Clay in the Hands

Have you ever encountered someone sleep-walking?  They are up and walking around, maybe even functioning at some capacity – fixing a sandwich or getting a glass of water, but they are not really “there.”  Sleep walking is what many of us do on a daily basis in our approach to life.

I was reading 1 Thessalonians 5 and was reminded that we are to really live life, not just go through the motions.  The Message translates verses 4 – 8 this way:

But friends, you’re not in the dark, so how could you be taken off guard by any of this? You’re sons of Light, daughters of Day. We live under wide open skies and know where we stand. So let’s not sleepwalk through life like those others. Let’s keep our eyes open and be smart. People sleep at night and get drunk at night. But not us! Since we’re creatures of Day, let’s act like it. Walk out into the daylight sober, dressed up in faith, love, and the hope of salvation.

Paul is telling us that we should not just go through the motions, but rather we should always live our lives aware of the fact that there is something more – more than what we can see, more than we can understand.  As I meditated on this passage, I began to think about how one of my favorite authors described this problem.

Ben Campbell Johnson, in his book, Living Before God, wrote that the majority of people exist in “life-sleep.”  We get up each day, get dressed, go to work or school, do what needs to be done, go home, eat dinner, watch some TV and then go to bed.  The next day looks drastically similar; as do all the others.  The majority of folks live unaware of the spiritual depth of the life all around us.  Life-sleep.

That description has stuck with me for years.  Not because it describes everyone else, but because it describes me – maybe it describes you as well.

Have you ever witnessed a breath-taking sunrise or sunset and felt you had a brief glimpse of what God is like and felt overwhelmed by God’s love and expanse?  That feeling is living as God intended, fully alive.  Anything else is life-sleep.

Paul reminds us that we are not to sleep walk through life but rather to stay alert to the fullness of life all around us.

Wake up – God is waiting!