Sleep One

Opening Prayer:  Lord, we are all tired. Like David, we are filled with anguish and at points throughout the day overcome by distress and sorrow. Shower your love and peace on us. Refresh us. Cause us to sit by still waters that we may find rest. Amen.

Scripture: Psalm 116: 1-7 New International Version(NIV)

I love the Lord, for he heard my voice; he heard my cry for mercy. Because he turned his ear to me, I will call on him as long as I live. The cords of death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came over me; I was overcome by distress and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the Lord:

“Lord, save me!” The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The Lord protects the unwary; when I was brought low, he saved me. Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord has been good to you.

Message: Facebook has been abuzz with scholarship about the ways sleep patterns have been affected by COVID-19. For some dreams have been vivid and for others, insomnia has increased. Scholars have also identified daytime sleepiness due to the amount of screen time most of us have had to endure. It brings me a little comfort knowing that sleep disturbances are nothing new and that they will not be permanent. If you are experiencing this, I offer practices seen in this portion of David’s song documented in Psalm 116. I pray that it will refresh your spirit and allow you to rest, even if you cannot sleep well.

Sing out!  David cries to God in the ways most healing to him, using music.

Remember.  I used to listen to bible preaching on my AM radio. I can’t remember who it was now, but there was a female preacher who used to use the term “build the forms.” She related a Christian acting regardless of the evidence to construction workers who build a form before pouring in concrete. I often think that this is what I do. I try to ignore my built-in tendencies to worry, to be fearful, and to place more trust in what can be known through human evidence over what I know to be true about God and the way God cares for me. Not easy, I know. I am hoping “practice makes perfect,” or at least consistent.

The singer-songwriter, David trusts that God has heard him because he remembers the times when God did hear him. If you cannot hear God now or if you think God is not hearing you now, can you think of a time when this was not true? When was it that you were sure that God heard you? Take that memory like a gemstone and ponder it. Turn it over reliving the moment when you were sure you were heard by God, and you heard God.

Acknowledge how you are feeling. Does it feel like there are cords or death entangling your heart or that dark anguish of the grave is hanging over you like a suffocating cloud? Are you, like David stressed out?

Call on the name of the Lord. In this case, David is referring to the name YHWH. The great I Am. Let’s take a moment to unpack this. You might remember that God identified himself as YHWH to Moses in Exodus. The name I Am is powerful. It is a name that has no beginning or end. It is existence itself. YHWH is self-sufficient and self-sustaining. For me, I Am has the quality of being both a noun and a verb. The name is active, and it is a classification of uniqueness. When I think of the act of God providing a name it also means intimacy. Our modern, civilized, industrial world does not value a name in the same ways traditional cultures do. In providing a name, God is giving us insight into God’s character and essence. Knowing this is the character, the essence of the God I serve allows me to have confidence in God’s ability to hear and to respond. This brings me comfort, even when I am unsure that anything is happening, or when what is happening contradicts my faith.

Turn your mind, heart, and spirit toward faith. You’ve built the form. You’ve poured in your faith even though it might be dim and weakened. Now reinforce the drying period with what you know to be true about God. “The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The Lord protects the unwary; when I was brought low, he saved me.”

Rest, even if you cannot sleep. “Return to your rest, my soul, for the Lord, has been good to you.”

Closing Prayer: Lord I ask your blessings, your grace, and your mercies to rest on all who are unable to sleep and unable to rest. Knowing that your mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23) I can have confidence that this prayer is being answered and is answered every day. Amen.