Do you ever have trouble sleeping at night? Perhaps, you wake up and can’t fall back to sleep very soon, because you are thinking about your problems and worrying about what you need to do the next day. Those kinds of thoughts disturb us and make us nervous. We wonder how we are going to manage it all. We feel anxious. But, after an hour or two of tossing, turning, and worrying, we usually drift off to sleep again, only to be rudely awakened by the alarm clock a little later.
That has been my story more often than I can count. What’s more, as bad as that situation was during the night, usually I was tired and frustrated the next morning because I lost precious sleep. It made me feel irritable and it robbed me of energy.
At last, after too many nights of lost sleep, I remembered the words of an old church song that admonished me to “Count your blessings; name them one by one. Count your blessings; see what God hath done.” (Oatman, Johnson, Jr., “Count Your Blessings,” public domain.) After that, I remembered how Apostle Paul instructed the believers in Philippi, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things. (Philippians 4:8 NIV)
So, I decided to replace my worrisome thoughts with more positive ones. Now, instead of counting sheep (a code name for problems), I try to count my blessings, naming them one at a time and adding a little prayer of thanks to God for each of them. Soon, I begin to feel more relaxed and content. I think it helps me go back to sleep faster and rest better, too. (A word of advice: relax and let the blessings come to mind. Don’t concentrate too hard, trying to force yourself to think of them.)
When we start to count our blessings, we discover that the list goes on and on. Blessings are all around us, and we can see them, if we just look. Regrettably, we take them for granted too many times, when we should thank God for them.
For example, one of the frequently overlooked blessings is the redemption and eternal inheritance in Heaven that we have through Jesus Christ. The Bible reminds us, “Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.” (Hebrews 12:28-29) Now, that’s something to thank God for everyday!
I hope we remember that thankfulness is an important characteristic of our Christian lives, and it has many benefits, such as helping us fall asleep on restless nights. Let’s give thanks and live thanks to God.
Remember, God loves you and so do I.
Phil
Copyright © 2010 Philip Walter
This GOD-BLOG was previously published. For the next few weeks, we will send you GOD-BLOGs that have been previously distributed, because we are trying to give Phil some extra time to meet a publishing deadline for his new book. Please be assured that each of the “oldies” will be revised and updated before you receive it. After Phil finishes the manuscript for the new book, we will resume sending you fresh GOD-BLOGs. We hope these devotionals will speak to your heart as effectively as the new ones do.
FYI: The GOD-BLOG is a free, short weekly devotional based on a Bible truth with a contemporary application. Its purpose is to give you a little spiritual boost from one Sunday to the next. It is written by Philip Walter, Minister at New Horizons Christian Church in Winter Garden, Florida. Additionally, Mr. Walter is a writer and veteran law enforcement chaplain.