Stewardship of Self for Christian Workers: Sleep

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God’s people from time to time have had difficulty sleeping. Through no fault of his own, Job experienced great stress and said, “I have been allotted months of futility, and nights of misery have been assigned to me. When I lie down I think, ‘How long before I get up?’ The night drags on, and I toss till dawn” (Job 4:13-14).

Even great political leaders like King Darius agonized over poor decisions that endangered his friends, and he found himself unable to eat or sleep (Daniel 6:18).

However Scripture has promises for good sleep, such as “When you lie down, you will not be afraid; when you lie down, your sleep will be sweet” (Proverbs 3:24). Another promise is, “I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety” (Psalm 4:8).

After receiving a message from God, the prophet Jeremiah awoke, looked around and said that his sleep had been pleasant to him (Jeremiah 31:26). Our Lord himself slept during a furious storm, much to the surprise of his disciples (Matthew 8:24).

Peter, early preacher and church leader, was sleeping between two soldiers bound with two chains with two sentries standing guard the night before he was to be brought to trial (Acts 12:6).

Yet, Christian workers may have difficulty sleeping at times; however, not all such difficulties are necessary. God may enable us to sleep at peace even in the most difficult circumstances.

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