"I fall asleep when I pray"
Has this ever happened to you? How many people have you heard say this as well? The funny thing is that many times the devil is blamed for it, lol. I’m sure he takes satisfaction that people are not on their prayer watch but most of the time, it isn’t him. It’s us.
I’ve worked with woman who have told me that as soon as they go to pray they fall asleep. And when I’ve asked what time are you praying, they tell me right before they go to bed. Well, no wonder you are falling asleep.
I put more thought into this and wanted to write and help out with this.
If you are tired or falling asleep when you pray, most likely it’s a sign that you’re either not taking care of yourself as you should or totally just not motivated but here are a few things that can help.
Take a look at these:
-Get Enough Sleep: You won’t be good for much if you’re always tired because you’re just not getting enough hours of rest. Learn how your body works and how many hours work for you to feel well rested in a day.
-Meditate: For me, sometimes my mind gets really busy and hard to slow it down. There are others who have a habit of worrying about everything or have anxiety throughout the day. By the time, it comes to pray, your mind is wandering. This becomes a 'thinking session', which can become a sleeping session. So, give some time during the week over to meditation. Learn to focus your thoughts. Once it becomes a habit, you’ll be surprised how more effective your prayer life becomes. Meditation can start with 10 minutes at a time. Meditate on God’s Word. Meditate with doing visualizations and affirmations. Do what’s best for you.
-Maintain your Health: Be aware of your health and stay on top of any health issues you may have (as well as pray over them). For me, right around my menstrual I used to start getting fatigue. Now, I take Omega 3 and I’m not as tired during that time of the month anymore. Also, consider medications that you may take that make you tired or change your moods.
-Exercise: Exercising isn’t just good for your body but it’s excellent for your mind and spirit. It eases stress and worry, increasing happy chemicals in your body. Praying after exercise is powerful! Take a walk with God. I’ve even prayed on the treadmill. It will make you feel like wonder woman. :)
-Have an Agenda: If you just go in prayer and sit there, you may zone out. Some people benefit from writing down what they want to pray for before they get there. When you start with an agenda, you may also find God taking you in a different direction. That's even more fun!
-Test your Faith: Is your tiredness a lack of faith in disguise, which is a lack of motivation? If so, you need to find His flame again. It’s a sign that your relationship with God needs to go in a different direction. Go back to your testimony. Here’s also an article to get your faith pumping again. Test of Faith
This morning, the Lord gave me a vision of a moth’s wing hanging from a ceiling by a thread. Behind it was a priest with his back turned. I believe this represents those who are looking to lure the Holy Spirit into coming to them. Moths are attracted to light and flames of fire. In this sense, the light and flame is the Holy Spirit. In the vision, the moth’s wing is being used as a prop that would lure the presence of God like a trap. It’s like a religious approach to God’s presence; like a formula that people have set up. But how can that work when moths fly toward the flame; not the flame toward the moth. They don’t wait for it.
Don’t wait for the Holy Spirit! Fly towards Him! Study Him. Go to where you see His presence! Understand Him and how He works. Have an expectation in Prayer that you’ll touch Him; not waiting just for Him to touch you. Get Burned!
Overall, go through this list and get to know how you can empower your prayer life, even if it's not about falling asleep. If you learn yourself, you will reveal the most Optimal times for you to pray so that all your prayers are most effective and powerful.
Tackling these things will give honor to God because you don’t want to be caught sleeping on the job. You want to have respect for His presence. You also don’t want to slouch in front of God. You want to be fully aware of Him and upright expecting Him to approach you in Spirit. You want to have integrity and be ready for what His Spirit wants to deliver to you. Go to Him in relationship and excellence.
When you approach Him this way, your sleep will be easier, better, and full of color. You’ll find yourself dreaming about Him and His glory. Last night, I had this sweet dream. It was short but powerful. The Lord had me in a huge field of wheat. The sun was shining so bright. It was shining on the wheat so magnificent that the color was such a beautiful glowing yellow. I was yelling Hallelujah as the Holy Spirit was hovering over me. My spirit was in prayer and I wanted more. I wanted the deep of the deep. I was not just happy. I was exuberant; an unexplained happy.
This is what God wants for you. So, pray in relationship and excellence and when you do sleep, your dreams will be full of God and full of His Glory!