Psalm 3:5 I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the LORD sustained me.
How well did you sleep last night? That may be a cruel question. Sometimes people have a hard time getting to sleep even when they get to bed. Sometimes people have a hard time getting up because they never go to bed. Discipline is often more a matter of going to bed at the right time than it is a matter of getting up at the right time.
In any case, the book of Psalms is a book of prayers offered and prayers answered. Psalm 3:5 says, “I laid me down and slept; I awaked; for the LORD sustained me.” So, do you sleep well? Well, why wouldn’t you sleep well? The answer is found in verse 1, “LORD, how are they increased that trouble me!” Psalm 4:1 says, “I was in distress.” So, trouble is oftentimes the reality of our lives, and oftentimes those troubles are people problems.
Psalm 3:1 says, “Many are they that rise up against me.” In David’s case it was problems with his son that resulted in problems with the entire nation. These troubles increased, and those who mocked him said, “There is no hope for him.” So, why would you have trouble sleeping? It could be because of trouble and distress. Someone has said that stress is the gap between one’s responsibility and one’s ability. That is to say that there are things that I have to do that I can’t do. That is the problem.
What is the prayer? Verse 4 gives you the prayer, “I cried unto the LORD with my voice, and he heard me.” So, I cried; He heard. What a wonderful arrangement! I ask because I’m human; God answers because He is God. I need to think on that. Psalm 4:4 says, “Commune with your own heart upon your bed.” I need to be thinking about Who God is and what He does.
There is a problem, there is a prayer, and then there is peace. You see, God owns me and God owns my problems. Psalm 3:8 says, “Salvation belongeth unto the LORD: thy blessing is upon thy people.” So, salvation is God’s, God’s people are God’s, and God’s blessings are God’s. So, are you owning your problems or are you transferring that ownership to God? Does God own your problems? At the end of the day you can sleep tonight because God never does.