Finding Peace: The Power of the Bedtime Shema
As one who has troubled sleep – I do everything I can to rest. I rely on prayer to bring calm to the night.
I’m not Jewish, but I attended a Messianic congregation for a couple of years and grew to love the fullness and completeness of Jewish believers’ worship of the Messiah. It was fascinating and powerful.
The recitation of the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:4) in Hebrew at every service was a special moment. The Hebrew word “Shema” literally means to listen or hear, and Scriptures tell us to talk about and meditate on the Scripture day and night – when we lie down and when we rise up.
I recently discovered that the Jewish faith has a Bedtime Shema, or prayer, that is powerful in helping you focus your thoughts on God. It goes like this:
Blessed are You, Oh Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings sleep to my eyes and slumber to my eyelids.
May it be Your will, Lord my God and God of my ancestors, that I lie down in peace and that I arise in peace.
Let my sleep be undisturbed by troubling thoughts, bad dreams, and wicked schemes.
May I have a night of tranquil slumber. May I awaken to the light of a new day, that my eyes may behold the splendor of Your light.
Praised are You, Lord whose glory gives light to the entire world.
Such a power prayer of submission to an almighty God in our most vulnerable state – sleep.
The Rabbinical Assembly from Siddur Sim Shalom: A Prayerbook for Shabbat, Festivals and Weekdays [1985], pp. 245-249)
