Sleeping on it
Yesterday didn’t start all that well.
I was awake for hours in the dark of the night. I spent more of it awake than asleep. (I’d love to tell you that I did something constructive or spiritual. But I didn’t. I just got irritated.)
I was greeted with some difficult news as soon as I sat down at my desk. Given my lack of rest, it took more of an emotional toll than it normally would. I had a very negative reaction to it, even though I knew I would respond differently — less pessimistically — with more rest in my system.
My post yesterday was a somewhat sarcastic rendition of my day’s events: the truth that God’s mercies are new every morning (Lamentations 3:23), but that I’d have to wait almost 24 hours to get another fresh start. I have noticed, however, that almost everything does seem to look a little brighter at the dawn of a new day. I subscribe to the notion that we should “sleep” on whatever is bothering us for a night.
But that always seemed like an unspiritual way to respond to challenges and frustrations. That merely “sleeping on it” isn’t a Christian tool for coping with difficult situations.
I’ve reversed my thinking on that.
We are governed by a God-appointed need for sleep. He designed our frames and inner-workings to require rest during some portion of every 24 hours. During these intervals of sleep, our bodies repair our tissues and important hormones are released. Blood pressure decreases and the immune system rebuilds. Our mental outlook — also influenced by rest — is likewise refreshed. While this doesn’t seem “spiritual” at first glance, the divinely-prescribed need for rest undergirds it all.
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Today is, indeed, a new day. I face it with fresh eyes and have a more positive outlook on the news I received yesterday.
His mercies are very much new.
This post is part of a 31 day series entitled “Think on these things: Learning optimism.” For a full catalog of all the posts, visit the first page in the series by clicking here.