Sleep

Nebuchadnezzar had a disturbing dream that left his mouth dry and his stomach unsettled. He knew that there was a message in it for him, and he didn't want armchair philosophers sucking meanings from their thumbs. So he made an impossible demand: "Tell me my dream and what it means! (And if you don't, I'll have you executed)"

So Daniel negotiated, asked for prayer, and got an early night. The next day, he knew the dream and what it meant. Was it Divine Intervention or a case of a good night's sleep?

I think it was a bit of both! When Daniel heard of the king's unreasonable demand and the death penalty for failure, he took a couple of important steps.

Firstly, he cashed in the goodwill and credit he had with the king and negotiated some extra time. We can do this when we have a track record of delivery, performance, and integrity. Daniel could make the withdrawal because he had been making the deposits. We need to learn to negotiate when we are faced with unreasonable demands, but we have to build up the credit first!

Secondly, he asked for prayer. This is a good thing to do. People are sometimes too proud to ask for help, but Daniel had the courage to ask his buddies to pray for him about what was essentially a work issue. Have you got a tough meeting tomorrow? Consider phoning a friend and saying: "Listen, I have a tough meeting tomorrow, and I'd really appreciate it if you could spare a prayer for me."

Thirdly, he got an early night. There comes a time when we realize that we can't do everything and that we need to trust God. Daniel went to bed, and he slept. You might argue that he went to bed because he had to dream Nebuchadnezzar's dream, but we were told that Daniel could interpret dreams, not dream them. I don't think that he knew that he would get the dream too - I think he just went to bed saying - "I don't know how God will do it, but I believe that He'll show me the way." Sometimes we lie awake for hours trying to solve things, and yet if we would let go and "sleep on it," we might get more answers!

Sleep is a vital part of keeping our strength and sanity. Daniel had enough trust in God to go to bed even when he didn't have all the answers. Sleep is a significant act of trust: We close our eyes, surrender control and leave things in God's hands. While we sleep, God works.

More and more, I am realizing that a good night's sleep is a powerful weapon.