Sleeping Through the Storm

Working though Psalm 4, I was taken with how David described his response to his distress (vv. 2, 8). His honor was being questioned by his enemies, he is being lied about, and he is thinking through how to respond. He had asked God to intervene after recounting His previous faithful interventions.

“In peace I will both lie down and sleep;
for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.”

Basically, after reminding himself that God’s people always are in His sight, that anger is not the answer, and that this is an occasion for true worship, he says, “Now, I’m going to bed and getting a good night’s sleep.”

I wonder how often we lose sleep when we could and should be resting. Is it a matter of sleeping pills, or enough melatonin supplements? David really is hitting on two different responses that we can have to our own trials.

In one response, we do all the wrong things, like get angry, forget worship, and ask, “Who is going to show us any good?” That is, how can any good possibly come out of the situation?

Or, we respond as David did by bringing our case and requests to the Lord, meditating upon the situation privately and silently, offering right sacrifices (praise, thanksgiving), and putting our trust in God. We once again ask God to bless us (David is referring to the blessing of Israel in Numbers 6:22-27, which ends in the assurance of God’s love and care.)

This reminds me of Paul’s advice to the Philippians in forsaking anxiety for prayer and faith (Philippians 4:4-7). It also reminds me of how Jesus slept so well in the back of a boat during a fierce storm (Matthew 8:23-27. Even though the storm is fierce, Jesus accuses the fearful disciples of having little or no faith.

So these are our options in our own distress. We can doubt God’s blessing and ability and willingness to intervene. Or, we can commit our trial to Him, truly trust Him, and get a good night’s sleep.

Which are you choosing?

“Father, help us follow the examples of David, Paul, and Jesus,
in committing our situation to you,
and then grant us the sleep we desperately need.
Amen.”


Leave a Reply