I used to think I heard from the Lord best in the shower (I have no idea why), but lately I’ve been hearing from Him loudly in bed.
I don’t know if it’s what I’m eating for dessert or that I’m starting my old lady changes soon, but I’ve been having a hard time falling asleep lately (resulting in a haggardly, crabby Laura in the morning). A few weeks ago, however, I started doing two things that have helped me fall asleep almost immediately (except last night…#rodgersX2hailmary) and wake up a little less…scary.
Several weeks ago, I had a Spirit inspired thought while lying awake with a nasty cold in the middle of the night. I know it was Spirit inspired because my thoughts involved throwing things, crying and possibly swearing. Instead I had the idea to think of five things I could be thankful for.  Really?  Yeah, definitely not something I would come up with. This little exercise in positive thinking has happened every morning since then. I thank God for five things every day before my feet hit the ground. Most mornings I am so incoherent I don’t remember what I thank God for, but I am noticing subtle changes in my brain, attitude, and my mornings since this started. 
About a week later I got another Spirit inspired thought, this time when I crawled into bed. What is one thing I really believe about God. One thing the Bible says about God that I believe beyond a shadow of a doubt. So one night I thought about how God created the heavens and the earth. Another night I fell asleep thinking God is the same yesterday, today and tomorrow. The night of the Paris attacks I wanted to believe God works for the good of those who love him, but I was wrestling with that so I thought of something else I believed about God. Another night I fell asleep contemplating what it means by, “I can do all things through Christ…” (Surely that doesn’t include algebra, right?).
Why have I been sleeping better and waking up a slightly nicer human being? Peace and gratitude. When I think about how big, wise, all-present and all-powerful the God of the universe is before I fall asleep, I feel safe and protected.  When I wake up and am immediately reminded of the many blessings God is and has given me, I think I have more joy and contentment.
The caveat is I have to know what the Bible says about God in order to discern what I believe. The other caveat is I have to think (I like to be done thinking by dinner time and I don’t like to start thinking again until after coffee). But the benefit is worth any tradeoffs.
I used to lay in bed lamenting about my day, tomorrow’s to do list or worrying about my kids. I was waking up anxious and crabby. The last few weeks I have slept more soundly and started my day with more joy because of these two simple exercises (I can do laying down) and for that I am incredibly thankful.  

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