Some years ago a friend shared with me that when he has trouble sleeping, he goes through a list in his mind, and if he’s done everything he needed to do, he asks the Lord to speak to His heart.
I borrowed that when I heard him say it, and as I mentioned, it’s been many years now. It’s a reference from 1 Samuel 3:9. God was calling Samuel, but he’d not had an encounter with Him yet. Eli, the priest, directed Samuel to go back to bed and if the call came again, he was to respond ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening’.
Fast forward to me the last few nights. I’ve been laying awake in the wee hours for no reason that I know. After tossing for a little while, I get up and do the modern version. I ask God to share with me what He will, and open my Bible and flip through for the responses.
These have been some of the verses that have jumped off the pages at me:
Psalms 90:12 Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom
Proverbs 16:7 Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed
Jeremiah 33:3 Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know
Jeremiah 32:26 Then the word came to Jeremiah: I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?
Normally I read them just in the hopes of being able to get back to bed. The last few days I chose to pause and journal them and on them, as I do not want to forget. And funny enough, when I get back into my bed, the sleep usually returns.
If you’re unable to sleep, ask our Father what He would share with you, then be careful to listen as He shares what He wants you to know.
Dear Heavenly Father, I’m so grateful that you still speak. I’m so grateful that it’s not a booming and frightening sound, but it’s in the still, small voice that you speak to our hearts. Father, help us to hear, and help us to discern with wisdom, your will for our lives.
