Category Archives: Spiritual Life

A Bedtime Prayer…

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Years ago a college student I know was having trouble with nightmares. Every night, she would lose sleep as she would awaken with a sense of fear and dread. Eventually she couldn’t even get to sleep, fearing what she might dream. Every night she would call her mom and ask her to pray with her so she might get some rest.

Eventually, I sent her this prayer in email, hoping it would be of assistance. She called me and said it had been a great help. The words of the prayer aren’t some kind of magic formula, however the truth represented and the commitment made were key to having a good night’s sleep.

God — thank You for bringing me into Your family, making me Your child, and blessing me with “every spiritual blessing in the heavenly realms with Christ Jesus.” Thank You for giving me this time of physical renewal, mental rest, and emotional refreshment as I sleep. I receive it as one of Your gifts for me — one of Your children — and I trust You to guard my body and mind as I sleep.

I have thought about You and Your truth throughout this day. I choose to dwell on those thoughts as I go to sleep. I commit myself to You for protection against every attempt of Satan and any other unclean spirits to attack me as I sleep. Guard my heart and mind from nightmares. I reject all fear and cast every anxiety upon You, Lord, for You care for me. I resolve to rest in You as my rock, my fortress and my strong tower. Place Your peace upon this resting place. In the strong name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray. Amen.

Sleep tight.

Dealing with Dilemmas

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You know what a dilemma is, right? It’s when you are caught between two options and you must make a choice. If you choose the first option, it will cause a problem. And if you choose the second option, it will cause a different problem.

People face dilemmas all the time.

Let me give you an example: You want to take your son hunting. He’s finally old enough. It’s kind of a father-son bonding time. He’s using his grandpa’s gun. You bought him the license. He’s really excited. But your aunt Mabel died yesterday. And while the viewing is Sunday evening, the funeral service is Monday morning — the opening day of buck season. That’s a dilemma. What do you do? Do you let down your son by skimping on the hunt? Or do you let your uncle down by skipping your aunt’s funeral. No one likes to be on the horns of a dilemma.

A more serious dilemma would have been on the mind of some young men in Nazi Germany in the time of Adolph Hitler. On one hand, you want to be a patriot. And Germany is economically devastated. Plus, if you refuse to fight, it will be your neck! On the other hand, you know the Nazis are committing atrocities. You’ve seen the ghettos. You’ve heard the stories. Can you defend a government that is so evil? It’s a dilemma. What do you do?

No one likes to be caught on the horns of a dilemma. I always want the third alternative. But often, there is none.

This podcast speaks about Joseph of Arimathea’s choices and ours as well.

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How to have a relationship with God

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How close are you to people you love? Laurel and I have been married for 29 years. That’s a while. And she and I would both honestly say to you that we’ve had our ups and downs. Some of the best years were when we lived in campus housing, went to school, and worked in the evenings. We…

  • Sat in classes together.
  • Ate lunch together.
  • Worked on projects together.
  • Rode motorcycle together.
  • Shared notes together.

Those were good years.

When I entered ministry, everything changed. Suddenly…

  • I was writing sermons — by myself.
  • She was preparing Sunday School lessons — by herself.
  • I was doing counseling — by myself.
  • She was preparing music — by herself.
  • I was making hospital visits — by myself.

And without even seeing it, we were slowly becoming strangers.

When children came along, the distance between us fluctuated. Sometimes we were close. Sometimes we were not. In fact, both of us realized that unless we did something about it, we ran the risk of becoming strangers who lived together.

It was then that Laurel and I decided to make our relationship a priority. We began to set aside time for one another. Once a week we went somewhere where our ministries, our children, and our external demands could not interfere. For a while, that was a coffee shop in Clearfield. She was not allowed to take a book. I was not allowed to take a computer. She was not allowed to take her schedule. I was not allowed to take my PDA.

We have found, in these 29 years, that if we don’t take the initiative to be close, we will not be close.

Today, I want to suggest that the very same thing can happen with you and God.

This podcast helps you see how to stay close to God.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download