April 9, 2020 -- Psalm 119:147 -- Awakened watchfulness

I rise before dawn and cry for help;

I hope in your words.

Psalm 119:147 English Standard Version

Recently in casual conversation a friend asked me: “How’d you sleep?” Before I tell you my reply, you need to know that the filters between my brain and mouth are not always fully up. Sometimes I blurt things out before I’ve had a good chance to consider the words and their potential impact. So, in reply to my friend’s question I answered: “Like a baby” and my friend smiled and was about to say something like “that’s good” or “I’m glad” and into that brief space before he spoke I added: “Like a baby: I woke up every hour and felt the need to fill a diaper”.

There was a bit of an edge to the answer. It was humor with a bite to it. Honestly, I can get quite irritated with interrupted sleep. And then the Spirit shows me the Bible. A verse like the one we have before us today is a great call to faithfulness in our waking hours in the watches of the night. King David, the writer of this psalm, had many trials and troubles—little wonder then that he rose in the night to cry out to God his Father for help. And the very act of crying out to God the Rock of our Salvation reminded King David to renew his hope in the word of the LORD. The word of the LORD teaches us Who God is—here is a start, some verses to reflect on when you can’t sleep:

He is powerful. Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure (Psalm 147:5).

He is in charge of all circumstances: For kingship belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations (Psalm 22:28).

He is able to direct us no matter the storms (Mark 4:35-41 where Jesus is sleeping in a boat during a terrible storm, when He is awakened by the disciples He calms the storm with the command: “Quiet! Be still!”)

Jesus, our Savior, often rose up in the night to speak with His Father—He prayed! (Look up two examples: Mark 1:35 and Luke 6:12). In fact, on the night when Jesus was betrayed, He was in the Garden of Gethsemane, praying. It was such a common event that Judas the Betrayer, knew of it and knew to lead soldiers to Jesus’ night-time praying place (read the full account John 18:1-2 and Matthew 26:36-46).

Next time you wake up in the night, pull out your bible and pray. Find a Psalm, maybe a familiar one like Psalm 23 and use it to guide your speaking to God. If you find yourself awake unexpectedly, ask God why you are awake at that moment. Perhaps the Spirit of God will put a name, or names, on your mind people you can be praying for and bringing to the throne of grace so that they will find grace and mercy for their times of need. If you already know the reason you are awake—a situation that is like a needle in your brain, or bitterness against a person too nonchalant to even notice or whatever else might disturb your slumber—bring it to God. Ask for His divine help.

When you wake up in the night I encourage you to praise the LORD. Recognize that Jesus’ day and night-time watchful prayers and urgent pleadings before His Father’s throne strengthened Him in His flesh so that He withstood the onslaught of the anger of God against our sin. Jesus our Savior is the prayer warrior Who leads us to victory. We are His soldiers. We are an army in prayer—so that every victory is not our own, but ever and always credited to Jesus the Captain of our Salvation.

God I confess how I have taken my sleep for granted. I confess before You how I’ve wasted the waking times of the night and become frustrated or angry or watched something inappropriate, rather than drilled down to find out why I’m awake. God of Mercy, forgive me. Spirit of God, direct me to the example of Jesus and the powerful promises of hope which are found in the bible so that day or night, my wakeful times are filled with the blessings You are prepared to pour into my life. Faithful Savior, my Prayer Warrior King, blessed are You. Help me to follow You now and always, Jesus, until I see You face to face in glory. Amen.