People are always talking about "going to sleep." Where do you think you "go" when you "go to sleep?"

When you fall asleep, you actually go into a relaxed state in which you leave your conscious mind and enter the realm of your subconscious. What happens to thoughts that are "on your mind" when you drift off? As your conscious mind goes "off duty" it hands any unfinished business over to your subconscious and says, "You work on it."

Negative thoughts, such as worries, envy, financial stress, anger and fear are a bother to the subconscious, too. So after trying to sort out the problems through nightmares and bad dreams, Mr. Subconscious gives Mr. Conscious a kick and says, "You wake up and handle this. I've had it." So, you wake up then go back to sleep, then wake up again and so on.

God never intended a "good night's sleep" to turn out this way. His solution? It's meditation. By feeding your mind God's thoughts to gnaw on during the night, you can awake refreshed, revitalized and renewed. The psalmist, too, discovered this secret when he proclaimed, "...his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither" (Psalm 1:2-3, NIV).

Open your Bible and let the Holy Spirit lead you to a passage of scripture that He knows will nourish and replenish you as you sleep tonight and enjoy sweet dreams.

Heavenly Father, thank you for making me in such a way that every part of my mind and soul can be refreshed and revitalized during the night. Lead me to the Word You would have me meditate on as I go to sleep, so I can praise You in the morning for the peace and vitality its nourishment will bring. In Jesus' Name, Amen.