Sleeping in!

Grand Sweep Daily Reading: Judges 1, 2, 3

Judges 1:20-21 (NIV)

20 As Moses had promised, Hebron was given to Caleb, who drove from it the three sons of Anak. 21 The Benjamites, however, failed to dislodge the Jebusites, who were living in Jerusalem; to this day the Jebusites live there with the Benjamites.

Good morning!

Do you like to sleep in? When I was younger, my mother would drag me out of bed at the crack of dawn just because. I never got to sleep in at home. What parent wouldn’t let their child sleep an extra hour or two on Saturday morning? The house would have been much quieter. Oh, but my mother was different. She thought everyone should be up with the chickens. Can you tell she was raised on a farm? She believed human beings should be up long before the rooster crows. Are you a night owl or an early riser?

When my children were little, I decided to employ a different sleep strategy. I encouraged my babies to sleep in. “Please baby, just go back to bed and sleep for another hour. It’s way too early to get up. Mommy is tired.” Can I tell you - it never worked. My precious angels would be up before daybreak on Saturday morning, ready to have Mommy cook a big breakfast and then head outside to start their play day. Then, without warning, my babies became teenagers, and my, how everything changed. I couldn’t bulldoze them out of bed before noon! I had FINALLY succeeded in mastering the art of becoming an early riser. Now, they don’t want to get up! I’m sitting there, having my coffee at 6am, waiting for the pitter patter of little feet, and I wait, and wait and wait some more. When I wanted them to sleep in, it wasn’t going to happen. When I wanted them to wake up, I needed a fog horn to get them moving. Either way, there was mumbling and complaining in the Spaulding camp. “I’m t-i-r-e-d,” my babies would moan as we got ready to leave the house. Tell me the truth - do you ever whine when you’re tired?

The Lord God Almighty had made a way for His children Israel to receive their inheritance. The hard work had already been accomplished by the hand of God; yet, it was up to Israelites to take possession of the land. The work was hard, and it is no surprise that they were often fatigued. When I’m tired, I don’t always do my best work. Sometimes, I let things slide a bit because I don’t seem to have the steam to get up and go. I compromise and give in when I normally would wave a banner and shout out my battle cry. Do you ever give up or give in when the mountain is steep and you feel you are too tired to climb over another hurdle?

God expected obedience from His children. He wanted nothing less than 100% of their life. Fatigue and fear held the Israelites back in their fight for the land. There were times when they simply did not fight hard enough, allowing the enemy to survive. God told them to destroy the Jebusites along with their idols. When the Israelites refused to obey, they fell into disunity with one another and succumbed to the temptations that surrounded their lives.

Making a conscious decision whether to sin or obey is a daily, moment-by-moment battle. It is hard work, and it can be exhausting. We may understand the rules; yet, we refuse to follow them, excusing our behavior while whining to anyone who will listen. When we continue to excuse our bad behavior and not turn around to try again, our actions erode our relationship with God. As Christians, we must commit to fighting the good fight, for however long it takes. We must not allow ourselves to become so tired and complacent that we will not stand up against wrong. Take time today to rest in the love of the Lord. Let Him be your strength as you move forward. Recommit yourself to strive toward perfection in everything you say and do. If we are willing to trust and obey Him, He will help you fight the good fight and win the victory.

Are you too tired? Don’t give up. Get out of bed and worship the Lord! I’ll see you at church!

Grace and peace,

Deb Spaulding

www.songofdeborah.com

Pray for: a fighting spirit! When we trust and obey, we can find ultimate strength in the Lord to do the work He has given us to do. It’s time to get up my friends!

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© Copyright 2007, Deb Spaulding

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