SLEEP
Scripture Reading - Psalms 3:2-5
2 Many there be which say of my soul, There is no help for him in God. Selah.
3 But thou, O LORD, art a shield for me; my glory, and the lifter up of mine head.
4 I cried unto the LORD with my voice, and he heard me out of his holy hill. Selah.
5 I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the LORD sustained me. KJV
In today’s society there has been a degradation of sleep. The reason for this increase in insomnia (difficulty in staying asleep during your normal period of rest) is because the pressures of this world are mounting. These pressures can come in many forms and from different angles. Some examples are people working harder due to longer hours, not having enough money to pay all their bills, the symptoms of sickness and disease present in their body and the accessibility of the social network all during the night. Another major problem is the immoral spirit of mankind that works ungodliness all the day long then expects to have godly sleep throughout the whole night. We should all agree that there are some things we cannot change like the things available to us through the new technologies (internet, mobile device communication with visual aids, all night business, etc…). However, how much influence those things have upon us is totally up to the individual. We are supposed to work out our own salvation with a holy awe of God and spiritual reverence for His principles according to Philippians 2:12. Perfect sleep is a part of our salvation for we have been redeemed for insomnia. Yes, although pressure comes to us we must resist this temptation to worry or fear. As verse 2 states thoughts and even sometimes voices will come to you saying, “There is no help for you in God”. However, that statement is lie and you do wise to quote verse 3, “You, dear Jesus, are a shield for me, the glory and the lifter up of my head”. The Lord Jesus and Father God are your foundation for peace and safety. No matter what is going on around you there is refuge and security in Christ. The Believer must remember that their salvation is always near because the help of God is always only a breath away. When we pray as Christians verse 4 states, “God heard”. It is not just that God hears but we firmly believe that God answers our prayer with a hardy “Amen”. We can lie down and sleep in comfort because we know the Lord never sleeps or slumbers. As I heard a dear saint once say, “Since I knew the Lord was going to be up looking over me I thought it didn’t make much since for me to be up also”. So when you purpose to go to sleep do just that. Purpose in heart to believe God for giving you perfect peace during your sleep and thank Him for it in advance. That means begin to thank God during the day (or whatever time you are normally awake) for giving you sound sleep and ponder this verse daily until you believe it so strongly that no doubt can talk you out of it. Yes, dear friend, God created sleep and He intended for you to use it. Amen!