‘Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the Lord guards the city, they watchman stays awake in vain. Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord; the fruit of the womb is a reward. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for He gives His beloved sleep’ (Ps 127)

Sleep is a gift from God. Sleep is a blessed time when the brain shuts down and the body rests from labor. During sleep, the body repairs itself from what was lost or damaged while awake. Sleep is the best medicine for a sick man. The immunity of the body is restored during sleep, so the body can fight diseases. During sleep the growth hormone is released; the muscles, tissues and bones grow mostly during the time of sleep.
The lack of sleep is called insomnia. The principal cause for sleep deprivation is anxiety. Chronic insomnia is a sickness that affects the whole person, body, soul and spirit. It causes weakness of the mind and the body; everything happens in slow motion. Often the patients have hallucinations (they see things that do not exist in reality). The imagination is burdened by unnecessary images. Sleep deprivation results in muscular pains and fatigue, headache, migraines, high blood pressure, panic attacks and depression. It affects the concentration, the memory, the ability to make decisions or risk taking. The person who cannot sleep well loses the skill to be creative mentally. He has problems thinking of new solutions in solving the problems of life. He becomes mechanical and repetitive, making the same mistakes again and again. He is slow of identifying the open door of opportunity and breakthrough. Lack of sleep produces road accidents as often as driving under the influence of alcohol. There is a form of extreme insomnia that is fatal. There is no medical treatment for it. The patient is so anxious to sleep that he cannot sleep at all. Death follows in less than one year.
In some prisons, lack of sleep is a form of torture, to break the will of the prisoner until he confesses some information. According to their testimony, after some days and nights of sleeplessness, a cloud comes upon the mind; the spirit is wearied to death, the legs become weak and the man has only one desire left: to sleep. Not even hunger and thirst are comparable with it.

God blesses His people with sleep to reveal Himself thru dreams, to restore their strength and comfort their souls. God put Adam to sleep to create Eve from his rib. He put Abram to sleep to reveal to him the challenges ahead and the great victory and blessings that follow. Jacob slept and saw God above the divine ladder. He saw his destiny and was encouraged.
God uses sleep to weaken the enemies of His people. He put King Saul and his men to ‘deep sleep’ and made them vulnerable to destruction. God removes sleep when He wants to talk to men in the night. This is how God talked to Kings Nebuchadnezzar and Xerxes and they had to dramatically change their lives.
The devil has his evil strategies. Jonah slept to run away from God. ‘The wicked man cannot sleep until he makes someone fall’. The unbelievers hate or love sleep to the extremes. Some work all the time and forsake sleep, to build and protect personal empires. Some worry to have successful children. But their reward is ‘the bread of sorrows’. Others are lazy, they love sleep until they becomes poor. Samson went to sleep in the laps of Delilah, the pillow of Jezebel and so he lost his eyes and his freedom. The foolish virgins slept carelessly and lost the opportunity to enter into the rest and joy of salvation and marriage.
So what is the secret of successful sleep? It lies in the Word of God: You spend your energy during the day seeking God and His Kingdom. Then in the night you sleep. The blessings will follow. No need to worry about food or houses or children. Sleep will be peaceful and sweet, a ‘gift from God without sorrows’.

Finally, let’s go down under the deck and sleep with Jesus. The waves and billows may crash around, the storm may shake the boat, and people may think I do not care, but for me…that is the best place in the world, lying at Your feet…and when I awake, I shall be like You Lord, strong and refreshed, full of faith and courage… I too shall command the winds and the waves around me to be still, for their Master has spoken!
‘Dear Heavenly Father, just in case I was not grateful enough for the gift of good, peaceful and refreshing sleep…I am sorry…I want to say ‘thank You’ for the day of labor and for the night of rest, for Your constant presence with me, knowing that You do not sleep and do not slumber…I am eternally safe in Your care, so I worry no more… in Jesus name I pray, Amen!’