Torah Portion BERESHEET– Genesis (Beresheet) 1:1-2:3 Haftarah: 1 Samuel 20:18-42
“Awake, my glory! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn.” Psalms 57:9 TLV
Shabbat shalom, dearly beloved,
Early on in my life as a servant of Yah, He gave me the instruction to rise before dawn, normally at 4 or 5 AM, to pray and seek Him. This is the time equivalent to astronomical twilight before the sun breaks into our morning, when the sun is not yet up and the skies are dark. It is the best time to see the stars. I believe that Abraham received this promise at that time.
“He took him outside and said, ‘Look up now at the sky and count the stars—if you are able to count them.'” Then He said to him, “So shall your seed be.” Genesis 15:5 TLV
I did this for many years, and my husband joined me as well. Teams that would come to serve with us in Israel would normally have their team prayer meeting at 4 AM. Believers from the nations that joined our Israel tours would be invited to do the same. It wasn’t mandatory, but anyone who desired could come to a pre-prepared meeting room in the hotel to pray before dawn and before the tour started. Slowly, slowly, this practice was lost because it was very challenging during the tour when days are long and hectic. But it wasn’t lost only on tour; I also lost it personally as we moved so much, and my life in the ministry, along with family troubles, became intense and hectic, and I became exhausted.
I knew I was defaulting, but I no longer felt the grace to do it. Occasionally I would, but my staunch commitment was lost. One of the most important things I used to mention to our team of disciples was how praying before dawn boosted the immune system.
“My soul is satisfied as with fat and oil, so my mouth praises You with joyful lips. When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You through the night watches.” Psalms 63:6-7 TLV
In Hebrew, the word “soul” is NEFESH, which is not only the soul but also the whole individual, including the body. These scriptures infer that seeking Yah when it’s dark outside causes our body to be full of fat and oil. This particular fat is DESHEN, like in the word “marrow” or “bone marrow.” The bone marrow is where our immune system sits. Seeking Yah before the sun is up would make our bones fat, full of bone marrow, and our immune system strong. I used to boast that my medical chart was empty and that I had stellar health, and despite six falls and accidents, I never broke a bone.
In 2020, about five years after we were sent to the USA and I stopped waking up pre-dawn to pray, my immune system began to break down. Nearly every year I fell very sick after missions and Israel tours. COVID-19 did not pass me by, though I defeated it with word proclamation, prayer, and communion. This culminated on November 5, 2025, when I had an accident in my upper room during my monthly retreat and broke my wrist (I am still recovering, as it usually takes a year or more). I was shocked! Why did Yah remove His covering? Why was the enemy allowed to touch me? I am Yah’s possession, and He knows it. After the passing of my 35-year-old son in 2022, the breakdown of my daughter in 2024, the massacre of October 7 in 2023, and the Iron Swords war until 2026, I had had it. My soul and body were in a scream! And now this? A broken wrist? Why, Yah? What did I do? I serve You day and night; I have stayed faithful to You since 1988, when You saved me in Israel. I have stayed faithful to Your Divine Call. I have not quit the ministry or looked back. So why?
There was no answer, besides the word He gave me, which was “to endure.” He never misses an opportunity to build resilience in His servant, and while I am a firm believer in Romans 8:28, I also believe that I have been missing in action at the pre-dawn prayers. This has lowered my immune system and the density of my bones. My health insurance was those pre-dawn (Ashacharecha) prayers. (I have none other.) Shachar is dawn in Hebrew.
“Now we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to His purpose.” Romans 8:28 TLV
I believe that all these setbacks are working together for my good. They woke me up to go back to my pre-dawn post. Does my flesh want this? Oh no! This requires flesh denial.
“And it is no longer I who live, but Messiah lives in me. And the life I now live in the body, I live by trusting in Ben-Elohim—who loved me and gave Himself up for me. ”Galatians 2:20 TLV
It is interesting that since my wrist broke, I wake up every two hours during the night. My sleep is constantly interrupted, so I am almost always awake before dawn, but then I fall back asleep. It dawned on me (pun intended) that the Ruach Elohim is calling me to the pre-dawn prayers. It is perfectly fine to pray and worship in the watches of the night and before dawn and catch more sleep later.
To finish, let us see the pattern of prayer of King David.
Psalm 119:62—”At midnight I rise to praise You because of Your righteous judgments.” This is probably the most direct verse about intentionally rising in the middle of the night to worship God. Jewish tradition also connected this verse with David’s practice of rising during the night and occupying himself with Torah, worship, and praise until dawn.
Psalm 119:147–148 — “I rise before dawn and cry for help; I put my hope in Your word. My eyes are up before every night watch, as I meditate on Your word.” David is awake before the watches, meditating on the Word of God.
Psalm 63:2, 7—“O God, You are my God, earnestly (before dawn) I seek You [אֲשַׁחֲרֶךָ—ashacharecha],” and later: “When I remember You on my bed, I meditate on You through the night watches.” Here there is a particularly beautiful connection between ashacharecha—seeking God earnestly and early before dawn—and the night watches.
Isaiah 26:9—”My soul longs for You at night; yes, my spirit within me seeks You [אֲשַׁחֲרֶךָ—ashacharecha].” Once again we see night + seeking God + ashacharecha. (Seeking Yah early and earnestly before dawn)
Psalm 57:9 and Psalm 108:3—”Awake, my glory! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn [אָעִירָה שָּׁחַר—a’irah shachar].” This expression is remarkable. David does not say, “The dawn will awaken me,” but, figuratively, “I will awaken the dawn”—he will be awake before it arrives. Jewish tradition likewise associated this expression with David already being awake when dawn came.
Isaiah 50:4—“Morning by morning He awakens; He awakens my ear to listen as a disciple.” Here the initiative belongs to Adonai: He awakens His servant morning by morning in order to hear, to listen to His instructions.
Psalm 5:4—“Adonai, in the morning You hear my voice. In the morning I order my prayer before You and watch expectantly.” Jewish tradition later connected this passage with the morning prayer of SHACHARIT.
Psalm 59:17—“But I—I sing of Your strength! Yes, in the morning I sing aloud of Your lovingkindness.”
So we can see an interesting biblical progression:
Midnight → Night watches → Seeking/meditating on Adonai → Dawn → Morning prayer and praise.
Three of David’s expressions in particular form a powerful sequence:
“At midnight I rise.”
“My eyes are awake before the watches.”
“I will awaken the dawn.”
Therefore, there is significant biblical support for the practice of rising while it is still dark, before dawn, in order to seek Adonai, meditate on His Word, pray, and praise Him.
At the same time, I would be careful not to turn this into a commandment requiring every believer to rise at a particular hour. The Scriptures reveal a strong spiritual pattern—especially in David’s life—but they do not command all Israel to rise at a specific astronomical time. However, I pray my confession and testimony will inspire those seeking a breakthrough in their spiritual life and health. Loving God means investing our strength in seeking Him and denying our flesh. His grace is sufficient to empower us to seek Him early and even when it’s dark outside. I believe it is our ticket to stay young and vibrant even into our older years.
This is another scripture that mentions the bone marrow (where the immune system sits) that gets fattened when we seek Yah, even when it is dark outside.
“It is good to praise Adonai and to make music to Your Name, Elyon, to declare Your love in the morning and Your faithfulness at night, but You exalted my horn like that of a wild ox. I am anointed with fresh oil. The righteous will flourish like a palm tree. He will grow like a cedar in Lebanon. Planted in the House of Adonai, they will flourish in the courts of our God. They will still yield fruit in old age. They will be full of sap and freshness.” Psalms 92:2-3, 11, 13-15 TLV
A Prayer
ABBA, I desire to seek you like King David did, before dawn and when it’s dark outside. My flesh is screaming because it doesn’t want to be uncomfortable. Make me “willing to be willing” and grace me with Your Presence as I take the step of faith to seek you earnestly and early. I receive by faith the ability to do so and a special boost to my immune system, my bone marrow, and my bones. Thank you for rejuvenating my entire being as I seek you at the pre-dawn times. In Yeshua’s name. Amen.
This is the promise of Divine Rejuvenation for those who choose to pray, seek, and worship Yah, especially when it’s dark outside before the sun is up!
“They will still yield fruit in old age. They will be full of sap and freshness.” Psalms 92:15 TLV
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