Sleep

God gave us an interesting part of life when he gave us sleep. It is necessary for our physical, spiritual, and mental health. When we were young, we didn’t want to go to sleep. Now that we are older, we love sleeping and can’t wait for sleep to come for us. I had an interesting experience with sleep yesterday. I awoke early to go to the hospital for a surgical procedure, for which they put me to sleep for five hours. While asleep, I wasn’t aware of what was happening around me, or to me, thankfully. In the evening and through the night, however, I was unable to go to sleep. So I was painfully aware of my surroundings.

I Thessalonians 5:5-6 says, “For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness. So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober.” If we go through our day without care and devotion to God and His Word, we risk moving away from God rather than drawing near to Him. God warns not to sleep during our daily activity, but commands that we be aware of the dangers around us. We do that by reading His wisdom in His Word and applying it to our lives.

Brokenhearted

As we go through life certain things will upset us  But the greater pains and burdens will be the hurts that break our hearts. These hurts can imprison us with chains of anger, fear, hopelessness, and self-pity.

This prophecy in Isaiah 61:1 regarding Jesus says, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor; he has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound.” No matter what hurts or setbacks we may suffer, Jesus heals them and sets us free from them. He understands and feels our pain. In His grace and mercy, He is able to heal our broken hearts.

The Job Is Not Finished

We have come to expect specific consequences for certain things in life. On the job, when we do the work and the work meets quality standards, we expect to be paid. In relationships, when we give love and kindness, generally we expect love and kindness to be returned to us. At the store when our purchase is done and paid for, we expect to be able to take our goods and use them. We expect a strong correlation between completion and reward.

Revelation 7:9-10 says, “After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands,  and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” We still have work to do because not every tongue and nation has yet had the opportunity to hear the gospel and to believe. So God is still sending His people around the world to speak the truth of His Word. Jesus will return when the job is done. Then He will establish the new heaven and the new earth and gather us together before His throne.

God Loves the Humble

Over and over again, we read in God’s Word that God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble. Humility does not deny our strengths, but correctly evaluates our weaknesses. God specifically designed and created each of us. Our physical, emotional, and psychological makeup was designed by Him to fulfill specific purposes that He has for our lives. We can and should praise and thank Him for His design in us.

Psalm 131 says, “O Lord, my heart is not lifted up; my eyes are not raised too high; I do not occupy myself with things too great and too marvelous for me. But I have calmed and quieted my soul, like a weaned child with its mother; like a weaned child is my soul within me. O Israel, hope in the Lord from this time forth and forevermore.” True humility brings forth contentment. Humility opposes the notion that we need attention or something more. The humble person finds hope in the knowledge of God.

Speak Of What You Know

Everyone has opinions. Most people speak their opinions. Unfortunately, many times those opinions are uninformed because we haven’t taken the time and made the effort to learn more about the subject. The real tragedy is that these uniformed opinions often are able to gather an audience through seminars, conferences, television and social media. People then receive and act upon these uninformed opinions as though the speaker has authority and knowledge.

Revelation 4:8,11 records the voices of the multitudes before God’s throne as saying, “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come. Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created.” Get to know the God of the Bible before you form your opinion. This knowledge and His wisdom are essential for life and impact your eternity. Once you get to know Him, you will love Him. Then you will begin to practice praising God now, because you will forever joyously do so in heaven.