Remember the Disney Pixar movie Monsters, Inc., which introduced a hidden world of monsters that generated energy by scaring human children, even though the movie was a comedy? Kids were toxic to these monsters’ plans for world bedtime domination.

As adults, we have overcome our fear of monsters in our closets. Or have we? Indeed, entities are hiding just out of sight—not in your closet, but in the wings of your life.

James 5:13-16 ESV Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing praise. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person has great power as it is working.

If you are God’s child, His enemies are your enemies, and they lie in wait for you to open the door to fear. I’ve noticed three common “monsters” that want to intimidate people of faith, and they start growling at nighttime in an attempt to steal our peace, our sleep and our dreams. They are monitoring spirits, some of them are familiar spirits, and all want you to dress yourself in garments of fear, worry and other devastating outfits.

Ephesians 4:26-27 ESV Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.

Must you fall victim to these monsters, or is there something you can do? I believe that if you’re brave enough to open the closet door and walk straight into the monster factory, you’ll find that you are not afraid of them, but they are actually afraid of you!

Your faith is toxic to them. You can dismiss the spirits tracking your steps each day to steal your future, one peaceful night’s sleep at a time. Freedom awaits you through prayer that takes authority over these interfering enemies, in Jesus’ name!

A powerful arsenal is at your disposal each and every night. Slip your hand under your pillow and take advantage of the weapons waiting for you there. These weapons include your dreams, your prayers and your rest. Your dreams especially are your direct pipeline to heaven’s wisdom. That’s why it is so important to get to sleep and have some!

Acts 2:17-18 ESV And in the last days it shall be, God declares, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh, and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams; even on my male servants and female servants in those days I will pour out my Spirit, and they shall prophesy.

Throughout the Bible, God used dreams to communicate with people. What He did for those in Scripture, He will do for you. You just have to be in a relationship with Him to hear His voice. There are waking dreams that call for action, encouraging dreams, warning dreams that protect you or your loved ones, and directional dreams. If God gives you a dream, He’ll give you the grace to pray it forth. Between your dreams from God, your prayer and your rest, you and God can handle any monster that comes your way!

Psalm 91:1-5 ESV He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day

Matthew 6:25-32 ESV “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all.

Many people bring sleep-disturbing distractions to bed with them every night in the form of stress, work and worry. These are what I call the three main thieves that steal your sleep, your dreams and your health. At some point after the sun goes down each day, you’ll have to make the choice to give it all to God and go to bed.

The alternative is that your troubles do jumping jacks in front of you and keep you up too late, either eating in the kitchen, vegging out on the living room sofa or slaving away in your home office.

Those other rooms and the activities you do in them distract you from making your way down the hall to the bedroom, where you rest and sleep, and where prophetic directional dreams from God await you. It’s vital for you to learn how to decompress nightly so your sleep can be sweet, your peace can be full and your health can be protected.

Job 33:14-18 ESV For God speaks in one way, and in two, though man does not perceive it. In a dream, in a vision of the night, when deep sleep falls on men, while they slumber on their beds, then he opens the ears of men and terrifies them with warnings, that he may turn man aside from his deed and conceal pride from a man; he keeps back his soul from the pit, his life from perishing by the sword.

One thing I’ve learned from my own experience with sleep deprivation is that if you don’t go to bed and sleep, your organs will go to sleep for you. Trust me, you don’t ever want to experience that scenario the way I did when I suffered adrenal burnout.

The key to good physical health is not just diet and exercise; it’s diet, exercise and sleep. And as I now believe and will never tire of saying, sleep doctors could put all the other doctors out of business, because once you fix your sleep, you fix your whole health!

Your bedroom is the room where you should spend one-third of your day—one-third of your life—resting. But sometimes we treat our bedrooms like a pit stop where we plunk down and lie unconsciously for a few hours after a hard day. But look around you.

Your bedroom should be a treasured place full of items that make you smile and bring you peace. It should be much more than a pit stop for you, your bills and your dirty laundry. It should be a place of inspiration, a sanctuary where the cares of your day melt away. A place where you can sleep so that God can communicate with you through your dreams, which can change your life. That is what happens when you give it all to God and go to bed!

John 10:27-30 ESV My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me,is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. I and the Father are one.”

2 Thessalonians 3:16 ESV Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all.

Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. – John 19:39 ESV

Nicodemus didn’t come with a testimony. He didn’t arrive with a miracle story or a bold proclamation.

He just came.

And for a while, it looked like he faded into the background. We don’t hear from him after his quiet conversation with Jesus—until much later.

When Jesus is laid in the tomb, then Nicodemus reappears.

Bringing myrrh and aloes.

Bringing honor.

Bringing love.

Not with words, but with sacrifice.

He stepped out of the night—not to preach, but to serve. Not to be seen, but to give.

Maybe that’s where you are. You’ve walked with God, but feel unnoticed. Your faith has been quiet. Your acts unseen. Your voice soft. You wonder if it even matters.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.” – Jeremiah 1:5 ESV

Let this truth steady your soul like a candle in the dark:

You are still seen. You are still heard. You still matter to Jesus.

God saw Nicodemus. God sees you.

The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry. – Psalm 34:15 ESV

He sees the questions you’ve asked in secret. The prayers you’ve whispered. The quiet ways you’ve honored Him when no one was looking.

Faith doesn’t need a stage to be sincere. Sometimes the boldest belief is lived in the shadows—until it quietly steps into the light.

So take heart. Your quiet faith is not forgotten.

Psalm 56:8 says You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?

Jesus knows. Jesus cares. Jesus sees.

Ask Yourself

Have I believed the lie that God forgets me?

Where in my life do I need to remember that I am still seen and still heard?

Let’s pray together.

Lord,

Thank You for being the kind of God who sees in the dark.

When I feel overlooked—You are watching.

When I feel unheard—You are listening.

When I feel unseen—You call me beloved.

I don’t need to shine to be Yours. You are Light enough for both of us.

Amen.