SLEEP DEPARTURE PART 1
Scripture Reading - Esther 6:1
On that night could not the king sleep, and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king. KJV
There are sometimes when people have a difficult time going to sleep. In the scripture above it states that the king could not sleep on a certain night. In this example the king was Ahasuerus and he was king over the land from India to Ethiopia, which included twenty-seven provinces (a region or district ruled by a judge). We give a little bit of background about the position of the person so that you could understand that he had a great deal of responsibilities. On that specific night the Lord had something to reveal to the king concerning his servant Mordecai who was in danger of losing his life the very next day. The king opening up the book of records was not by accident but rather it was calculated (planned) by God. The Lord can put something on your heart and if you don’t deal with it during the day that witness will deal with you during the night. Note: If something is urgent enough the Lord will keep it in front of you all day and night to provoke a response. In those cases where something has been on your heart all day it is better to spend some time pondering and studying that issue from the Word of God before you go to bed, otherwise your mind will try to keep working on that issue while you are in bed. Then if the Lord does want to further elaborate on that topic He has your full attention to do so. We should be willing to spend whatever time is necessary to establish our hearts in God’s peace because peace comforts the mind and quickens (brings alive) the spirit of man. Since we know God’s peace is necessary for good sleep we must be willing to seek peace at all cost in-line with 1 Peter 3:11 which states, “seek peace, and ensue (pursue) it”. When your sleep is departed for a godly reason (when you know it is the Lord dealing with you) it is wise to listen to your heart by getting into God’s Word that night. The Lord can speak to you directly with the still small voice but His preference is for you to know Him by His Word. This is true because when you know God through His Word He will always be the same, thus making the Lord consistent in your life. This consistence will make the Lord predictable to you so that you can teach others exactly how the Lord works with man. Once you understand how His Word works for you it is easier to teach others how God’s Word will work for them. That is why it is so important to fellowship with God when your body feels that sleep is departed. Communion with God’s Word will bring light and liberty to the issues on your heart. When the mind of man doesn’t have an answer the spirit of man will seek one out. The mind may not rest until it has something that satisfies its quest for specific knowledge because it wants (desires) to conclude the matter that day (as-soon-as possible). If it is still pending an answer when night comes you have to condition your mind through your will to seek God’s Word, and when it reaches a certain time you should be ready for a good night’s rest or still studying God’s Word because the Lord is revealing to you exactly what you need to do for that particular situation. If you stay-up for one night but have the wisdom of God for how to be successful over a troubling situation it is well worth it. We (ihlcc) have done this on several occasions and we never once regretted it. The next night we did catch up on our sleep so no problem with weakening our physical body. Remember even our Lord Jesus Christ spent a night praying about His ministry and got the answer for who his twelve disciples (later apostles) should be in Luke 6:12,13. So be wise beloved of God and take a seemingly uncomfortable situation and turn it into a blessing by spending some extra time with God through His Word. This will comfort your spirit, illuminate your mind, rest your body and open a door for sleep to carry you through a complete resting period in Jesus Name. Amen!