A bedtime prayer is a perfect way to give thanks for the blessing of the day and pray for the hope for tomorrow. Here is a listing to some of the best and original Christian bedtime prayers for adults.
Prayer #1
“Heavenly Father, how we thank You for bringing us safely to the end of the day and we praise and thank You for Your loving-kindness and great goodness to us today.
Thank You for the many blessings and provisions that You bestowed on us today – for keeping us safe and guiding us and brining us once again to that time of the day when we can recharge our spirits and souls with a refreshing nights sleep.
Forgive me I pray if I have said or done anything that was not honouring to Your name or have sought to do things in my own strength rather than relying totally on You – for I praise You that Your grace is sufficient for Your strength is perfected in our weakness.
And now Lord as we lie down we pray that You would watch over us to protect and keep us safe. Give us a deep and refreshing sleep and may we cast any burdens or difficulties on You and not allow our minds to fret or worry… for You have promised to carry all our burdens if we will just give them to You.
Protect those we love and bring us we pray into Your kingdom in Your time and in Your way for we thank You that our times are safe in Your hands.. this we pray in Jesus name, Amen.”
Prayer #2
“Father, Thank you for today, for all the ways in which I have known you…
For the sunrise and the birdsong,
For the music I’ve heard, and the things I’ve enjoyed,
For the meals, and for the cosy home I live in,
For my close family and for my special friends,
Most of all, thank you for being beside me through each moment.
May I dream good dreams and arise again tomorrow to thank you once more.
Amen.”
Prayer #3
“Dear Father in Heaven, Here, safe in my home, I drink in your peace. Help me to sift through the many experiences, feelings and thoughts I have encountered today. I allow myself to rest, to wind down and to sleep. Help me to surrender all I am to you, my fatigue, my concerns, my hopes and fears.
As I drift into sleeping I choose to hold your hand. I choose to live with you. I choose to believe, I choose to trust, I choose you always. Amen.”
Prayer #4
“O Lord our God, King of the Universe.
Let the wings of sleep fall upon my eyes,
and upon my eyelids.
O Blessed One,
Let me lie down in peace,
and rise in peace.
Into Your hand I entrust my spirit.”
Prayer #5
“Now I lay me down to sleep.
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
If I should die before I wake,
I pray to God my soul to take.
If I should live for other days,
I pray the Lord to guide my ways.
Father, unto thee I pray,
Thou hast guarded me all day;
Safe I am while in thy sight,
Safely let me sleep tonight.
Bless my friends, the whole world bless;
Help me to learn helpfulness;
Keep me every in thy sight;
So to all I say good night.”
Prayer #6
“The day is done;
O God the Son,
Look down upon
Thy little one!
O Light of Light,
Keep me this night,
And shed round me
Thy presence bright.
I need not fear
If Thou art near;
Thou art my Savior
Kind and dear.”
Prayer #7
“Away in a manger, no crib for a bed,
The little Lord Jesus laid down His sweet head.
The stars in the sky looked down where He lay,
The little Lord Jesus, asleep on the hay.
The cattle are lowing, the Baby awakes,
But little Lord Jesus, no crying He makes;
I love Thee, Lord Jesus, look down from the sky
And stay by my cradle till morning is nigh.
Be near me, Lord Jesus, I ask Thee to stay
Close by me forever, and love me, I pray;
Bless all the dear children in Thy tender care,
And fit us for Heaven to live with Thee there.”
Prayer #8
“Jesus, tender Shepherd, hear me:
Bless Thy little child to-night;
Through the darkness be Thou near me,
Keep me safe till morning light.
All this day Thy hand has led me,
And I thank Thee for Thy care;
Thou hast warmed me, clothed me, fed me;
Listen to my evening prayer.
May my sins be all forgiven;
Bless the friends I love so well;
Take me, Lord, at last to heaven.
Happy there with Thee to dwell.”
Prayer #9
“Lord,
You bless us as we rest,
Restore us as we sleep,
You care for us as we drift off,
And make our dreaming sweet,
You are the safest place,
You are the God of Grace,
Forgiven, loved and held by you,
Is each small seed of faith,
You know our thoughts and feelings,
You see our deep desires,
You understand our weariness,
And catch each tear we cry,
You walk beside us every day,
You are a constant friend,
You stay with us all through the night,
On you we can depend.”
Prayer #10
“Dear God,
The day was long and trying. I am grateful for its end. As I lay here waiting for sleep to overtake me, I count the blessings in the day that has passed. Work was hard, I’m blessed to have a job. My kids were frustrating, I’m blessed to have them. My body aches, I’m blessed to have medication. The list goes on, but #1 is, even when I struggle, I am blessed to have faith. Thank You Lord for giving me a daily opportunity to rest and refresh.
Amen”
Prayer #11
“Dear God,
The day was long and trying. I am grateful for its end. As I lay here waiting for sleep to overtake me, I count the blessings in the day that has passed. Work was hard, I’m blessed to have a job. My kids were frustrating, I’m blessed to have them. My body aches, I’m blessed to have medication. The list goes on, but #1 is, even when I struggle, I am blessed to have faith. Thank You Lord for giving me a daily opportunity to rest and refresh.
Amen”
Prayer #12
“Dear God,
Dispel my fear. End my anxiety, wipe worry from my mind. May I know the power of Your love and the wisdom of Your word. Grant me a peaceful sleep tonight and bring me back tomorrow to a place of safety, security, and right-minded thinking.
Amen”
Here is a look at some great bedtime prayers for Christian meditation followed by some uplifting relaxation music to help you release your burdens to God for a nice restful sleep.
connectusfund.org
Parents of adult children need to pray powerful prayers when they pray for their children, when their son or daughter goes through a problem or a life crisis such as marriage problems, divorce, unemployment, job problems, child custody issues, a crisis of faith, depression, addiction, family quarrels or other stressful situations. Here is a prayer for the restoration of grown sons and daughters that parents of adult children can pray using Bible verses from Isaiah 49:8-18. (NIV)
Dear Heavenly Father, I come to you as a fellow parent, knowing that you understand how my heart breaks for __________________(name) my grown child’s situation. I am praying now for your help and hope to be reborn in all of us as I pray the words of Isaiah over them.
This is what the Lord says;
“In the time of my favor I will answer you, and in the day of salvation I will help you; I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people, to restore the land and to reassign its desolate inheritance, to say to the captives, ‘Come out,’ and to those in darkness, ‘Be free!’
I claim this prayer time as the day of favor for my child. I thank you that you have promised to help us. I thank you that you have promised to restore the lost and broken parts. Here are some specific things that need restoration in my child’s life __________________________________
I thank you that you promise to be my child’s keeper. Here are the things that I can’t do for them that I place into your keeping _____________________________________
I thank you that you promise that you will set them free. Here are things from which my child needs to be set free today _________________________________________________________________
They will feed beside the roads and find pasture on every barren hill. They will neither hunger nor thirst, nor will the desert heat or the sun beat upon them. He who has compassion will guide them and lead them besides springs of water. I will turn all my mountains into roads and my highways will be raised up. See, they will come from afar – some from the north, some from the west, some from the region of Aswan.
I thank you that you can provide for the physical, emotional and spiritual needs of my child today. Here are some of the most pressing needs they have___________________________________________
I thank you that you feel deep compassion for them, that you want to see them well and whole and joyous and in good relationships with others and with yourself. Here are some things that break my heart and worry me about my child’s situation_________________________________________
I pray that you will guide my child to the help they need. I pray that you will give them rest and give them the strength for the journey back to stability. Here are the issues on which my child needs your guidance today_____________________________________________________________
Shout for joy, O heavens; rejoice, O earth; burst into song, O mountains! For the Lord comforts his people and will have compassion on his afflicted ones.
I praise you now for the comfort you are bringing me that you are with us all and that you care deeply.
But Zion said, “The Lord has forsaken me, the Lord has forgotten me.” “Can a mother forget the baby at her breast and have no compassion on the child she has borne? Though she may forget, I will never forget you! See, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands; your walls are ever before me. Your sons hasten back, and those who laid you waste depart from you. Lift up your eyes and look around; all your sons gather and come to you. As surely as I live,” declares the lord, “You will wear them all as ornaments, you will put them on like a bride.”
Dear Father, help my child to not feel alone and forgotten by the world or by you. Instead, help them turn to you that they may be healed and helped. Help them to know the deep love I have for them as a parent. I ask for your guidance on how to express my deep love for my child in a way that they will accept and understand. Please give me one specific thought or idea now____________________________
Help me to trust you totally, knowing that you have not forgotten me or my child. Help me to stand in your presence, knowing that you always see me. I pray against the following things that have laid waste to my child. May these things depart from them by your power_______________________________
I now end my prayer, lifting my eyes toward you, believing that you are at work in ways I will soon see. I thank you for the gathering back in of my child to you and to our family. May our family’s beautiful love and joy together be apparent for all to see.
I pray these things in the strong and loving name of Jesus Christ, God’s only son. Amen
Table of contents
Helpful Links:
Praying for those who can’t pray for themselves using standing in the gap prayers
Travailing in prayer over big problems
Losing hope prayer that restores hope through personal prayer
Praying about romantic relationships concerns for a family member
Praying about child custody problems
Prayer for children and grandchildren with problems and difficulties
Grieving child prayer for adults helping a child after someone they love dies
Copyright Karen Barber 2013. All rights reserved
prayerideas.org
The Consciousness Examen
By Rosemary Hagan, D.Min
St. Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th century Spanish knight, theologian, and founder of the Jesuits, spent his life reflecting upon his relationship with God. He developed a way of praying called The Examen, a simple prayer that can deepen our awareness of the presence of God, and aid our spiritual growth as His Disciples. The Examen, now referred to as The Consciousness Examen, or an examination of your consciousness of God, can be prayed at noon and at night, or simply prayed at the end of the day. Here is one way to pray the Examen.
I become aware of the love with which God looks upon me.
- GRATITUDE – I note the gifts that God’s love has given me this day, and give thanks to God for them.
- PETITION – I ask God for the gift of insight and the grace that will make this Examen fruitful beyond my human capacity to understand.
- REVIEW – With my God, I review my day. I remember or now notice the stirrings in my heart and thoughts that God has given me through my day. . And I look also for those times and feelings and thoughts that have not been of God. I remember the choices I made in response to each of these.
- FORGIVENESS – I ask for the healing touch of the forgiving God who, with love and respect for me, removes my heart’s burdens.
- RENEWAL – I look to the following day and, with God, plan concretely how to live it in accord with God’s loving desire for my life.
Aware of God’s presence within me, I prayerfully conclude the Examen. (e.g. with The Lord’s Prayer)
Disciples, like you, have been praying this prayer for centuries, and reaping its spiritual benefits. When we turn our minds to this reflection, we will be led to God’s deepest desires for us. “Our only desire and our one choice should be this: I want and I chose what leads to God’s deepening life in me.” -St. Ignatius
www.gracetraversecity.org
