Biblical Sleep Factors

What keeps you up at night? Why aren’t you sleeping well? What hinders you from getting a good night’s sleep? Do you toss and turn for hours before falling asleep? I hope to provide answers to these questions from both a practical and a biblical perspective. This is the second article in a series I began a few weeks ago on the subject of sleep. Let me reiterate: I am not a doctor. Nor do I specialize in the study of sleep from a purely physiological standpoint. However, the Bible does have a lot to say about sleep and sleeplessness. To exclude any spiritual consideration from something that consumes such a huge part of our lives would be unwise. Therefore, let us ask and answer: what is keeping us up at night? 

First, there are environmental factors that can keep us from resting well. I cannot speak for everyone, but I sleep much better in a cool, dark, familiar room. Generally, that is true for most people. But sometimes, we can’t control the environment we find ourselves. Life leads outside the comfort of our own beds and bedrooms. The place we are visiting may be too warm, too bright, or too loud for you to sleep soundly. A few years ago, a group of us went on a mission trip to a hot, tropical area and stayed in a place without air conditioning or the ability to lock our doors securely at night. Needless to say, I didn’t rest well that week. Sometimes, environmental factors are out of control, robbing us of the needed sleep. Other times, we just need to get off our phones, turn off the TV, go to bed at a decent hour, and trust that God can keep us safe while we lie unprotected. 

There are also emotional issues that rob us of sleep. Stress, financial concerns, loss of a job, or the passing of a loved one can keep us staring at the ceiling for many hours. Again, life happens … and we can’t always just shut our brains down and silence our broken hearts. Heartache, worry, angst, grief, depression or even excitement affect us all at different seasons and keep us from resting well. The Christian should do their level best to do like the old hymn says, and “take your burdens to the Lord and leave them there.” But that is often much easier said than done. Yet, God wants His children to rest soundly with full faith. He will provide for all our needs according to His riches in Christ. 

Physical factors can also add to our inability to get a good night’s rest. Pain robs many people of sleep. Emotional trauma, sure, as mentioned above. But also, physical pain can keep us from falling asleep and staying asleep. If you’ve never been in such severe pain as to rob you of sleep, be thankful! Because a throbbing this and an aching that – can keep you up all night! Sickness and certain medications can significantly impact our sleep at night. Furthermore, most Americans consume way too much caffeine (or alcohol), which certainly affects the quality and quantity of our sleep. Some of these physical factors we can control, some we cannot. 

This leads to more of my area of specialty: spiritual factors that affect our sleep. I concluded the last article by listing five things that will help you sleep more soundly. Allow me to give them to you again: a redeemed soul, a trusting heart, a clear conscience, a renewed mind, and a tired body. 

Let’s pursue these in a little more detail. 

Is it possible that one reason why you are not resting well at night is that you know deep down you are not in the right relationship with God? Maybe you’ve been to church all your life … maybe you’ve heard the Gospel many times, yet you have not become a Christian. Do you find yourself tossing and turning because you are anxious about the condition of your soul? If so, stop wrestling with God and turn to Christ in saving faith, trusting Him. Psalms 127:2 says, “God gives His beloved sleep.” Now, that isn’t a promise that every night on earth will be eight hours of sweet, uninterrupted sleep. But it does mean those who are truly born again can say, along with the old children’s rhyme, “Now I lay me down to sleep, I pray the Lord my soul to keep.” I promise a redeemed soul will help you sleep better at night. 

Or are you eaten up with anxiety that is keeping you awake all hours of the night? Have you spent countless hours playing and replaying possible future scenarios in your mind that have kept you from resting well? Are you overly anxious about things you cannot control? Many of us say, yes, guilty. While it is true that none of us will live worry-free on this fallen planet, the Bible repeatedly tells believers to place their faith in God and trust His loving provision for them and their loved ones. A trusting heart will help the child of God rest well. 

Is a guilty conscience keeping you awake? Are you living a dishonest life? Deceitful? Unfaithful? Or doesn’t honor God? And it is causing you to toss and turn at night. Are you living in open, unrepentant sin? Are you “out of church” when you know you should be “in church?” I can speak from first-hand experience and say a guilty conscience will keep you up at night. What is the cure for insomnia produced from a guilty conscience? Turn from your sin. Repent and ask God to forgive you, and then start living in a way that honors God and is right before men. 

What about your mind? Is it filled with garbage? Are you up all night because you’ve been watching Fox News all day? Listen, friend, you were not designed to consume the weight of the whole world’s trauma. What about your time online? What have you been mentally ingesting from the internet? Have you spent endless hours doom-scrolling reels on social media? If you answer yes to these questions and are not spending quality time in prayer and Bible study – no wonder you’re not sleeping well at night! A mind that has been renewed by the washing of the Word (Ephesians 5:26) is far more prepared to rest.  

I do not claim to be a board-certified sleep specialist, but there absolutely is a spiritual side to whether or not we are sleeping soundly. Certainly, there are times when environmental, emotional, and physical factors affect our sleep. Yet, spiritual issues also significantly impact how well we rest. 

Friend, consider the things written above and control what you can control. But beyond the physical, consider the spiritual factors we’ve mentioned and examine your soul. King David wisely said, “In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.” (Psalm 4:8)