He Gives Sleep to Those He Loves

This afternoon I think I finally caught up the sleep I missed in favor of fellowship last weekend at the ladies retreat. The verse I thought of upon waking from my nap is Psalm 127:2: "In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat-for he grants sleep to those he loves." Of course this verse isn't exactly talking about Sunday afternoon naps and there is also a verse that applies to those who want too much sleep. Proverbs 20: 13 says, "Do not love sleep or you will grow poor; stay awake and you will have food to spare."

The Psalm 127:2 verse is not the test of whether or not God loves you. For those of you who read World magazine (as I do), you will no doubt immediately think of Andree Seu's article from October 6th called "Confessions of an insomniac." We have many other passages that speak of God's love for us. We know so many facts about God: that he answers prayer, that he loves us, that he guides us, that he can be trusted. So, when you do get rest, thank God. And when you don't get the rest you need, trust God's affection anyways.

Equation of Rest

Reading

Eating

Sleeping

Time

Add a little rain and quiet and you have the perfect mix for a restful afternoon! (Isn't it strange the things a brain can come up with between being woken up and being really awake?)