Speaker 1: Welcome to Abides Sleep Meditations. I'm Tyler Boss. Today's meditation
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Speaker 3: and body as we hear tonight's sleep story.
Speaker 2: Hello and welcome to this sleep story from Abide. I'm Diane.
Speaker 2: Thanks for joining me for our story, the Winter Song.
Speaker 2: The season of winter brings darker days and cold nights.
Speaker 2: The world has seemingly gone into hibernation. It can feel
Speaker 2: like a season we must endure until the flashier months
Speaker 2: of spring. But winter has the gifts necessary for spring.
Speaker 2: Winter is when the earth slows, and what is beneath
Speaker 2: the surface is cultivated. Hearty vegetation is nurtured warm in
Speaker 2: the deep soil where no one sees. Isaiah chapter forty,
Speaker 2: verse thirty one says, but they who wait for the
Speaker 2: Lord shall renew their strength. In our story, you will
Speaker 2: hear about gifts that winter nurtures, not only in the earth,
Speaker 2: but in each of us, the gift of stillness, as
Speaker 2: we draw inward to listen deeply to what is beneath
Speaker 2: the surface of our hearts, of restoration that God brings
Speaker 2: to the hidden places in us. To begin, we will
Speaker 2: spend some time preparing our bodies for sleep. Then we
Speaker 2: will start off with a short poem called the Winter Song.
Speaker 2: As you nestle in, you will also hear a short
Speaker 2: story called White Grace, a tale of God's faithfulness through
Speaker 2: one woman's especially cold, snowy winter. And finally, you will
Speaker 2: hear winter Whimsy, vignettes written in verse of woodland creatures
Speaker 2: making their way through the winter season and the nuggets
Speaker 2: of truth their stories tell. Winter may seem dreary, but
Speaker 2: it is full of beauty, full of wonder. It yields
Speaker 2: much wisdom if we open our hearts to see all
Speaker 2: God has in store. It's time to let the day go,
Speaker 2: to let your responsibilities, concerns, projects, and to do lists rest.
Speaker 2: You have made it to just this place, at just
Speaker 2: this time, so let's lean into it your space for
Speaker 2: comfort and rest. Take a moment and find a position
Speaker 2: that supports you and allow us the most comfort for
Speaker 2: your body. Take your time, shift and stretch, Curl up
Speaker 2: or lengthen out long. You may want extra pillows to
Speaker 2: support your neck, or place a pillow between or under
Speaker 2: your knees. Once you're comfortable, deeply inhale, filling your lungs
Speaker 2: as you exhale, imagine your body melting into your bed.
Speaker 2: Inhale again, nice and long, filling your lungs this time
Speaker 2: as you exhale, release any tension in your temples or
Speaker 2: between your eyebrows. Inhale deeply and fully exhale any tension
Speaker 2: in your jaw, neck, or shoulders. Again inhale, filling your
Speaker 2: body with fresh air. Exhale, allowing your body to relax
Speaker 2: a little more, releasing every muscle this time. As you
Speaker 2: take your inhale, consider anything that is troubling you work, family, health,
Speaker 2: any stressors that may be blocking your rest. Inhale long
Speaker 2: and deep. Exhale your stressors out one last time together inhale,
Speaker 2: filling yourself with nourishing breath. Exhale away all the tension,
Speaker 2: stressors or burdens you are carrying, and now free of
Speaker 2: any blocks, relax and enjoy the sleep story, the winter song.
Speaker 2: Let me pray for you, Thank you God for my
Speaker 2: friend who is nestled in ready for sleep. Thank You
Speaker 2: for this time of stillness and rest so they can
Speaker 2: be restored and refreshed. May they let go of all
Speaker 2: that the waking hours have held for them. Help my
Speaker 2: friend release any burdens they are carrying direct into your
Speaker 2: open hands. You are so faithful to lighten our load
Speaker 2: with your presence and wisdom. Help them to let it
Speaker 2: all go and rest beneath your covering and safety. As
Speaker 2: they hear about the many gifts you bring in winter,
Speaker 2: I pray they will be comforted by the stillness and
Speaker 2: beauty it brings. May they be encouraged by its whimsy
Speaker 2: and wonder May they dream of winter wonderlands and family connections,
Speaker 2: warm fires, and a sense of contentedness. Thank you for
Speaker 2: the many ways you love us, the gifts you give,
Speaker 2: and your faithfulness to fulfill every promise. Bring your presence
Speaker 2: as my friend nods off into deep, RESTful sleep in Jesus' name, Amen.
Speaker 2: Job Chapter thirty eight, verses twenty nine through thirty says
Speaker 2: from whose womb comes the ice? Who gives birth to
Speaker 2: the frost from the heavens, when the waters become hard
Speaker 2: as stone, when the surface of the deep is frozen.
Speaker 2: One day I asked Winter why she took the sun away,
Speaker 2: Why her lightless days drew forth sorrow and gray. She
Speaker 2: answered with a crisp wind that caused me to shiver.
Speaker 2: She answered with the twinkling of an icicle glimmer. Her
Speaker 2: song was haunting, but I was unafraid. Her song was
Speaker 2: a lullaby and a call to be brave. It is
Speaker 2: time for a gentle hush, she sang, in melodic minor notes,
Speaker 2: sustained on snowflakes. For a moment, I forgot the dismal display. Instead,
Speaker 2: I studied the sparkle of light from the day in
Speaker 2: snowy fields and silhouetted trees. The wild winter air filled
Speaker 2: my lungs as I breathed. Winter sang on in quiet praise,
Speaker 2: inviting soul's deep rest in Winter's womb of grays. Come
Speaker 2: now and rest for this snippet of time. You are
Speaker 2: invited to surrender and to be redefined. With spring comes
Speaker 2: your hopefulness and your rebirth. With winter comes God's faithfulness
Speaker 2: sung throughout the earth stillness. Wintering has a way of
Speaker 2: bringing us home to ourselves. The icy air pushes us
Speaker 2: to the warmth of our home, and everything slows. Baseball games,
Speaker 2: ice lattes on the run, parks and road trips, and
Speaker 2: the buzz of summer. It all pauses in the hush
Speaker 2: of winter. The cold invites us to draw inward, to
Speaker 2: warm ourselves by the fire, and to nestle in with
Speaker 2: our families and ourselves. It is a time to be still,
Speaker 2: and in the stillness, consider what is within. Consider where
Speaker 2: we have been and where we want to go. But
Speaker 2: first we must be still with who we are in
Speaker 2: this moment before the fire, sheltered from the cold, This
Speaker 2: is where God meets us with his grace. Hot chocolate
Speaker 2: and self reflection swirl together, and times of restoration are sweet.
Speaker 2: Psalm chapter twenty three, verse three. He restores my soul. Come,
Speaker 2: come to the quiet. It's warm by the crackling hearth,
Speaker 2: with wisps of fire dancing. The quilt is grace soft.
Speaker 2: Here is your belonging, where you are safe to be known,
Speaker 2: known by you. God has spread his shelter. Don't need
Speaker 2: to run. Welcome your heart to let down its striving
Speaker 2: slip off your shoes and into the grace. Winter brings
Speaker 2: quiet your goings on. Let your inner self have a
Speaker 2: say in your outer world. Come and just be for
Speaker 2: a while. Proverbs chapter twenty five, verse two says, it
Speaker 2: is the glory of God to conceal things, but the
Speaker 2: glory of kings is to search things out. What grows
Speaker 2: in winter. While spring, summer, and autumn boast colorful bounty
Speaker 2: sprouting at every corner of the fields, winter's growth is
Speaker 2: more mysterious. Wrongly, many perceive that winter lands lie fallow,
Speaker 2: But indeed, beneath the earth's blanket grows that which is hardy,
Speaker 2: that which can sustain dropping temperatures. These plants, potatoes, carrots,
Speaker 2: and beads are the roots of nourishment, highly dense, and
Speaker 2: the crown of nutritious vegetation. Because they ripen slowly, they
Speaker 2: do not rush in their coming. They grow protective layers
Speaker 2: in our design to draw in moisture to sustain them
Speaker 2: when the spring and autumn rains have gone. What grows
Speaker 2: in winter and inward strengthening and resolve the type of
Speaker 2: cultivation that happens in the slowness of growth and withstands
Speaker 2: challenge even harshness. Winter seasons come in our own hearts
Speaker 2: as well, seasons where flourishing seems hidden, and light has
Speaker 2: taken a sabbatical, where all seems desolate and left to
Speaker 2: the elements. Winter is where spring is made. Winter is
Speaker 2: where we are made. The slow forming of our honest
Speaker 2: heart is gathering nourishing to yield a hardy bounty that
Speaker 2: can sustain us through frigid days. What grows in winter,
Speaker 2: your tested heart, your hard fought wisdom, the authority that
Speaker 2: comes with having overcome. They grow in the soil of patience,
Speaker 2: and they sustain life like a hardy root, vegetable stew.
Speaker 2: Isaiah chapter forty, verse thirty one says, but they who
Speaker 2: wait for the Lord shall renew their strength. Now nestle
Speaker 2: in and listen to this winter tale called white Grace.
Speaker 2: One evening, Miriam walked along a snowy street, lost in
Speaker 2: her own jumbled prayers. This winter had been the longest
Speaker 2: of her life. Daily she pleaded for her family to
Speaker 2: be knit together again. Daily the cold grew colder and
Speaker 2: her husband more distant. Would this life ever be right
Speaker 2: side up again? Everything she had held dear was slipping
Speaker 2: through her fingers, where are you God? I am giving
Speaker 2: everything I know to give. Tell me what to pray,
Speaker 2: and I'll pray it. Show me what to do, and
Speaker 2: I will do it with everything in me. There's no
Speaker 2: pride here, only a plea for my family. As Miriam's
Speaker 2: boots crunched in the snow, she frantically hurled her prayers
Speaker 2: toward the sky. Warm tears streamed down her cheeks in
Speaker 2: contrast to the chilly air that blew across her skin.
Speaker 2: Frustrated to be crying again today, she was wiping away
Speaker 2: the unwelcome tears when she felt the presence swooping toward
Speaker 2: her from the sky. She lifted her eyes to witness
Speaker 2: the wingspread of a spotted barn owl overhead. It was
Speaker 2: making its way toward an old tree on the far
Speaker 2: side of the street. It had been so close to her.
Speaker 2: Miriam was startled and in awe Then, as though she
Speaker 2: had just been woken from a deep sleep, she began
Speaker 2: to scan the beauty all around her. Had the snow
Speaker 2: globe seene just appeared? Everything was blanketed in snowy white,
Speaker 2: as smooth as satin. The only footprints were her own,
Speaker 2: and she stood beneath the street lamp as though it
Speaker 2: were a warm spotlight. In total pause, she took it in.
Speaker 2: The desperate prayers melted like the snow beneath her footprints.
Speaker 2: I almost missed it, God, I almost missed it all.
Speaker 2: Turning slowly, she wanted to take in the full panoramic view.
Speaker 2: Icicles hung from corners of snow covered homes. The large,
Speaker 2: bare trees had traded their flourish of green leaves for
Speaker 2: a coat of winter. Every branch was covered in the
Speaker 2: glisten of the day's precipitation. Letting her gaze wander, Miriam
Speaker 2: searched the sky for the moon. She wanted to take
Speaker 2: in every beautiful view. She didn't want to miss a thing.
Speaker 2: She closed her eyes for a moment and inhaled the
Speaker 2: fresh coolness of the air. As she sighed, she could
Speaker 2: almost hear the echo of her breath. The world was
Speaker 2: at peace, covered in white grace. This gift of stillness
Speaker 2: resonated all the way through Miriam, and gratitude welled up.
Speaker 2: In response. The warm tears began again. She remembered Proverbs
Speaker 2: chapter four, verse five, which says, the Lord is near,
Speaker 2: do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation
Speaker 2: by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God,
Speaker 2: and the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will
Speaker 2: guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Then
Speaker 2: Miriam began to pray, even in the chaos and confusion.
Speaker 2: You sustain me with your presence, with your beauty. You
Speaker 2: cause the snow to fall, and bring peace that is
Speaker 2: beyond my comprehension, This advansive peace that steadies the shaking
Speaker 2: inside of me. You even send your winged messenger to
Speaker 2: wake me up so I don't miss it. Tiny snowflakes
Speaker 2: began falling again. Miriam let out a giggle as she
Speaker 2: felt the drops of white fall onto her eyelashes. At first,
Speaker 2: it was a light drizzle of lazy snowflakes carried on
Speaker 2: the swirl of the breeze, but within minutes the easily
Speaker 2: blown about, wispy flakes began a cascade of larger snowflakes,
Speaker 2: filling the sky and covering the earth with another layer
Speaker 2: of white grace. All she could do was spread her
Speaker 2: arms wide like the messenger owls outstretched wingspan. She smiled,
Speaker 2: ingratitude to be in this moment. She didn't even feel cold,
Speaker 2: just filled and hole and wholly at peace. A year later,
Speaker 2: Miriam found herself walking down another snowy street on a
Speaker 2: crisp winter night, a few blocks from her new home,
Speaker 2: with her children beside her. A snowball fight had begun,
Speaker 2: and their laughter filled the otherwise quiet neighborhood, slipping and
Speaker 2: sliding and trapesing through the white canvas of snow. Miriam
Speaker 2: thought she hadn't left so hard in a while. Last winter,
Speaker 2: God had put things right, though not as Miriam expected.
Speaker 2: From that winter night to this one, God's grace had
Speaker 2: sustained her, had held her. She let her thoughts return
Speaker 2: till last winter and the angelic owl that roused her
Speaker 2: from her pleas to God, God had answered with a
Speaker 2: display of wonder Like a newlywed. Her heart was arrested,
Speaker 2: and she was swept away with the beauty of it all.
Speaker 2: As Miriam remembered, she thanked God that she had stopped
Speaker 2: to take in the glory that was right in front
Speaker 2: of her. She had almost missed it. This sparked an idea.
Speaker 2: She called her kids to join her under a street
Speaker 2: light on the corner. They begrudgingly made their way to her.
Speaker 2: They weren't done demolishing each other with their snowball weapons.
Speaker 2: Take my hands, she erected them. They did. Now close
Speaker 2: your eyes and lift your faces toward the sky again.
Speaker 2: They obeyed. One of the kids started to speak, but
Speaker 2: she gently hushed them. There they stood beneath the streetlight,
Speaker 2: holding hands in a circle, faces lifted to the sky,
Speaker 2: each one a smile across their lips. Miriam wanted to
Speaker 2: teach them to be still and take in the wonder
Speaker 2: as she had done that winter passed. She finally spoke,
Speaker 2: do you hear it? Hear what? They responded? The peace
Speaker 2: in the air and resting on us? Do you hear it?
Speaker 2: Psalm chapter forty six, verse ten says be still and
Speaker 2: know that I am God. Psalm Chapter one hundred forty seven,
Speaker 2: verse sixteen says He spreads the snow like wool and
Speaker 2: scatters the frost like ashes. Joe chapter thirty seven, verses
Speaker 2: nine through ten says the tempest comes out from its chamber,
Speaker 2: the cold from the driving winds, The breath of God
Speaker 2: produces ice, and the broad waters become frozen. Winter whimsy,
Speaker 2: a bunny at the edge of the field decides to
Speaker 2: make a run for it, or rather a hop for it. Quickly,
Speaker 2: shooting his gaze from one side to the other, he
Speaker 2: darts across the field. The winter is slowly settling in,
Speaker 2: and the snow has only teased with the occasional flurry.
Speaker 2: Little bunny has spotted the last of the abandoned vegetables
Speaker 2: at the corners of the garden. Determined and lightning fast,
Speaker 2: only the fluff of his tail can be seen in
Speaker 2: his pursuit. Arriving safely at the sleeping garden, he snatches
Speaker 2: a root vegetable only half excavated. With the prize of
Speaker 2: his heist, he turns to make his return. With the
Speaker 2: glimmer of his warm burrow fixed in his eyes, he
Speaker 2: jumps into action, sprint hopping a bit us with his
Speaker 2: bounty midfield. He hears it the woosh of a hawk's
Speaker 2: wings breezing across his back. He tucks his cottontail and
Speaker 2: doubles his speed, narrowly escaping the hawk's second pass. The
Speaker 2: little field bunny dives into his burrow, but is stopped
Speaker 2: by his prized red beaked root vegetable. Making a quick adjustment,
Speaker 2: he backs into the hole, dragging his bounty from behind.
Speaker 2: He hears the shuffling of his tiny bunny family, and
Speaker 2: the inquisitive sniffing of Mama. All are pleased to have
Speaker 2: a little extra to hold them through the cold winter days. Proverbs,
Speaker 2: chapter thirty one, verse twenty one. When it snows, she
Speaker 2: has no fear for her household, for all of them
Speaker 2: are clothed in scarlet. A little speckled deer lies in
Speaker 2: the forest with a shiver. The other deer wander and
Speaker 2: graze for what can be found along the cold winter ground.
Speaker 2: Still she lies, and she watches. She makes no effort
Speaker 2: to stand, makes no effort to feed herself as they do.
Speaker 2: The day moves on until the hunter's moon begins to rise.
Speaker 2: Still she lies, legs tucked beneath her. The other deer
Speaker 2: wander off and find their shelter for the night. A
Speaker 2: single young buck returns to the little speckled deer. He
Speaker 2: nezzles her ear, sniffs her leg, and slowly circles around
Speaker 2: his friend. Another deer joins, sniffing at her face, stretching
Speaker 2: his leg toward her leg. Still she stays, still, She
Speaker 2: makes no effort to move. The first young buck stomps
Speaker 2: his little hoof toward the speckled deer's hind, legs. He
Speaker 2: does not harm her frame, but he does startle her
Speaker 2: all the same. It seems it's what she needed, because
Speaker 2: she finally wobble rises to an awkward standing position. Now
Speaker 2: they can see her leg is injured, but they neztle her. Nonetheless,
Speaker 2: they know she cannot stay in the open on this
Speaker 2: cold night. They know she must sh alter safe with
Speaker 2: the rest. So one waits ahead for her while the
Speaker 2: other pokes at her from behind, and she attempts a
Speaker 2: step or two. It seems to loosen her tension, and
Speaker 2: she walks with more intention. Before long she has disappeared
Speaker 2: behind the line of the trees, with her two faithful
Speaker 2: friends watching out for her. Hebrews Chapter ten, verse twenty
Speaker 2: four says, and let us watch out for one another
Speaker 2: to provoke love and good works. Winter has spread her
Speaker 2: holy white garments, and the forest is covered in the
Speaker 2: quiet of snowfall. A pair of foxes, frisky with play,
Speaker 2: tussled beneath the trees. From the tree canopy, all that
Speaker 2: can be seen is a flash of fluffy, red orange tails,
Speaker 2: flipping and swirling around each other. Their little chirping sounds
Speaker 2: sound like a chortle. They are lost in the instinct
Speaker 2: of play. They roll and wrestle and accumulate a layer
Speaker 2: of snow on the outer layers of their coats. These
Speaker 2: two whimsical creatures don't notice the dampness or gold. They
Speaker 2: just scuttle on a game of hide and seek mixed
Speaker 2: with horseplay or fox play, around the trunk of trees,
Speaker 2: down the hill and through the hollow rainery little foxes
Speaker 2: without a care to be had until they tire themselves out.
Speaker 2: When the sun has dropped low, Then they will know
Speaker 2: it is time for rest, for when the moon has
Speaker 2: risen to its highest, they will begin the chase all
Speaker 2: over again. So they climb into their hollow, a place
Speaker 2: all their own. They tangle themselves, red tails and fluff,
Speaker 2: long ears and soft paws. Who's to know where one
Speaker 2: ends and the other begins. Nestled in tight, tucked in
Speaker 2: and snuggily, their breaths start to slow, and the warmth
Speaker 2: of each other lulls the two fox companions to deep,
Speaker 2: deep sleep. Let me close our story with one last
Speaker 2: scripture Ecclesiastes, chapter four, verse eleven. Again, if two lie together,
Speaker 2: then they have warm, But how can one be warm alone?
Speaker 2: I will pray for you one more time. Lord, You
Speaker 2: are the god of every season, and we marvel at
Speaker 2: the beauty and variety you gift us with. Thank You
Speaker 2: for the stillness winter brings. Thank You for the hush
Speaker 2: of a snowy winter scene. Your presence is undeniable when
Speaker 2: we gaze across snow covered hills, streets, and homes. Thank
Speaker 2: You for a season that allows us to slow down,
Speaker 2: get cozy, and look more deeply at our loved ones
Speaker 2: and our self. Else We love the work of your
Speaker 2: hands so much. Thank you in Jesus' name. Amen, thank
Speaker 2: you for joining me for the winter Song. I hope
Speaker 2: you enjoyed the stories, poems and insights as the seasons
Speaker 2: unfold on the earth and in your life. May you
Speaker 2: always see the gifts God has for you.