The Sleepiest Soldier

“Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, ‘What! Could you not watch with Me one hour?’”

Matthew 26:40

The bed is cozy. Warm blankets. A mountain-scape of cushiony pillows.

It feels reassuring and gratifying to burrow in, especially as we look at the clock, in the pitch-black atmosphere. We see that there are still plenty of hours we can stay nestled.

We don’t need to get up. We don’t need to do anything.

Just stay burrowed, tucked in, cozy in our bed cocoons.

It’s not that big of a deal for us to do that.

It’s “the middle of the night,” after all.

Let’s just hunker down, maybe get some more sleep.

Rationalizing our argument for “shut-eye,” especially, early morning “shut-eye.”

Also known as “The Secret Place.”

(Night watch version).

I am talking about an earlier time stamp of wake up than five or six o’clock in the morning.

Most of us can agree that is “early.”

I am talking about waking up at one, two, three, or four o’clock in the morning. We just “wake up.”

No alarm clock blaring; we didn’t even set the time for it to go off.

BING! We just “wake up.”

DID we, though?

I am currently in the middle of this spiritual lab experiment, known as “The Secret Place.”

Let’s be sleepy guinea pigs together, shall we?

We Love Sleep…Too Much?

“Love not sleep, lest you come to poverty; open your eyes, and you will have plenty of bread.”

Proverbs 20:13 

We often hear about how sleep is someone’s favorite hobby. Sleep, in this fast world, is coveted.

Yes, we love sleep.

Sleeping in. Being comfortable. Not doing anything.

Scriptures, therefore, like Proverbs 20:13, are cautionary tales.

Sleep, as with anything done in excess, has its negative consequences. When we overdo it, things can happen that are contrary to our desires, needs, and quality of life…

“How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest, and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.”

Proverbs 6:9-11

Poverty is one thing.

Check out what sleeping did to Eutychus here…

“And a young man named Eutychus, sitting at the window, sank into a deep sleep as Paul talked still longer. And being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead.”

Acts 20:9 

Eh, yeah.

Death by sleep.

Especially near windows.

I didn’t know that was exactly a thing. But I guess it’s a thing.

That should be peptalk enough for not sleeping through the important stuff in our lives. Life and death importance. Yep.

We should also follow this bit of scriptural instruction as well.

“So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.”

1 Thessalonians 5:6-8 

Sleep, like all other life issues, is a spiritual matter. We shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss it.

Sleep is a heart issue.

Sleep spotlights what we prioritize.

Is it ease? Is it comfort? Is it indulgence?

Or is it The Most High? Is it seeking Him in “The Secret Place?”

“I will not give sleep to my eyes or slumber to my eyelids, until I find a place for (Elohim) the Lord, a dwelling place for the Mighty One of Jacob.”

Psalm 132:4-5 

Before we all turn into “A Clockwork Orange” here…

I am not picking on you without picking on myself.

Again. Lab experiment.

Guinea Pigs, complete with matching sleepy faces.

This all speaks to the flesh over faith issue.

And yeah, we all have flesh to wrestle with.

“Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”

Matthew 26:41

Part of my lab struggle circa now, has been the ongoing battle between alertness…

Over sleepy comfort…

“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.”

We have all heard that expression.

And perhaps, I’m being a bit dramatic here (I was a theatre major in college).

For me, however, I see my earnest intentions, sleepy as they may be.

In theory, it can seem like such an easy no-brainer.

Of course I will rise and shine to greet Elohim in “The Secret Place.”

Of course, I will discipline myself to “wake-y wake-y, eggs and bake-y.”

Yet, my intentions give way to that comfortable warm bed. The pillows. The cocooning.

And so…

Therefore, The Divine Question is asked, not just from the disciples centuries ago, but also asked of me…

“ …‘Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.’”

Luke 22:46

Yeah. All kidding aside, it is sobering.

For how do I know that missing out on the early morning Secret Place with The Almighty didn’t have some urgent information or warning for me?

Again, poverty (Proverbs 6:9-11) and death (Acts 20:9) can be two possibilities concerning “sleeping in.”

I’d prefer not to be poor or to fall from a window to my death.

Maybe, most of the time, it probably isn’t actual death.

It’s more like “missed opportunity.”

That is a death all its own.

And Yahshua has something different for us…

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.”

John 10:10

He Wants To Talk With Us. (His Case For The Early Morning Secret Place)…

“When I remember you upon my bed and meditate on you in the watches of the night.”

Psalm 63:6 

Can our own beds BE “The Secret Place?”

Eh, yes and no. It can be a bit tricky.

Most of us sleep in a bed.

Therefore, most of us, when woken up, are in our beds.

And, if The Most High, The Sovereign Almighty of The Universe and of All Ages and Eras, wants to wake us up, well, then yes, that bed of ours can be a “Secret Place” opportunity.

At least, that is the starter locale.

Here’s where some trickiness comes in. At least, I have been dealing with the tricky challenge.

Lately, I have had a “battle with the bed.”

I am awakened early-early in the pre-dawn morning. Like at two or three. The previous night, I specifically asked The Spirit of The Most High to wake me at that time.

“No later than three, please.”

Yep, I made that request.

And so, Bing! Three a.m.

I wake up without an alarm clock. It’s usually around 2:30. Occasionally, it’s 1:30 or 1:45.

But it is before three in the morning. Request granted. Yay.

We are off and running then?

Well, “battle of the bed.”

Battle of “The Secret Place” location.

Bed… or out of bed, kneeling, in prayer, on hardwood floors?

You see where I’m coming from, don’t you?

It’s a Battle Royale.

He is where I should get up, OUT of bed, start kneeling, start praying, start “Secret Placing,” already.

Here, instead is where I negotiate…rationalize… that the bed is the Holy “Secret Place.”

“I can lie in bed and pray. He will talk to me here.”

How do you think that approach goes?

Yep.

The battle with “The Secret Place” has been the battle over this lie: “I can pray while I’m in bed.”

I do battle with this statement most mornings. Intention to stay awake and pray gives way to comfortable slumber.

Again…

“Then He came to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, ‘What! Could you not watch with Me one hour?’”

Matthew 26:40

Translated, for us and our situations now...

“Could you not get out of that warm bed and pray?”

“Could you not get out of bed, stay awake, and talk with Me? I want to spend time with you.”

My morning conviction. Guilty.

“And He said to them, ‘Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.’”

Luke 22:46

Beyond warnings of death, temptation, poverty, falling out of windows, and other garden-variety possibilities out there, there is a big reality to “The Secret Place” we need consider…

He’s The Bridegroom…

“As the bridegroom was delayed, they all became drowsy and slept.”

Matthew 25:5 

If Yahshua is The Bridegroom, wanting to spend time with us and speak with us, then who are WE?

“Here comes The Bride.”

Roll call.

“He” wants to speak with us. WE are His “Bride.”

“… they all became drowsy and slept.”

When was the last time you saw a bride fall asleep at her own wedding?

Exactly.

It seems ridiculous, right? This is “her day.” This is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate being with her bridegroom.

A “no sleeping zone,” then.

Look, I sleep through many a “Secret Place”- morning- Bride-with- Her-Bridegroom sessions.

I start out with good intentions. Awake intentions.

And the bed and pillow temptation lulls me to sleep at the two or three o’clock engagement.

I have had plenty of mornings in which I drift in and out of sleep. Sometimes, I wake at 3:45, 4:30, or 5:15 a.m.

And I feel regret.

Like I “missed out” on that “Secret Place” magic hour of two of three.

Here’s where this scripture can come in handy…

“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in (Yahshua Ha-Mashiach) Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.”

Romans 8:1

Equal parts chastisement and forgiveness?

We are “but dust” (Psalm 103:14).

We are “sleepy soldiers.”

Still, with that reality, “The Secret Place” is more than about making us feel convicted for “sleeping in.”

There is a reward to waking up early, staying awake at the early hour, and talking with Him.

“At this I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.”

Jeremiah 31:26 

“The Secret Place” is not a punishment.

It is an opportunity, and, yes, a challenge.

It is not about us being sleep deprived.

“I cried aloud to (Elohim) the Lord, and He answered me from His holy hill. Selah. I lay down and slept; I woke again, for (Elohim) the Lord sustained me.”

Psalm 3:4-5 

He Will Give Us Rest.

He doesn’t want us to be exhausted.

Early in the morning, as we are bleary, it can often feel like that.

Why can’t we just sleep in?

Why couldn’t He speak with us in the middle of the afternoon?

Possible answer?

Appointed time.

“For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not tarry.”
Habakkuk 2:3

Again, it’s about opportunity.

How do we view opportunity? How do we view missed opportunity?

He still loves us, no matter what. But there are certain things He has just for us, certain things He wants to share with us, early in the morning.

Do we say yes or no to that?

This is not a lecture or a flogging for you. I am, again, feeling the conviction myself.

Too many mornings, I was awakened, yet chose to go back to sleep.

What did I miss out on?

The ultimate “FOMO?”

He does offer Mercy and Grace… along with many opportunities.

He will redeem the time (Ephesians 5:16).

And He will redeem our sleep.

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Matthew 11:28

“And he said, ‘My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.’”

Exodus 33:14 

He will give us Rest.

“The Secret Place” is not “either/or.”

He knows we are sleepy dust, sleepy soldiers.

“‘For I will satisfy the weary soul, and every languishing soul I will replenish.’ At this I awoke and looked, and my sleep was pleasant to me.”

Jeremiah 31:25-26 

He wants us to want to have communion with Him. Speak with Him. Spend time with Him.

Yes, that’s often in these early hours, because that is when the world, and our busy lives, are more quiet.

He can get a crack at us.

He will, despite the early morning hours, refresh us with HIS Rest.

“But as for you, brethren, do not grow weary in doing good.”

2 Thessalonians 3:13

“Yet those who wait for the LORD Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.”

Isaiah 40:31

I know.

That is easier quoted than lived, isn’t it?

We are finite; we are tired. Scripture can only take us so far, we argue.

And there is also another component to His Rest.

Cue the 23rd Psalm, Everyone…

“He makes me lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside quiet waters.

He restores my soul;

He guides me in the paths of righteousness

for the sake of His name.”

(Verses Two and Three)

Let’s break this down a little more.

Verse Two:

“He makes me lie down in green pastures;

He leads me beside quiet waters.”

Over the past few days, I have had a situation in which I did more than just “fall asleep.”

I crashed.

And here is where, I believe, I encountered Psalm 23:2.

Sometimes, yes, in the name of “Rest” He will put us to sleep.

We are His Sheep. Sometimes, therefore, He commands that we “lie down.”

“Sleepy Time, right now.”

He knows what’s best for us; He knows when we hit our limits.

Cue, then, Verse Three:

“He restores my soul;

He guides me in the paths of righteousness

for the sake of His name.”

Therefore, Fellow Sleep Soldier, we can rest in that. Even if it is, yes, in “The Secret Place.”

Still tired?

Well, for that, there is some more good news.

He Doesn’t Sleep. 

“He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.”

Psalm 121:3-4 

This is some great news, especially if we are having one of those “sleepiest soldier” mornings.

We sleep in. We wake up, only to go BACK to sleep.

We miss out on “The Secret Place.” And we know we missed out.

Still, The Great Elohim, “Father and Son,” (because, after all…)

“‘I and My Father are one.’”

John 10:30

The Great Elohim does NOT sleep. There is no “sleepy soldier” situation going on at all with Him.

And nothing, including us, is “too hard for Him.”

“Behold, I am (Elohim) the LORD, (The Most High) God of all flesh. Is there anything too hard for Me?”

Jeremiah 32:27

He is UP!

24-7.

He is awake, loving us, speaking to and over us CONSTANTLY.

(Thank You, ABBA, for THAT)!

 

“The Secret Place” Tips”

So, what about some trial-and-error “Secret Place” Tips?

Life and we are imperfect. Remember that.

Still, there are a few ways to aim for more successful meet-up times in “The Secret Place.”

I go about them, many a-morning.

First, try not to fall for the old standard lie, “Let me just rest my eyes.”

How many times, upon waking, have I uttered this to myself.

And then, forty-five minutes-to-two hours, I wake up.

Missed “The Secret Place. “

All because I “rested my eyes.”

So, yes, again, keep those peepers open.

Next?

Get OUT Of Bed!!!

Another lie I have fallen for too often…

“I can pray in bed here.”

Ye-e-a-ah, I guess. Sure.

But, come on, more often than not?

“Z-Z-Z-Z-Z-Z…”

Followed by waking up a few hours later.

Missed it again.

Yeah, I have sleepy-soldiered with that reality many times.

I struggle to get OUT of bed. I struggle to kneel on those hardwood floors, NEXT TO the bed.

I do, however, possess a greater shot experiencing “The Secret Place.”

It is harder for me to fall asleep with my knees on the hardwood floors.

And the “posture” of kneeling creates more alertness than lying in a warm and comfortable bed.

Who would have thunk it, huh?

Another approach?

Get OUT of the BEDROOM!

This is the serious, no- nonsense strategy.

That bed, indeed, has QUITE a gravitational pull.

Change the scenery; change the room.

Often, I high-tail it into the living room.

I try to be quiet and keep the room dark, all while assuming the kneeling prayer position. It defeats the alternate room strategy to just lie on the couch and convince yourself you will pray.

You might as well go back to bed.

So, go into another room, another area, any place that is NOT the bedroom.

These are a few things I employ, with varying success; I am real here.

But they can help.

The Sleep Point?

We have talked about “The Secret Place.” We often fall short concerning it.

But all light heartedness and kidding aside, there is an important point TO it:

“Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For Salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.”

Romans 13:11 

HE is The Point TO “The Secret Place.”

HE wants to love and give you so much.

There’s more to “The Secret Place” than a location.

It’s Him.

Let’s then, come to Him right now.

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Matthew 11:28

ABBA Father-

We come to You, in The Name of Your Son, Our Savior, Yahshua.

We ask for Your Help and Healing when it comes to “The Secret Place.”

We confess that we are intimidated by it.

We view it incorrectly; we fail at its importance.

Forgive us.

We have slept through it. We have neglected it in our lives.

Help us to change that.

Meet us in powerful ways in “The Secret Place.”

Speak to us. Relate to us. Love us.

Help us to rise to know and love You.

Help us to rise and shine, getting to know You better.

Thank You.

We commit to spending this time with You.

We receive it, in the Name of Yahshua.

Amen.

Copyright © 2025 by Sheryle Cruse