The Very First Prayer

Every night before sleep, we give our tired and worn-out souls back to God. Every morning, we receive our souls anew, refreshed and full of energy. Therefore in the Jewish tradition, the first words that we say upon waking are:

"I thank You Living and Eternal King, for compassionately returning my soul to me, how great is Your faithfulness"

For more on the Modeh Ani you can visit our website

You can listen to an audio of the prayer said in Hebrew here.

With this thought and intention of "I thank you," we begin our day. This thought accompanies us, always engraved in our consciousness, the whole day long.

I awake now and I see the new day. I recognize how You, the Living Eternal Ruler of all, is recreating me and the entire world every moment. If you would stop flowing life, we would cease to exist. Every moment is a new beginning and for that I thank you.

Great is your faithfulness to do the same at the end of time to recreate us all, to rebuild our bodies and souls, to resurrect the dead.

Before I think I acknowledge.
Before I feel I praise.
This faith that You G-d are the source of all is encoded in my soul.
This faith is the foundation of the day, but I will not suffice with this faith alone.
 I will build on this faith to feel and to understand, to keep and to learn.

 I will then reach for the faith that comes after understanding and feeling. The more I learn, the more I feel, the higher my faith will reach.

We say in the prayer “for compassionately returning my soul to me" everything you do Master of the universe you do with compassion. As I leave the warmth and comfort of my bed and face the cold world and its challenges I know that everything you want me to face comes from your mercy. I know you will only give me today what I can handle.

For more on the Modeh Ani please visit our website http://www.jewishoreline.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1466224/jewish/Modeh-Ani.htm