It is 5:00 a.m. and I have been awake for two
hours. My bedtime seems to move ever earlier and I wake up long before the
dawn. It may have to do with the fact of increasing age, or the fact that once
my mind turns on, there is no turning my thoughts back off. How about you? In
the coming year, I want to sleep more, yes. But even more imperative is to find
true rest for our souls.
David
went through so much in his life. He opens up his emotions to us in the book of
Psalms, in sharing his own sleepless nights crying out to God, in finding
forgiveness for his guilt and in looking ahead to heaven. Read through these
next verses with me and maybe we can find rest for ourselves today.
I
will praise the Lord, who counsels me, even at night my heart instructs me. I
keep my eyes always on the Lord. With Him at my right hand, I will not be
shaken. Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices, my body also will
rest secure, because You will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will
You let Your faithful one see decay. You make known to me the path of life. You
will fill me with joy in Your presence with eternal pleasures at Your right
hand. Psalm 16:7-11
Peter
makes reference to these very same verses after the resurrection of Jesus, in
the 2nd chapter of Acts. David saw eternity and the One who was to
come. Knowing that Jesus is with us during our sleepless nights and through our
stressful days, even unto death and beyond to eternity, will give us true rest.
In those
sleepless moments, He will instruct our hearts. When we look to Him, we can
praise Him when we don’t understand. We are secure and safe. He is our refuge
at all times, in our wakeful moments or our dream-filled nights. Let Him give
you rest in the year to come; rest for your soul, forevermore.
Dear Jesus,
With our focus on You, we find rest. Teach us and
guide us into true rest in the year to come. We turn our eyes to You during our
darkest nights and our brightest days. Instruct our hearts with Your counsel.
Amen
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