup.
You just need to begin.
Pick one thing — a single prayer, a short Scripture reading, five minutes of silence — and do it tomorrow morning. Then the next day. Build from there.
The goal isn’t a picture-perfect routine. It’s a daily return to the One who holds your day before you do.
That’s enough. That’s everything, really.
