Psalm 4
"I can't sleep!" Insomnia is a most hideous condition. Sleep is necessary to live. Without it the body eventually breaks down. It is also important to our mental and emotional well-being. While we sleep we dream and those dreams are often our mind's way of working out the conflicts and problems of the day.
But sleep is more than just a time of unconsciousness. It is also a metaphor for peace. Peace in a sense is the sleep of the soul. Just as the body and the mind need a rest from the day's trials so the soul needs a rest to bring peace. Without this rest of the soul the result is spiritual turmoil. Just as the body would die without sleep, and the mind is lost without rest, so the soul dies without peace.
But there is so much that takes peace out of our lives. Of course the first thing that comes to mind is the terrorist attacks two weeks ago. Not only did they bring violence to our land, but they brought a lack of emotional peace because of the unsure future ahead. What will come next? Even if it were not for the events of the past two weeks we would have plenty to keep us awake at night. There are worries about our communities. Drugs, AIDS, crime.... Will some drug crazed person break into my house, my home? And there are worries about the future. Will I get cancer, will someone I love develop Alzheimer's, will the family finances hold out. And we worry about the ones we love. Will they find eternal peace? Will our children or grandchildren find happiness and meaning in life? Will they go to heaven? And sometimes we lose sleep over these worries and often they rob us of peace.
So why all this talk of sleep and rest. You may be wondering if I have been suffering from insomnia. Well the author of Psalm 4 seems to have been worried and having trouble sleeping. He begins with a desperate plea to God, "Answer me when I call, O God of my right." And after praying through his troubles he concludes, "In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O Lord, make me lie down in safety."
I imagine the psalmist lying down at night and not being able to sleep. He is worried and that worry keeps him awake so he prays. And what is he worried about? For one, some people have told lies about him and others have believed those lies. Sound familiar: There are those who go around calling America the great Satan and saying that we want to destroy Islam. That is a lie! But in faith the psalmist says, "I know that the Lord has set apart the righteous." Despite the fact that other people believe the lies he knows God will hear and listen to him.
Finally he takes his own advice and puts his trust in the Lord. The result is a finale of praise. "You have put more joy in my heart than they have when their grain and wine abound." And finally he can sleep: "In peace I will both lie down and sleep;" Why can he sleep? "For you alone, O Lord, make me lie down in safety."
So, you may wonder, am I having trouble sleeping? Not literally, but in the sense of finding peace I would have to say yes. Like the psalmist it worries me that people believe the lies that world tells them. I am concerned that because they have not accepted Jesus, that they will not find eternal rest in God. It worries me that people are dying, literally dying, around us because they don't know the love of God. And sometimes these worries weigh heavily upon me and I pray as I try to find some rest. Sometimes like the psalmist I lie awake bearing my soul to God.
I know a lot of people have had trouble sleeping the last few weeks. Sure we are worried about the safety of our selves and our nation. But there is more. One of the victims of this is Islam specifically and religion in general. Islam does not teach violence and murder. These terrorists have distorted the teachings of Islam and blasphemed the God of Abraham.
How do we communicate with people like that? How do we bring them to justice? Do we have to kill innocent civilians in Afghanistan or where ever the terrorists are to get them? How do we love an enemy who is so hateful that it kills indiscriminately? And our lack of knowing what to do makes us even more anxious.
I believe there are two important lessons to learn from this psalmist. First of all, there would be a problem if we were not disturbed. It is good that the world around us makes us uneasy. It's good that we can see the evil and feel the pain of our neighbor. It's good that our peace is disturbed by the lost-ness and the darkness of this world. It's good that we wrestle with how to bring about justice and don't just go off half-cocked.
If we were not disturbed then we would be in trouble. It is also good that we wrestle as a nation with how to bring murderers to justice while respecting the rights of the innocent. There are some people that have no qualms about returning indiscriminate violence for indiscriminate violence. They are at peace with forgetting justice and merely seeking revenge. They are the ones that are truly lost.
The fact that we do care, that we are disturbed, is a sign that we are spiritually alive. It's evidence that God is at work in our lives. It shows us that God's love is in our hearts making them hurt and break for the lost souls. It is Christ alive in us that gives our spirits the ability to be disturbed. It's good that we lose a little sleep over the people we care for.
The second lesson I learn from the psalmist is this: Only God can give true peace and rest. He prayed, "For you alone, O Lord, make me lie down in safety." God is the one who gives us the sensitivity to be disturbed by our world. God is also the one who can give us peace and rest.
So, if you can't sleep at night, if you have trouble resting, if worries keep you awake, take this psalmist's advice. "Put your trust in the Lord."
When you are disturbed by the problems of our world and your helplessness in the face of them. Turn to the one who is not helpless. And God will give you peace. Not a peace like the world gives; for that is nothing more than a cold numbness. But God will make you lie down in peace for God alone will make you lie down in safety.