Can’t Sleep? No Problem!

Do you have trouble with going to sleep or with waking up in the middle of the night and being unable to get back to sleep? You are not alone.

According to SleepFoundation.org, approximately 62 percent of people around the world have problems sleeping, with nearly 70 percent reporting sleep disturbances at least once every night.* Some have chronic issues and deal with medical conditions, such as sleep apnea, narcolepsy, and insomnia. Other factors may include eating too close to bedtime, caffeine consumption, late-night screen time, and lack of exercise. But one of the main causes of sleep deprivation is stress. Our daily problems are keeping us awake at night.

I admit that many times the cares of this world prevent me from falling asleep. When I continue to toss and turn, I have found I am able to relax if I picture the following in my mind: I close my eyes and envision Christ as my Good Shepherd and myself as His little lamb. I crawl up into His lap, and He holds me tenderly, whispering peaceful words into my ear.

His tender touch is very calming, and I am able to bask in His love.

As my Protector and Provider, I thank Him for supplying my every need from the time He placed me in my mother’s womb. Ever since, He has fed and clothed me, instructed and guided me, and rescued me from the dark places in which I have wandered. And most of all, I thank Him for giving up His life for me on the cross of Calvary.

Then I claim that He alone is the Giver of sleep and ask Him to grant me the ability to rest. The next thing I know, it is morning, and I have slept soundly through the night. Jesus is the Creator of all things, including sleep. He placed Adam in a deep sleep when removing his rib to form his helpmate, Eve. He knows our need for rest and restoration.

All we need to do is ask, and He is willing to give.

King David wrote, “I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the LORD sustains me” (Psalm 3:5, NASB). Are the stresses of the world keeping you awake at night? Try resting in the arms of Jesus, our Good Shepherd and loving Savior, and He will help you lie down in peace, for He has promised, “I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28, NASB).

Karen M. Phillips

* Eric Suni and Kimberly Truong, “100+ Sleep Statistics,” Sleep Foundation, last updated September 26, 2023, https://www.sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/sleep-facts-statistics#insomnia-and-sleep.