For they can’t sleep
unless they have done what is evil;
they are robbed of sleep
unless they make someone stumble.
Proverbs 4:16
Observation: In referring to the wicked, the wise teacher says these words ... that they are so pre-occupied by doing evil that they cannot sleep until they have done so every day.
While they do exist, I have never met a person so consumed by evil that they cannot even sleep until their evil plot is done for the day. However, I know plenty of people who lie awake at night with their thoughts consumed by ... issues. Those issues are about social causes, angry protests to be planned, community conflicts, and problems at work. They have two common themes. First, they generate emotion within the person. Second, they involve personal plotting and planning.
Application: This is what keeps the wicked up at night ... their own plans in their heads, advancing their earthly causes. This is what keeps me up at night when I can't sleep. I am robbed of sleep when I am planning what I need to do at work, or thinking about what I could do in response to some wrong I perceive.
May this be a sign for me. When I am up at night, unable to sleep, spinning in my head about 'things' that need doing or planning actions and words for the next day, I am on the road of the wicked. I am plotting evil. And I must let these things go, and surrender them to the Lord.
Prayer: Lord, I thank you for this lesson today. May I sleep better because I learn how to avoid the path of the wicked, starting with my own thoughts and plans. I do not need to fret over earthly problems, as they are either worthless, or they are in your control. May I instead meditate on your word more and more. Amen.
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