Getting a Good Night's Sleep

Ps. 4:8 I will lie down in peace and sleep, for you alone, O LORD, will keep me safe.

Much has been made of insomnia. We now have pills to help us go to sleep at night. There seems to be no reason now why a person can't get a good night's rest if one doesn't have some kind of a medical condition that prevents it. However, I wonder about whether or not we are doing ourselves a great disservice by medicating ourselves to sleep. Now, don't get me wrong, there are situations in which taking a pill to help induce sleep is a good thing. But, what about those times in which it is not necessary?

I believe that sometimes our inability to sleep is our own fault. It may stem from the things we eat or drink before bed, living way too stressful lives, or lingering broken down relationships between God and man. Before we pop a pill, we need to carefully examine our lives to see if we need to do anything to help us go to sleep. We can change our eating and living habits and probably help ourselves out a lot. We can also take a spiritual inventory and discover things that prevent us from experiencing peace and thus rest.

A restless soul affects the rest of the body. When relationships break down, we can't easily dismiss them. If we have any real faith at all, we will be unable to shake them. We will be on edge until either the relationship is restored or we find peace with God over them. When we are on edge because we know we have sinned against God, it becomes a lot more difficult to sleep at night. When we are not resting in the Lord and trusting Him for what is going on in our lives, sleep comes harshly.

Are you living a productive life? Perhaps with too much idle time during the day you are napping a lot. Most of us would find sleeping at night then a lot more difficult. The Lord created us to live productive lives. We need a sense of accomplishment. We need to know that we are contributing positively to life, both spiritually and as a part of society.

There is nothing more satisfying than to lay down in peace, secure in God's love, and to sleep well. Those who can look back upon their day and rest in the assurance that they have done well in living for Christ that day will sleep well. There is nothing more effective to induce sleep than to be able to rest securely in our Savior's love and protective care.