Dwelling in safety

“I will both lie down in peace and sleep for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” Psalm 4,8
This is the verse I whisper to myself as I’m closing my eyes at night. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, I’m prone to fears and worries. Nighttime is always the worst. The most illogical, outrageous fears come to mind and despite how ridiculous they seem in the light of day, I can’t seem to shake them at night. 

I whisper that verse to myself to remind myself that I will fall asleep and I will rest in peace, because of God. He alone is the one who keeps me safe, so it doesn’t matter that I close my eyes in the darkness and that I trust that for the next eight hours (well in my case more like four to six) I’m going to be utterly unaware of what’s going on around me. I can rest in God.

The verse always gives me comfort and makes it easy for me to sleep in peace. But last night I was pondering that word dwell. The verse says, “...for You alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.” 

The Psalmist knew a thing or two about sleeping in peace despite dangerous circumstances. When David ran from Absalom he stated, “I lay down and slept; I awoke for the Lord sustained me.” He was running for his life and yet he managed to sleep. 

David trusted in the Lord enough to sleep because he was confident in the fact that his life dwelt in safety. He was confident that in his coming and goings, his day to day routines, his awake and his asleep time, he was safe in the hands of God. He was where God wanted him, he was living in the will of the Lord, he was dwelling in safety, because God had him in His hands. 

Why would I question my safety at night, why would I doubt it, when I trust that I’m dwelling in the safety of the Lord. When I trust that my day to day life is sustained by Him. That every waking moment, He is protecting me. He is watching out for me. He is with me. And I dwell in the safety of His wing.

I will both lie down in peace and sleep because the number of my days are in His hands and I am dwelling in the safety of the Lord.