Rest

O Sleep, Sleep, wherefore art thou, Sleep? Seems like everyone in the mom category could use a few more winks, and I'm talkin' 'bout NOW. Wouldn't motherhood be so much easier if we all just got enough uninterrupted sleep?!

There are seasons of life where sleep is elusive for whatever reason - having an infant is high on the list, but other things affect your sleep, too. Things like stress, anxiety, illness, worry, fatigue, insomnia, fill in the blank... And when your sleep is affected, your life is affected. That's why as moms we not only need sleep, but we need the rest the Lord gives. Rest and sleep sometimes coincide, but they can be separated. That is good news for you, my friend, because when you cannot sleep, you can always go to the Lord for rest. I woke up the other morning with the Lord pressing this on my heart:

"Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest." Matthew 11:28

It's like I could hear God's voice in my heart saying this to me. Even though I knew this verse and had committed it to memory, it was fresh and alive for that moment in time. I needed my sweet Father to remind me that I am restored in His presence. That is where I will truly find rest for my soul. When I am at my wits' end with my daughter's emotional freak-outs, I can switch instantly into God's throne room and find rest there. I can be standing IN Claire's room WHILE she is screaming and crying, but be drawing on the peaceful rest He is providing for me at the same time. I don't have to respond to Claire's behavior from my lack of sleep - because I have a Source of rest that will sustain me.

As I go along in this life, I am learning more and more that I can draw on the Lord in every situation. Yeah, that sounds like something we all know, but this is where the rubber meets the road, people. If I can quiet my emotions and let my spirit dial the "red phone" to the throne room of heaven, I will be able to appropriate the fullness of the Lord for my situation. My tiredness tells me that I am running on empty, but the truth is, my Source never runs out.

And...there is a really cool byproduct of experiencing the rest God gives: joy. When you have been in the manifest presence of Father God and have received the sweetness of the rest He offers, you come away with joy. Joy in knowing that He is faithful and true and that He never lets you go. Joy in feeling His love and approval. Deep-seated soul-joy that is watered with the rains of heaven.

"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..." Ps. 23:1-3a (NAS)


So, get some sleep whenever you can - take care of your body. And when you can't sleep, visit with your Daddy and get some rest.