"Rest"- Day 2

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Day 2 - Rest and Sleep

By: Brian Crenshaw

"Toy Story Pillowcase and the Resurrection"

I get made fun of by the high school guys within our student ministry because I bring Toy Story sheets to camp...these are not my daily sheets but some that I use at camp and on trips. One year I forgot my sheets for Laguna and had to run to Target to get some. Toy Story 3 had just come out, so those were some they had available, and hey, they are more fun than just a plain solid color, right?These sheets are what I use for camp, but sometimes during the year, I will put the Toy Story pillowcase on my pillow because it is so soft, and I'm just changing it up when my others are in the wash, don't judge.What I like about this pillowcase is that it reminds me of the above story of when things are as they should be. It reminds me of camp or vacations because that is the pillowcase I use when I travel. I usually bring my pillow when I go because it is so comfortable and I sleep terribly without it. So many fond memories have been with my Toy Story pillowcase tagging along with me. Again, don't judge.It may seem odd, but I have put a good bit of thought into my sleep of late. I have been thinking a lot about sleep and, more specifically, about waking lately. As I ponder rest and peace and shalom, I have been led to sleep. Let's look at it together.We all sleep, but I rarely think about it as a daily rhythm created by God.How much sleep do you need? We can get into that at another time but would pause here to ask the question, are you getting enough sleep?One question to ask yourself is, "Do I get enough sleep?" If not, why? Is it FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out), diet/beverages consumed, media consumed, a non-restful setting, time management issues?As I have thought about sleep and waking lately, one thing God has been showing me is that sleep is a picture of the Resurrection.Similar to baptism, I have started to see sleep as a picture of the Resurrection. Baptism is a physical picture of what Christ went through by dying, being buried, and rising to new life and is a sacrament given to us by God. Though not a sacrament ordained by Jesus, I think we should consider how sleep is a picture of this as well. Going to sleep is similar to death (not to be morbid about it), but during sleep, we are in a different state than while we are awake. Our sheets can be a symbol of the tomb, more specifically the burial linens that people and Jesus used during that point in history. The awaking is like rising, like resurrecting. My eyelids opening are very much like a stone rolling away to allow light into this new day that God has given me new mercies for.As we go to bed each night, we trust God to take care of us as we sleep, to bury our sin from the day, and rise in newness. New mercies, a new creation, or as we even say in baptism, "raised to walk in the newness of life." Sleep=death. Sheets=burial/burial linens. Awaking=Resurrecting. Have you ever thought about starting your day with this mindset? Do you consider that each day we have been resurrected to be a new life that day? If we are raised to a new life in some symbolic way each day, what new thing is God stirring in you for this day? What if this Thanksgiving looked different? What if we arise not only to throw a turkey in the oven or to watch The Macy's Thanksgiving Parade, but we embrace the new mercies and take extra pause to see what new life he resurrected us for that day?Please simply pray..."Spirit, what are you stirring, birthing in me today? What is something new you desire for me to walk in?As I awake in this newness, I have started to appreciate making my bed each, well, most mornings. My thoughts have been re-shaped based on the popular YouTube video by Naval Admiral William H. McRaven ("If you want to change the world start by making your bed") along with some writings by Tish Harrison Warren. By making my bed each morning, I am in some ways connecting with the fact that Jesus folded part of his grave clothes (John 20:7), which are symbolically the grave clothes I leave behind each morning in my bed as I walk in a new resurrected life. I'm not sure why Jesus folded this face cloth, likely to show this wasn't a body theft, quick or rushed thing, but actually the pivot point in history, a new life that had conquered death to give us all new life if we follow him.Jesus neatly folding his grave clothes reminds me of him being in control of his Resurrection AND also my daily one. Jesus controlling my daily resurrection gives me hope that he controls my newness (sanctification). It gives me hope that he manages the new day (he is omnipotent or all-powerful). When I fail, he gives me hope by offering me to come and sleep in grave clothes again, tired, at the end of the day, able to rest because he has finished it, and though I have failed there is forgiveness, and though I am working on dying to my sin, he is renewing me and that renewing will happen again some more tomorrow. Covering myself in the burial shroud of sheets that help me reset is part of the daily-ness of my growing to be more like Jesus... even if these sheets have Buzz Light Year and Woody on them.Sleep is part of rest. So is waking. Pray now for God to help you explore your sleep patterns along with your waking patterns. What does he want to teach you in regards to this?[/fusion_text][/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]