When Anxiety Keeps You Awake at Night
“I sat up in bed and pulled out my phone, navigating to the Kindle app and the latest book I was reading. It was the fourth time I had tried to sleep without success. Over and over, I would read until my eyes got heavy, but as soon as I put the phone away, the worry would return.
Several problems loomed large that night when the world quieted and the daily distractions were removed. I prayed over these concerns off and on throughout the day, but at night they just seemed to grow and take on a life of their own. I couldn’t seem to shake off the feeling of dread and fear of what the future might hold.
Reading seemed to steer my thoughts away from the worry, but sleep still eluded me. Finally, after my fourth attempt to reach la-la land, I had an epiphany. I thought about a previous experience of sleeplessness resulting from anxiety. And I remembered that my worries at that time had all been resolved. I had lost much sleep, but eventually, the situation had worked out for good.
In Psalm 4, David also was distressed and cried out to God. His process of dealing with anxiety gives us a pattern when our anxious thoughts disturb our sleep...”
These words introduce a devotional entitled “A Biblical Process for Managing Anxiety that Disrupts Sleep” that I wrote for gatheratdawn.com and their app. The mobile app was created to encourage those who may struggle with anxiety or depression.
I love this app because it provides a daily Scripture, a weekly devotion, audio meditations and practices, a podcast, a Bible you can open in the app, a custom prayer journal, Scriptural affirmations on different topics, and a community for prayer and discussion.
The Gather at Dawn app encourages users to
- Start every day with consistent God time.
- Support their mental wellbeing.
- Find a dependable faith gathering online.
I use the app, and I highly recommend it.