For Sleep Awareness Week, let me tell you something you already know. Sleep is so important for your health! According to the CDC, a third of Americans report getting less than the recommended amount of sleep. Insufficient sleep can contribute to depression, obesity, and heart disease, among other health conditions (source).
Yet, I’m sure that all of us can relate to compromising our sleep. Whether for work, school, family, friends, or something else … Sometimes, it seems like when things get tough or busy, our sleep is the first thing to go.
As Christians especially, we can have a tendency to neglect sleep for the sake of doing good. Certainly, there can be times when we ought not to sleep (see Luke 22:39-46). But, as image-bearers of God, we are meant to rest because God rested (Genesis 2:1-3). As humans, one way through which we rest is through sleep (John 11:13).
We shouldn’t needlessly compromise our sleep and rest. I definitely know that I often compromise my sleep for the sake of entertainment, perhaps staying up late to watch YouTube or to browse social media. In our modern culture of busyness and distraction, we are probably often doing too much and not sleeping and resting enough. But Jesus’ example of radical sleep should reiterate that we might not be sleeping enough.
Sleep as Humility and Trust Amidst the Storm
Mark 4 recounts an illuminating story about Jesus and his disciples during a particular night.
On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took him in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”
In this story, Jesus slept even when it did not make sense. The storm was at hand, the boat was threatening to sink, and yet Jesus was … asleep?! Why? Because Jesus trusted in the Lord and in His power and protection. To us today, it can sometimes seem like there’s always more that we could be doing. We want control and certainty amidst our storms. But, it can be an act of humility and trust to sleep and have faith that our destiny is in Jesus’ hands. Like the Disciples, we have Jesus with us always until the end of the age (Matthew 28:19-20). This Sleep Awareness Week (and beyond!), I pray that we will let ourselves sleep both more and more soundly and fully, seeking what Psalm 4:8 describes:
In peace I will both lie down and sleep;
for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.
Sleep well!!
More on the Blog…
