{"id":116516,"date":"2015-06-02T08:21:00","date_gmt":"2015-06-02T13:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.austincnm.com\/?p=116516"},"modified":"2015-06-02T16:36:17","modified_gmt":"2015-06-02T21:36:17","slug":"holy-naps","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2015\/06\/holy-naps\/","title":{"rendered":"Holy Naps"},"content":{"rendered":"

When I go to sleep, I take time, after I get comfortable, to let myself be loved and to feel that God surrounds and fills me with His loving, protective presence. Early in my young widowhood, I used to make it a habit to say, as I sank into my bed, \u201cInto Your hands, I commit my spirit.\u201d I would think to myself, “my spirit\u2026.. and everything else.\u201d<\/p>\n

I love sleeping, and I love naps. Naps are a kind of any time Sabbath, a rare and splendid solitude. Naps are prayer. Naps are a letting go into God, right in the middle of the day. They are a form of contemplation, really. A nap can even be a dreamy Lectio Divina. I love falling asleep to a quiet recording of one of the Gospels.<\/p>\n

I loved it when I found out that St, Therese of Lisieux, Carmelite Nun, and Doctor of the Church, used to fall asleep sometimes during the set hours of solitary prayer in her cell. She wasn’t really supposed to do that. It was an accident. She didn\u2019t feel bad about it, though. She saw it as falling asleep in her Father\u2019s arms. What could be better than that?<\/p>\n

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My cat, Godith napping as a kitten.<\/p><\/div>\n

Catherine Doherty, in her wonderful book, Poustinia<\/em>, says,<\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes we are so exhausted mentally, morally, and physically, we can\u2019t do much of anything\u2026 we just flop down! Well, to sleep in the arms of Christ is a pretty good idea. You don\u2019t have to do anything. It\u2019s being simple in your relationship with God.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Holy Naps can also be shared, of course. When my kids were younger, and their dad was still alive, we had a tradition of the Sunday Family Nap. We all cuddled and fell asleep listening to music or a story, and by the time the recording stopped, everyone was asleep. It was a holy Sabbath rest, and I continued to honor it with the kids for years to come.<\/p>\n

My second husband and I found that naps were indispensable in dealing with the stress of fighting cancer. We would pretend cancer couldn\u2019t follow us into our bed, and we liked to put on one of those relaxation recordings, wrap the rosary around each other\u2019s hands as a joined prayer, and sleep that way.<\/p>\n

Jesus said He would give us rest. But we are to come to Him for it.<\/p>\n

\u201cCome to me, all you are are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.\u201d<\/p>\n

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First Day of Summer!<\/p><\/div><\/blockquote>\n

I like to think about how he said to St. Faustina,<\/p>\n

Know, My daughter, that the ardor of your heart is pleasing to Me. And just as you desire ardently to <\/span>become united with Me in Holy Communion, so too <\/span>do I desire to give Myself wholly to you; and as a\u00a0<\/span>reward for your zeal, rest on My Heart (Diary<\/em>, 826).<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This is what I like to do, lay my head on Jesus\u2019 Heart, like St. John did at the Last Supper. I let myself be loved and comforted and healed by sleeping there like a tired little bird in the crook of His arm.<\/p>\n

So have a nap. Make it a nap of restoration and silent love.<\/p>\n

Expect great things from a holy nap.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe pours gifts on His beloved while they sleep.\u201d Psalm 127<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Don\u2019t feel guilty about relishing a good nap, if you can get one; the kind where you know you\u2019re sleeping, and you\u2019re happy about it. Be happy about it. You need it!<\/p>\n

As my daughter, Maire’s, friend, April, says, \u201cWe need naps after our naps!”<\/p>\n

Sweet dreams. And may the love of God enfold you in all your naps!<\/p>\n

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My husband, Bob, crashed out on a quiet day in May 2010<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

When I go to sleep, I take time, after I get comfortable, to let myself be loved and to feel that God surrounds and fills me with His loving, protective presence. Early in my young widowhood, I used to make it a habit to say, as I sank into my bed, \u201cInto Your hands, I… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":155,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[90,89],"tags":[2806,2807,2805,2808,2813,2640],"class_list":["post-116516","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-faith-blog","category-family","tag-holy-naps","tag-loving-god-in-daily-life","tag-nap","tag-pray-without-ceasing","tag-sleep","tag-the-practice-of-the-presence-of-god","entry","has-post-thumbnail"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t