When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet. Proverbs 3:24

1:30, 2:30, 3:30…AM.  I watched the hours progress slowly on the glowing display of my bedside clock.  Why couldn’t I shake this anxiety?  The worries in my life seemed to parade around my bed, larger, yes, so much larger, than they ever were in the light of day. In the quiet of night, life’s burdens, fears and sorrows bubble up to the surface of our minds.  Scripture has many things to say about our anxieties and the darkness of the night, but here are two truths to hang onto.

First, there’s a reason that everything seems so much worse at night.  You and I have a shrewd enemy that actively seeks to discourage us and wear us down and he knows the best time to do it. “Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour,” says 1 Peter (5:8).

Yet, God does not sleep. “He will not allow your foot to slip; He who watches over you will not slumber” is the promise of Psalm 121 (verses 3-4).  God sees me wrestling with all that’s in my head and invites me to hand it all over to Him, and sleep. He is able: “My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth,” says verse 1.

He will help me and hold me through this night, and far beyond. Psalm 121 concludes: “The Lord keeps watch over you as you come and go, both now and forever” (verse 8).

 

Resource reading:  Psalms 121:1-8