For the last few years, my husband and I have watched our grandsons Gabriel and Lio most Saturday evenings. Until recently, I was their Wednesday evening sitter, too. When our own three children were young, we had a dedicated bedtime routine that included prayer and a reading from a children’s devotional book. The 5-year age difference between Gabriel and Lio called for a slightly different approach to goodnight prayers.
I began searching out classic, peaceful worship songs and hymns to play as sacred lullabies in the nightlight-illumined darkness after our prayer time. Those moments of sitting in the quiet and just listening to these songs (sometimes twice in a row!) has become a welcome part of their bedtime routine.
After the tumult of the last few weeks in our culture, maybe you need a lullaby or two, too. Here are some of the songs we’ve shared:
We memorized Psalm 23 with the boys, and then then listened to this one when we were together for many weeks afterwards:
This one is a particular favorite of our younger grandson:
Another Fernando Ortega favorite:
Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah, performed by Pentatonix. made it onto our playlist at the request of our older grandson:
Another of Gabriel’s favorites:
Rich Mullins’ words are a perfect prayer for grandparents:
When emotions are stormy or circumstances seem scary (or there’s a spider in the room), the words to this beautiful classic hymn brings shalom: