KEEPING TIME WITH GOD — THE GIFT OF CIRCADIAN RHYTHMS
The Lord has written time not only across the sky, but within the human body. We wake and we rest, we hunger and we are renewed; all according to a rhythm placed deep within us by our Creator. These circadian rhythms are not accidental, nor are they cruel. They are gentle boundaries, teaching us how to live as creatures sustained by grace rather than masters driven by strain. The word of God reminds us, “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven” (Ecclesiastes 3:1). Life is meant to be received in ordered moments, not conquered by endless effort.
From the opening pages of the Bible, the pattern is established. “God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night. So the evening and the morning were the first day” (Genesis 1:5). Evening comes first; rest is not an afterthought. Sleep is not failure. Darkness itself is named and blessed, given its proper place in the goodness of creation. Our bodies still bear witness to this design; light stirs us to rise, darkness calls us to lie down, and wisdom listens.
The Psalms unfold this truth with quiet beauty. “You make darkness, and it is night, when all the beasts of the forest creep about. The sun rises, and they withdraw, and lie down in their dens. Man goes out to his work and to his labor until the evening” (Psalm 104:20-23). God governs the movements of animals and the labors of men with the same steady hand. When we ignore these rhythms, pressing beyond what is given, we do not become more faithful; we become weary. But when we receive them, we step back into the peace of trust.
Our Lord Jesus lived within this sacred pacing. “Now in the morning, having risen long before daylight, He went out and departed to a solitary place; and there He prayed” (Mark 1:35). He withdrew when the crowds pressed in, slept when the storm raged, and rose to commune with the Father before the day’s demands. His life teaches us that spiritual strength flows from ordered devotion; silence before service, rest before obedience.
Even the daily return of morning bears a quiet testimony. “The night is far spent, the day is at hand” (Romans 13:12). Each sunrise is a small declaration that darkness does not rule forever. As our bodies awaken to light, our souls are reminded that Christ Himself is our true Morning Star, faithful and sure. Circadian rhythms whisper this hope again and again; night yields, light arrives, and mercy is new.
To honor these rhythms is not indulgence; it is humility. It is confessing that we are sustained, not self-made. The God who neither slumbers nor sleeps invites His children to lie down and rise again in peace. When we keep time with Him, our days find their proper measure, and our hearts learn the freedom of resting where grace has already gone before us.
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Gracious Lord, teach me to honor the rhythms You have placed within me. Help me to rest without guilt, to rise with thanksgiving, and to live each day in harmony with Your wisdom. Order my hours by Your mercy, and let my life move in step with Your grace. Amen.
BDD
