The significance of the goodnight prayer is not just for children before they go to sleep.
For many adults, every day is a day of prayer as more than half of Americans maintain that they pray. A Pew Research Center survey found that 55 percent of the country prays and a majority of believers admitted that prayer is a "reflection when making major life decisions. The same survey found that 63 percent of Christians in the U.S. said praying regularly is an essential part of their Christian identity."Make saying a goodnight prayer a priority.
Prayer is your connection with God and it opens up the Heavens to hear your petitions. In the book of James, we are told to ask God for enlightenment. "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach and it will be given him." Making prayer a goal before bedtime keeps the lines of communication open. It also gives us a voice when we feel that we have none in the world.
Jesus commands us to pray.
We are commanded to pray for ourselves and for others, the Bible instructed. In Mathew Jesus said to pray: "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom comes, you will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." We definitely need this as the basis of our goodnight prayer life. If Jesus shared that we needed to add this to our prayer life, there was a reason. This is so our souls could be nourished.
Praying at night helps ease physical pain.
People who pray at night for 20 minutes, along with using affirmations found that they had less painful headaches! Praying also helped petitioners and their pain threshold. When commonly practiced, these calming effects are not temporary, but long term. Prayer not only helps you focus less on your pain, but it helps you feel less pain, Beliefnet reported. Here is a prayer to get you started: "Lord, I feel worn down by the reoccurring pain I have. It makes every small thing feel like a big deal. Please help me to manage this illness and continue to find time to rest and treat the pain. May my waking hours be restful and my sleep is peaceful."
Praying at night combats anxiety.
Praying a goodnight prayer can help ease anxiety. Incorporate Romans 8:18 into your goodnight prayer: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” Prayer can heal emotional wounds can help you harness wild thoughts that work to keep you captive. Pray that the Lord will deliver you from anxiety and depression. Ask Him to ease your mind and help you to focus on His thoughts and His ways.
Praying at night helps clinical depression.
Patricia Murphy, Ph.D. at Rush University Medical Center found that patients had more of a positive response to medications for clinical depression by praying. "In our study, the positive response to medication had little to do with the feeling of hope that typically accompanies spiritual belief," she said. A great way to start your goodnight prayer in this area can be: "Father God, please give me the courage. Guide me to find peace, joy and comfort in myself and in life."
It gives you an outlet.
King David struggled at times during his walk with God and wrote about this in the Psalms. He said "I waited patiently for the LORD; He turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand." Do you feel like you are in a pit in your life? Well, you are not alone and prayer is your tool to get out of it. Use it as a way to talk through your problems. Prayer is great at night to help ease restlessness. When we pray for a length of time the body also will undergo a change. It will go into a more relax state. Dr. Herbert Benson, a cardiovascular specialist at Harvard Medical School explained this state as “the relaxation response.” What happens is that the heart rate slows, blood pressure levels off and we become calmer.
It can maximize your health.
The goodnight prayer may heal your body over time. More and more physicians are finding that most illnesses are caused by stress. Ulcers, migraine headaches, obesity, diabetes and gastrointestinal issues are rooted in stress. "It doesn’t matter if you pray for yourself or for others, pray to heal an illness or for peace in the world, or simply sit in silence and quiet the mind," the Huffington Post reported. By implementing prayer like this before bedtime, you actually improve your overall health.
It helps you sleep better.
If nightmares are keeping you up at night, it can impact how the following day will go. Praying a goodnight prayer on having better sleep quality can help you overcome these obstacles at night. It will also help you reach that relaxed state that you've been dreaming of.
The goodnight prayer is essential for people of all ages and can really change your life and your overall well-being. Incorporate prayer to help transition the body, the mind and the soul for a more restful state and to become a happier person.
