In class last week, I light heartedly mentioned how I was really tired from a long day the day before. But, apparently, for many people, lack of sleep isn’t just a small occasional problem. According to a recent study by the Barna Research Group, 71% of adults look forward “a lot” to a good nights rest. George Barna responds to the study with the following statement:

“Among the most common complaints people have are the struggle to cope with the busyness of their lives, the pressure of family and job responsibilities, and their seemingly unquenchable thirst to be entertained,” commented George Barna. “It’s interesting that people who have young children in their home were no more likely to want a good rest than were people without children in the house. The issue is not the presence or absence of children; it’s how we choose to fill our schedule, the development and implementation of boundaries in our lives, and our willingness to forego some pleasures in favor of physical and mental health. We’re not busy because somebody makes us busy and stressed; we’re that way because we have not learned to say ‘no’ to appealing opportunities, or to accept the notion that we do not need every experience that’s accessible. We voluntarily exhaust ourselves and then wonder why life doesn’t seem satisfying. This is one reason why God instituted a day of rest, rather than a day for catching up or gorging on pleasurable activities.”

Here’s another excellent article on the topic of sleep by Lauren F. Winner.

The Bible has some words of wisdom for us as well:

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.

Psalm 4:8 I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.

Sleep really is a spiritual issue. Think about it, it’s not going to be very easy to love your neighbor or be patient with people if you are dead tired. And it certainly isn’t going to make spending quiet time with God any easier if everytime we get quiet we fall asleep!

This is not only a matter of being well rested, but it is also an issue of why we allow ourselves to lose sleep in the first place. When we sleep, we relinquish control. In our modern world, we don’t like to give up control. But, if we are to sleep well, we must realize that the world will continue to spin while we rest; God is in control.

Lack of sleep. It’s becoming a big issue and as Christians, we need to come to a Biblical understanding of this God ordained rhythm of life and then put it into practice. Remember, the Sabbath was created for us (Mark 2:27). If we are to live well, then we need proper rest.

So for many of us, one of the best things we can do right now is go take a nap!

Trackback URI | Comments RSS