There are times I wake up during the night feeling anxious, sometimes even being jolted awake by a nightmare. You can check out my previous posts for the foundation the Lord has been building up in my heart as I’ve been able to form more patterns of remembering His sovereign care, infinite wisdom, and unconditional love, but today I’ll share some ideas for the nighttime (or some daytime patterns that influence my sleep at night).

• Listen through the book of Psalms on Bible.is or another audio Bible and echo the words out loud. Write down images you can picture at night–Jesus being the Good Shepherd and you His little lamb, Jesus being the Light filling your life with His kingdom light, God being a rock of refuge, holding you with His Everlasting arms, etc.

• Start thanking God for as many things as you can think of as you reflect on what happened the previous day. Thank Him for the ways He helped you to be obedient and faithful. 

• Listen to worship songs or hymns and sing along (or whisper the words at night). Pick a couple hymns to memorize, like “My Hope is Built on Nothing Less” or “Blessed Assurance.”

• Picture yourself as a child, walking up to God’s rocking-chair throne as He reaches down and sets you on His lap. If you are feeling anxious about someone else, picture yourself taking them by the hand and leading them to God’s rocking-chair throne. As you pray for them, imagine both of you sitting on His lap together. 

• Write out some Scriptures and tape them in front of your toilet. Believe me, you’ll look at them! Say them out loud quickly over and over until you’ve memorized them so you can quote them during the night. (Psalm 34:8, 55:22, 62:1-2,8, 107:1, 118:8, Proverbs 3:5-6, 16:9, Isaiah 43, Romans 8, Philippians 4:6-9)

Which one of these things are you going to try this week?

Next week, I’ll share about inviting others to help you engage in this battle.