We teasingly say that our naps and our early bedtimes are our “beauty rest,” but there’s truth to that statement. When we get a good night’s sleep, we refresh our body’s systems. It’s a time of cellular renewal and repair. Lines on our skin soften, dark circles under our eyes fade, and even our attitude becomes more attractive to those we come into contact with.
Beauty rest is vital if we are to be at our best each and every day.
What does the Word have to say about our spiritual beauty rest?
Philippians 3:21 gives us the source of our spiritual good night’s sleep:
“Who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself?”
When we rest in the Lord, we are not giving sin permission to run amok in the world. Rather, we are renewing our strength so that we can fight against the evil one with renewed vigor.
2 Corinthians 5:8 reveals the dreams that come to us in our sleep:
“Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.”
This is the desire of all that love him with their whole heart. They dream of their true home, for they accept that Christians are no longer of this world.
John 11:11-13 plainly tells us that death is no more than a spiritual beauty rest in which we are renewed in God.
“After saying these things, [Jesus] said to them, ‘Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awaken him.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Lord, if he has fallen asleep, he will recover.’ Now Jesus had spoken of his death, but they thought that he meant taking rest in sleep.”
The end of our life here on earth is not an end at all. Rather, it is the beginning of all that we hope and wish for.
John 3:16 is our mattress guarantee:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
We are guaranteed to sleep well with no back pains or tossing and turning. When we trust in Jesus, we will awake refreshed and new.
Luke 23:43 quotes the very words of Jesus:
“And he said to him, ‘Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.’ ”
When we awaken from our slumber, our dreams of paradise will have come true. Our eyes will be opened, and we will live in the dreams we dreamt while in the arms of our eternal Father.
When we rest securely in the presence of Jesus, he will renew us, invigorating us with strength and power, even unto the moment of our awakening.
Copyright © 2015 MyChurchNotes.net
Code: FGO.L.12.14.vp
Originally Published 2-13-15 in Hope