Yesterday

we reflected on the importance of starting each day with prayer.

Today we’ll look at how valuable it is to pray at the end of the

day.

Evening

prayer has a dual focus. On the one hand, we look back on the events

of the day with gratitude and confession. We thank God for his

abundant goodness, and we ask forgiveness for the sins we have

committed that day.

On

the other hand, we look ahead to the nighttime and ask God to protect

us as we sleep. As we recognize our vulnerability and dependence on

God, we entrust ourselves to his watchful care: “He who ­watches

over you will not slumber” (Psalm 121:3).

Psalm

31 includes both of these elements. Here we find a prayer for

deliverance as well as an expression of trust. It’s been said that

the words “Into your hands I commit my spirit” served as a

bedtime prayer that Jewish parents taught their children. It’s the

prayer Jesus spoke just before dying on the cross (Luke 23:46). As he

closed his eyes in the sleep of death, he placed his trust in God.

Because

of Jesus, we have the assurance of forgiveness and the certainty of

God’s watchful love. So before you sleep, talk to the Lord. Thank

him for his grace, and place your fragile life in his strong hands.