Trading Worryfor Songs In The Night
Trading Worryfor Songs in the Night
On my bed I remember you; I think of you through
the watches of the night. Because you are my help,
I sing in the shadow of your wings.
Psalm 63:6–7
Pause
Worry knows how to keep me awake at night. Unless I restrain my thoughts, they ricochet from one what-if to another. What if the economy collapses? What if our kids make choices that hurt them in the end? What if my husband dies before me? I ask myself random questions and then come up with potential outcomes based solely on my imagination. Can you relate?
Allowing nighttime thoughts to run rampant never goes well for me, so I appreciate the psalmist’s testimony. When sleep evaded him, he meditated on God’s character. He pondered the ways in which God had helped him. He visualized God’s protection over him.
Worry and worship are mutually exclusive. Anxiety multiplies when we entertain what-ifs and unknowns. But meditating on God’s faithfulness, patience, wisdom, and sovereignty settles our minds and soothes our souls. Practicing this discipline calms even the most anxious heart. It chases worry away and turns sleeplessness into songs of joy.
Ponder
How would you describe the thoughts you think when you can’t sleep?
Pray
Father, please help me focus my thoughts on you in the night.
“That thing you can’t stop worrying about? Verbally give it over to the Lord. Say out loud, ‘God, this is hard for me. I feel like I have more control if I keep worrying about (insert worry). But I fully give this to You. I trust You. You are good and You are good at being God.’”
Lysa TerKeurst
From the book
