Dear Missionary Lady,
Greetings in the name of the God who never yawns. That may seem like an odd statement, but it points out how different God is from man. Just think – how many times have you yawned today? Have you longed for a nap? At what point in the day do you start wishing it were bedtime?
We are weak and frail. We run out of energy. We need daily (or nightly) restoration so that we can keep going. There are (hopefully) rare instances in our lives when our sleep is thwarted in an exceptional way. Perhaps a child is in the hospital in serious condition, or some other emergency happens that keeps us awake all night. We don’t function very well under those circumstances. And if the disruption lasts longer than one night, we are in really rough shape. We might struggle to walk, talk, or make decisions; before long, our bodies will sleep even though we are trying not to allow that to happen. The unbelievable record for staying awake is nearly nineteen days! After Robert McDonald set that record, Guiness World Records eliminated the category, due to the severe dangers and risks inherent in long-term sleep deprivation – hallucinations, mood changes, paranoia, memory loss, and sleep issues that can linger for decades. The human body simply cannot withstand such challenges.
God does not have such limitations. “Hast thou not known? Hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary?” (Isaiah 40:28). God doesn’t get tired, no matter how long He stays awake. In fact, He stays awake constantly. God never sleeps. “He that keepeth thee will not slumber. Behold, he that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:3-4).
This means, among other things, that God is always awake and alert to help us. His guidance of Israel was constant. “And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light; to go by day and night” (Exodus 13:21). His hearing of our prayers is constant. There is no possible time that He does not hear our cry. “And shall not God avenge his own elect, which cry day and night unto him, though he bear long with them?” (Luke 18:7).
God suffers no detriment by His constant wakefulness. His alertness and ability are just as incredible in the night as they are in the day. Unlike us, God is not limited, confused, or hindered by the effects of darkness. “Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee” (Psalm 139:12). God owns the night, just like He owns the day. “The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun” (Psalm 74:16).
It is rather ironic that what is so limiting to us – the darkness of the inevitable night – is actually a reminder that nothing limits God. There are times that we would like to disrupt the cycle of day and night. Maybe we want a day to last longer so that we can get more done or so that we can enjoy a special occasion. Maybe we want a night to be longer so that we can get more sleep, or we want the night to be shorter so that we can experience what the next day holds for us. But no matter how hard we try, we cannot break that cycle. We can’t add or subtract even a minute from what God has decreed. This unbreakable routine stands as a visual reminder of the faithfulness of God. Just like we can’t disrupt day and night, neither can we thwart anything else that God has set out to do. “Thus saith the LORD; if ye can break my covenant of the day, and my covenant of the night, that there should not be day and night in their season, then may also my covenant be broken” (Jeremiah 33:20-21). Just as surely as we can’t break the daily cycle, so certainly can God not break His Word.
May our ever-watchful God give you strength for your days, rest for your nights, and peace to trust Him to enable you and watch over you. Sweet dreams!
Love in Christ,
Peggy Holt
member at Open Door Baptist Church in Lebanon, PA
No comments:
Post a Comment