I will spend nearly a third of my life asleep (or try to). I love to sleep in, but I\’ve never liked going to bed. Sleep has seemed like a waste of time–sleeping in, a lazy luxury. In tough times in the last few years, though, I\’ve come to recognize the importance of rest to my life of faith.

\”In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength.\”

Isaiah 30:15

When I have felt incapable of doing what is right, I turn my gaze and rest. When I am weak, He is strong (2 Corinthians 12:9). I decrease and He increases (John 3:30). There are many ways to opt into resting in Him (1 day in 7, 1 year out of 7), but in His grace he\’s made us to require about eight hours of rest a night. If we refuse to sleep, our bodies eventually force us to do it. Our bodies push us into eight hours of vulnerability and trust. Vulnerability is inevitable with sleep–we cannot see, we are lying down, our thoughts are even open to verbal suggestion. Sleep can be had without trust, but it is difficult and ineffective. If we cannot trust the person next to us or the environment around us, sleep does not come, or it comes violently and does not bring rest with it. If we sleep without trust, we continue to crave more sleep; we lose our strength. Vulnerability is in our makeup. Trust is crucial to our well-being. We practice both every single night.

Sleep well.