Have you ever woken up at 3 or 4 in the morning…
unable to fall back asleep?
Your mind racing…
a sense of anxiety about the day ahead?
You’re not alone.
Many people wonder what it means when they wake up at 3am or 4am.
This used to happen to me often.
If you’ve been feeling drawn to something deeper in moments like this…
👉 Download the free Centering Prayer guide
Why do I wake up at 3am?
Sometimes I wake up at 3 or 4 in the morning and just cannot sleep.
I seem to be nervous or anxious about the upcoming day.
That has always seemed to be my nature.
But over time, I’ve come to see this differently.
At times, it feels like a gentle invitation to sit with God.
What I do when it happens
I quietly (not wishing to disturb my sleeping family) make my way downstairs to the living room.
I sit on the couch, set the Contemplative Outreach timer app on my iPhone for 20 minutes, and begin my silent prayer sit.
After my session, I might read a few pages in a current book, recite the Jesus Prayer with my prayer bracelet, and then head back upstairs to sleep.
Something has shifted in these moments.
Often, this is when I begin to see things more clearly.
God quiets, dissolves, and soothes my anxiety.
And I usually fall back asleep with ease.
What I began to notice
When I wake later, I count this earlier time as my first sit of the day.
My second sit is usually in the early afternoon.
I need this second sit.
It refills my emptying reservoir.
It soothes and calms me.
It helps me continue my day.
One thing that has helped me stay in a simple daily rhythm like this is the Monk Manual.
What if this is an invitation?
I have learned to trust the gentle nudges and prompts of the Spirit.
Some people need fixed times.
I’ve found that God sometimes invites me outside my normal rhythm.
And I’ve learned to trust that.
If I were to ask God about my anxiety, I imagine He might say something like this:
“Richard, I love you.
You can come to me whenever you are worried, anxious, or restless.
It does not matter what time it is.
Come to me, and I will give you rest.
Let me love you, soothe you, calm you, and hold you.”
If you wake up at 3am, you might try this:
• Don’t fight it
• Sit quietly for a few minutes
• Simply be with God
• Let your thoughts settle
I encourage you to trust these gentle nudges.
If you find yourself awake in the early morning hours…
you might simply respond.
Gently arise.
Find a quiet place.
Sit with God.
God loves you.
And He delights in you coming to Him.
If you find yourself returning to moments like this…
and want a simple way to begin:
👉 Download the free Centering Prayer guide
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I have long been facinated as to why I always wake at this ungodly hour too! It used to really plague me until I started using the time appropriately rather than just lay there and fret! There is a facinating article on this website, slumberwise.com, that speaks to the subject that our ancestors had “two sleeps.” The middle of the night time was used for their Spiritual practices.
Thank you. I will check that out.
I wake up almost every day at 3 am, almost exactly at that time. I used to fight it and try to go back to sleep, now I use the time for meditation, reflection, and reading. I’ll read the Mirror Bible, or put an audio bible on…sometimes I will practice centering prayer or something similar.
What I used to hate and get stressed about is now something that I deeply enjoy and look forward to.
I love it! Thanks for sharing!
I am regularly woken up between 3:15 and 6:00 a.m. – I always feel too lazy to get up and like that’s not conducive to falling back asleep – so I do a makeshift version of centering prayer: I let my sacred phrase be “rest in God” while lying down and eventually I sometimes fall back asleep. But even if I don’t, this is still a peaceful way to rest.
I like that. I may need to try that. Thanks for sharing.