Are You Getting Enough Rest?

"Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price, Therefore honor God with your body." I Corinthians 6:19,20

"Your body is a temple - you are not your own - you were bought at a price - therefore honor God with your body". Have you ever thought through the ramifications of these verses?

God does not only care about how you care for your soul but also how you care for your body. Our bodies were designed by God to serve God - we need rest, food, and strength to accomplish all the tasks we have each day. It takes energy (which comes from rest, food and exercise) to make meals, run laundry, grocery shop, love on our husbands, clean, read stories or discipline our little ones, train our teens and serve in the church.

So let's start with sleep! Are you getting enough rest? “Since Thomas Edison invented the light bulb in 1879, our nightly sleep has dropped from an average of nine hours to seven.” says Thomas Roth PhD of Henry Ford Hospital.

For the past 5 years I’ve been woken intermittently in the night by hungry babies, teething babies, babies that can’t find their pacifier, sick toddlers, scared toddlers, toddlers that have fallen out of bed, potty training preschoolers and wet beds! I’m positive that these new grey hairs are from the list of sleepless nights above.

Do you feel exhausted? Are you listening to your body? Or are you ignoring your body’s signals? Your body is telling you to take a nap or go to bed early. It takes discipline to put your book down, turn the television off or walk away from an email sitting in your inbox.

So the big question is – how is sleep deprivation affecting your spiritual life? The bad news is – it is. You are less likely to be able to keep your eyes open to read the Bible or pray. It is hard to display the fruits of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22) – love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control in the home when you are tired. Out in public we can put on a smile and be pleasant – even when we are tired. But when we walk through the doors of our home we can let that guard drop and tired wife appears. And sometimes what comes out of tired wife/mommy/friend is not so nice.


So if you are struggling to be a sweet wife, if you feel guilty for having short patience with your children, or if you keep falling asleep in the middle of your quiet time with God – repent and get some sleep!!!! This is not necessarily a spiritual problem – this is a physical one!


Tomorrow I'll talk about what we eat - but for now - get some rest and Walk with the King!

http://www.womenlivingwell.org/