Sleep is basically a period of bodily rest from physical activities. It is medically defined as a complex biological process that helps people process new information, stay healthy, and re-energize. Periods of sleep and wakefulness are part of how human bodies function. Sleep is natural, and so important to God who rested from His creative work on the seventh day. Jesus sometimes withdrew from the crowd to be alone on the mountain in order to have some rest. It is, therefore, mandatory for man to rest since he was made in the similitude and image of God.
There are different dimensions of sleep; but for the purpose of this discourse, we shall be discussing about the physical and spiritual sleep. The truth is that a person sleeping is in a state of helplessness. A sleeping person is vulnerable because s/he is not conscious of happenings in his or her environment. This explains why the wicked people of this world take advantage of the night to wreck havoc. They hide under the cover of darkness to perpetrate their evil works. In Matthew 13:25, Jesus told His disciples a parable: *“But while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way”*. This scripture paints a vivid picture of the vulnerability of a man in physical sleep.
The enemy easily performs his enterprise when men are in a sleeping or resting state! If he had come during the day time, the owner of the farm would have resisted him. Tares are weeds that will hinder the growth and yield of the wheat, and this will in turn affect the harvest rate of the farmer. In life, excessive sleep can open the door for the enemy to afflict and oppress someone. It can also lead to poverty! Similarly, a spiritually-sleeping person is susceptible to spiritual attacks. Apostle Paul admonished the Thessalonian church on sleep: *“Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us watch and be sober"* (1Thess. 5:6). Watching and being sober refers to a state of spiritual sensitivity and alertness. It has been scientifically proven that the brain remains active while one is sleeping. Likewise, for a spiritually healthy person, the spirit of God is active in him, even while sleeping. I pray that God grants you spiritual alertness, that prevents the enemy from preying on your life and destiny, through sleep in Jesus name.
Friend, it is time to arise and awake from your sleep! Don’t allow the devil to catch you unaware. Even when you sleep physically, your spirit man must be alert. *“And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep…"* (Rom. 13:11). God bless you. *SHALOM*
