I rise before dawn

      and cry for help;

I hope in Your words.

My eyes are awake

  before the watches of the night,

that I may meditate

                on Your promise.

 

                  Psalm 119. 148

 

(I can’t say that my first reaction

to waking in the night

is to meditate on God’s Word

or to hope

or pray against the darkness.

And as I lay there,

may I not just pray

             to go back to sleep,

but to trust Him more.

I cannot fix things at that hour,

but I can turn to Him.

And know that He is near.

What does it take to

      realize His Presence?

If it were all easy,

             would I still seek Him?

Perhaps it is not worry that wakes me,

   but realizing the hand of God,

embracing and

motioning to me

            to trust Him more.)

 

O LORD,

Interrupt even our sleep

   that we may know You more.

Help us to leave our concerns

                at the altar

and not keep retrieving them,

but following You

           in what You are redeeming

           and what we can do.

Worry never turns anxiety away.

Let not fear grab us in the darkness,

    but help us to realize we can respond

    by trusting You even more.

You are near.  We are not alone after all.