Real Rest

How do you sleep at night? In the Bible, David reveals his secret:

I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me.
Psalm 3:5

David wrote this at a troubling time in his life. And like us, it would have been easy for anxiety to rob his sleep. How easily we obsess over our concerns, playing out all the “what ifs” of life. But real rest only happens as we recognize God’s sustaining power, and as we release control to Him.

I’ve learned this the hard way. I have trouble relaxing when my teenage kids are driving. If I’m in the passenger seat, my jaws clench. I try to steer by leaning one direction or another. I hit the imaginary brakes on the floor in front of me.

This past week we were driving home from a family trip. It was close to midnight, and I was getting drowsy. Since my wife was already sawing logs in the back seat, I ask my son if he wanted to drive. He conceded. But guess what? As soon as we swapped places, I was suddenly wide awake!

After several directional comments and coaching from the passenger seat, my son said something very important. He said, “I took the steering wheel, so that you could sleep.”

God says that to us all the time.

What a relief to know, that when it comes to our lives, there is someone far more capable, with a much higher vantage point, behind the wheel.

I lie down and sleep; I wake again, because the LORD sustains me.
Psalm 3:5

Hear the entire message here