Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread.
Proverbs 20:13
Over the past few years I’ve been sleeping at least 10 hours a night. My body didn’t need that much sleep, but I let it dictate to me rather than ruling over my body. Now that I’ve rededicated my life to Jesus Christ, I can’t afford to be throwing away time like that. Time is precious. The Bible says to redeem the time, for the days are evil! From now on, I’ve decided to go to bed at midnight and wake at 6am. 6 hours of sleep should be enough. Even if it’s not, I will not allow myself to sleep for more than a quarter of the day. A lot can be done in the 4 hours that I’m “depriving” myself of sleep. I look forward to being more productive for the kingdom of God in reading and memorizing the Word and in prayer. Life is short and I don’t want to waste any more of it. Disciplining myself is the thing to do. I expect there might be a battle with my flesh during this time of transition. I am going to win that battle, because greater is He that is in me than he that is in the world.
Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. No man that warreth entangleth himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen him to be a soldier.
2 Timothy 2:3-4
I am a good soldier of Jesus Christ. Even natural soldiers aren’t allowed to sleep the day away. They have a discipline enforced upon them by their officers. God expects us to be self disciplined. When we discipline ourselves, the Holy Spirit is there to help us through. We don’t have to do it all by ourselves.
And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.
1 Corinthians 9:25-27
Paul knew a thing about disciplining his body. He often told the churches he was writing to to be followers of him, as he was an excellent example of Christ. The Bible doesn’t say how much Paul, Peter or the other apostles slept, but I can’t imagine it was very much. They had the master’s work to do! So do I! We all do! Love not sleep. Love the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.