"THY SLEEP SHALL BE SWEET"

So many shows that you watch on television these days run commercials that recommend certain drugs for those who have difficulty in sleeping. There seem to be a variety of new drugs now that help with this problem. Recently I was told that many, many people are having sleep problems. It seems to be almost epidemic today.

The darkness of the night tends to bring the fears of people to the surface of their thought, causing great anxiety. It seems to be a universal problem, but it is not an unsolvable problem.

The solution lies in quieting one’s fears, in quieting the fear of being separated from good. I have always taken great comfort from the Bible verse in Proverbs, chapter 2, verse 24: “When thou liest down, thou shalt not be afraid: yea, thou shalt lie down, and thy sleep shall be sweet.” It seems to me that this is a beautiful promise to anyone who leans on it.

Recently while visiting relatives, the conversation centered around the nightmares each one of them always have on a fairly regular basis. These relatives are not the type to pray about their problems, and so expect to experience these nightmares as a normal part of living. But it brought back to my memory the fact that I no longer have nightmares. I cannot remember a time when I have had one. They apparently stopped after I had discovered a short paragraph in one of Mary Baker Eddy’s writings, other than Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures. This small book talks about her life and what led her to the discovery of Christian Science. It is called “Retrospection and Introspection.”

The paragraph that I read in this small book is this: “…if you fall asleep, actually conscious of the truth of Christian Science, ---namely that man’s harmony is no more to be invaded than the rhythm of the universe, --you cannot awake in fear or suffering of any sort.” (Ret. 61:8)

These words spoke to my heart and I have done exactly as they say to do for many years now. Every night as I close my eyes, I fill my thought with the truth in this paragraph, that my harmony can no more be invaded than the rhythm of the universe. The results have been no more nightmares.

But there is another wonderful effect, as shown by what happened to me last night. I awoke with a stomachache. It came to me that the dinner I ate did not agree with me. But immediately, another thought came that the dinner had been prepared by a family member with love and therefore could not harm me. I fell sound asleep for the rest of the night and the stomachache faded into oblivion. Because of this prayer that fills my thought as I fall asleep each night, I now find that I am more spiritually ready to pray and whatever has tried to trouble my sleep leaves quickly.

There is a wonderful saying that my aunt has near her bed. When I go to stay with her, I love to read it. It says: “Every evening I turn my worries over to God. He’s going to be up all night anyway.”

We are never outside of God’s care, nighttime or daytime. Hold to this fact and your rest shall be sweet and peaceful.

MY FIRST BLOG

One’s first Blog causes one a lot of thought. What is the subject that will do the most good?

Almost everyday I am reminded of words that my mother would say to me often: “Listen for an angel thought each day. God is sending it.” Sometimes at night, before I retire, I’ll think, “What angel thought did I get today?”

Someone may ask, “How do you know if you are getting an angel thought? I would answer that it is a feeling you get in your heart. It will always be a good and loving thought. It is a feeling that everything is okay right now. Mary Baker Eddy, the author of Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures, wrote about this subject in another of her writings, “Miscellaneous Writings”, p. 306. She tells us there that we will “know their presence by the love they create in our hearts. Oh, may you feel this touch,---it is not the clasping of hands, nor a loved person present; it is more than this: it is a spiritual idea that lights your path!”

Some of my most precious moments, when I have felt the closest to God, have come when I was pondering the 91st Psalm in the Bible, verse 11, “For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.” I have a friend who reads the 91st Psalm every night before going to bed.

But do we only get one angel message? Christ Jesus gives a glimpse into his thought about this question. Jesus sensed that his disciples were starting to get very concerned for him right before the crucifixion. He told them “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels? (Gospel of Matthew, chapter 26, verse 53)

Twelve legions!! In Bible times, that meant somewhere around 72,000 angels!! Actually I think God, like the sun pouring forth its rays, is pouring forth His angel messages on us all. They are bombarding us even as we speak. He is constantly communicating to man. So it really is amazing that we think we can only hear one!

Probably the best thing we can do for ourselves is to develop a listening ear throughout each day, letting God know that we are listening. This requires us not to get too deeply involved in all of the static going on around us in our environment. It is possible to do this. In fact, to my way of thinking, this is what the apostle Paul meant when he said we were to pray without ceasing. Keeping our ear attuned to God’s presence at all times.

Cultivating angels is the best way to stay safe in our world today. It is the best way to stay peaceful, even at night, when the nights seem long and uneasy. I love the thought that God cares for us past measure. He does this by wrapping us up in His angel messages. This is true for anyone. We can trust this.

Try listening for your angel message today.