There have been a few seasons in my life (well, OK, more than a few) when I have gone through stretches of waking up in the middle of the night, the wheels in my mind turning as I worry about a person or a project or a problem. Sleep may elude me for hours, leaving me feeling ragged the next couple of days.
In the midst of one of those stretches when I must have appeared visibly fatigued, someone asked me what was going on. I explained, and then my friend quoted Psalm 121:3-4 and said, “If God is going to be awake, Chuck, there’s no need for you to stay up. Let the Lord handle it!” I subsequently typed up a prayer list of “things that keep me awake at night” and put it on the refrigerator. Then whenever I awoke and those wheels started turning again, I would go to the kitchen, grab a drink of water, and pray my way through that list before heading back to bed.
This strategy has been helpful to me for many years. While I admit I still have “those nights,” I have learned to let God stay awake so I can roll over and go back to sleep.