Sleep, Rest, Laziness, Resposibilities, Where do we draw the line?

This post has been weighing on my heart for awhile, and I still do not have the complete answer. I am still praying, studying, and questioning to try to determine what the answer is. I am hoping by discussing it here, I can get some discussion from you guys on what may have been revealed to you.

Do you like sleep? Boy I do! I am one of those who could sleep all night, wake up to eat, and sleep in between meals… seriously. At one point in my life sleep was a slight form of entertainment even. Give me a few minutes with no other obligations, and off to sleep I would go. I was TERRIFIED that when I had children and suffered from “mommy sleep deprevation” I would not be able to take care of my children, let alone work! However, the Lord equips us for what he gives us, and I was blessed with fairly restful children (notice I didn’t say they slept well), but I was able to rest when they were awake, and I was given what can be explained no other way than a supernatural ability to function on less sleep. Also, I firmly believe that God created coffee for mommies! (Coffee can only do so much though, the rest is supernatural!)

The issue began weighing on me heavily when my oldest child was a few months old. As I was putting him to sleep one night I was OVERCOME with sleepiness to the point that when he fell asleep, I went with him. He had been playing and there were toys all over the living room. I went to sleep and left them there. My husband had been working late and when he came home I could hear him picking up. The next morning we had an “altercation.” Please keep in mind this is not a “husband bashing” post. Imagine how he felt after working late and coming in to find the house a wreck while I was sound asleep. He is human and not perfect, and I can totally see where he was coming from. I tried to explain that I was so very tired from not sleeping through the night and working all day, then coming home to make supper, get the baby bathed, and get him put to bed. By the time he was asleep I was too tired to do housework. I should explain that this was the norm. The housework was not getting done on a regular basis due to the reasons I just stated. He made the comment that if “we” would just not go to bed when the baby did, we could get most of the work done after he went to sleep. I told him I did understand that, but by the time I finished the baby would be awake again and I would have to put him back to sleep, which would cause me to get even less sleep! The next comment is what cut deep, and caused me to ponder, cry out, question, be angry, and finally study and seek answers over the next 5 years. My husband said to me “Sometimes you have to do the work even though you are tired.” Ouch. Obviously I knew that, but this was a special kind of tired. I HAD to have some sleep… seriously. And yet, he was right. Where was the line? At what point do you just “push through?” As a new mom the world tells you that you need rest, to rest whenever the baby does, the house will wait. Doctors tell you that your body needs so much sleep per night to function properly. Magazines remind you to not forget time for yourself. However, responsibilities will not be met if we take all of this advice. Then again, our bodies were CREATED by the CREATOR to need sleep/ rest, right?
In the interest of not making this post too long I will stop now. I am studying some verses on these topics to see what the Lord will reveal. Jerimiah 33:3 says 'Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.' I fully believe this and expect Him to answer. Also, I plan to buy a copy of Rachel Olson’s new book “It’s No Secret.” Read more about that here. In the linked interview she is asked about topics covered, and one of them is learning to view rest not as a “have-to” but as a “get-to.” I cannot WAIT to see what she has to say about what God’s word reveals about this topic!

Bear with me for the next few posts as we unpack what the Lord has to say about this topic. In the meantime, let me know what you think, or what may have been revealed to you through all the ways God speaks to us, through His Spirit, other people, circumstances, nature, and of course, His Word!