I live in
the owl kingdom. Eyes wide open, sometimes blinking against the worries of a
day that ended hours earlier or perhaps anticipating the next day’s struggles,
imagined or real. I wrestle against the guilt of not being one of those who are
snuggled beneath cozy blankets with their heads resting on fluffy pillows. The
eagles are being rewarded for a day’s hard work as they drift through patterns
of sleep designed by our Creator, and they will be repaired and prepared to
soar through another day.
Not all of
my sleepless hours are spent in a negative way. I love the quietness of my home
and enjoy the glow of a small lamp illuminating a few of my favorite things
against the wall facing my easy chair. The texture of yarn as it weaves from
one knitting needle to the other with a slow, steady rhythm adds to the
serenity of the moment.
These stolen
hours of self-indulgence come with a price. My body is losing valuable time of
restoration in each area of my life: spiritual, physical, and emotional. God
did not just create our bodies with a built-in need for proper rest, He also set
the example.
“Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it,
because in it He rested from all His work
which God had created and made.”
(Genesis 2:3, NASB)
God gave us
sacrificial women permission to set
life aside for a few precious hours each day. This period of rest affords us the
time to cease from being a wife, mom, homemaker, and/or professional for a few
precious hours out of each twenty-four. A time of not worrying, or planning, or living out the next day before it
even arrives. Why would I make the conscious choice to struggle against such a
gift, or for that matter, against the Giver:
“Come to Me, all who
are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest.”
(Matthew 11:28, NASB)
While God
uses the eagle as a symbol of strength and majesty, owls are not spoken of in
such glowing terms. In the Psalms, a prayer of an afflicted man pouring out his
complaint before the Lord likens himself to the wide-eyed of the night:
“I have become like an owl of the waste places. I lie awake,
I have become like a lonely bird on a housetop.”
(Psalm 102:6b,NASB)
In recent
years, the medical community has acknowledged the critical need for rest. Dr.
Wayne Scott Anderson is one of the first doctors in the country certified in
critical care. In his book, Discovering Your Optimal Health, he states:
“Only in the
last few years have science and medicine begun to understand that without
enough high-quality sleep, our health and lives unravel. Poor sleep rivals poor
diet and inactivity as a reason that 90 percent of us languish in a state of
being non-sick (the state between optimal health and sickness) or have already
slid onto the path to disease.”
He goes on
to say that we can be who we are. Larks or owls. As long as we get seven hours
of sleep each night. Larks (or for the sake of this article, eagles) are
morning people and will get more efficient rest by turning in at an earlier
hour. Owls may not be able to will themselves to sleep at 9 PM or 10 PM for a
wake-up call before dawn. A better bedtime for them (us) may be midnight to 7
AM. The key number here is seven, and isn’t it interesting that, in God’s
design, “seven” is also the number for completion?
More
research on sleep disorders and helpful steps one can take to a good night’s
sleep are available on the internet and in libraries, but we only need to look
into the heart of God when it comes to His desire for our rest and well-being:
“The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He restores my soul.”
(Psalm 23:1-3a,NASB)
A good,
peaceful night’s sleep is part of that restoration. Acknowledging that my body
is a temple of the Holy Spirit carries the responsibility to be obedient and
disciplined in how this temple is maintained. As much as I enjoy those purloined
times of tranquility into the early morning hours, I need to, instead, accept
the true peace that only comes from assurance in Jesus Christ:
“Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you;
not as the world gives do I give to you.
Do not let your heart be troubled,
nor let it be fearful.”
(John 14:27,NASB)
If you are
an eagle, I sincerely applaud you. If you suffer from rebellion in this area,
as
do I, maybe it’s time we sidestep off of that nightly perch, grab some
much-needed zzzz’s (for the seven hours that best fit our untimely schedule),
and be ready to soar out of our nests in the morning.
