Sweet Rest
 

Sweet Rest by David C. Egner

You have put gladness in my heart. —Psalm 4:7

Try as we might—tossing, turning, fluffing the pillow, pounding the pillow—sometimes we just can’t fall asleep. After offering some good suggestions on how to get a better night’s sleep, a news article concluded that there really is no “right way” to sleep.

There are numerous reasons why sleep eludes us, many of which we can’t do much about. But sometimes unwanted wakefulness is caused by anxious thoughts, worry, or guilt. It’s then that the example of David in Psalm 4 can help. He called out to God, asking for mercy and for God to hear his prayer (v.1). He also reminded himself that the Lord does hear him when he calls on Him (v.3). David encourages us: “Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still” (v.4). Focusing our minds on the goodness, mercy, and love of God for His world, our loved ones, and ourselves can aid us in trusting the Lord (v.5).

The Lord desires to help us set aside our worries about finding solutions to our problems and place our trust in Him to work things out. He can “put gladness” in our hearts (v.7), so that we might “lie down in peace, and sleep; for You alone, O Lord, make [us] dwell in safety” (v.8).
Give me a spirit of peace, dear Lord,
Midst the storms and the tempests that roll,
That I may find rest and quiet within,
A calm buried deep in my soul. —Dawe

Even when we cannot sleep, God can give us rest.

Rest is sweet when we are at peace. When we are overwhelmed by our thoughts, 'stuff' gets in the way, and we need to let go and know that we are exactly where we are suppose to be. Even if that being is a place where we come to the awareness that we need to change, what was is no longer working, what is depends on whether we asked God to join us for the day.

See the video I am posting called Resting in the Arms by Mark Lowry.

From a Lonely God:

http://tearsfromalonelygod.wordpress...-into-my-arms/