The Sacred Diary, Section 41
SECT. XLI. When you compoſe your ſelves to Sleep.
HAving Prayed immediately before you go to Reſt, offer your Reſt it ſelf to God, in this or the like manner: My God! I deſire as often as I ſhall draw breath this Night, ſo often all my Reſpirations may praiſe thee. Drexel. de rect. intent. lib. 2.Drexelius adviſeth a Chriſtian to ſuppoſe that he heareth Chriſt ſpeaking to him in theſe words: When any one will repoſe himſelf to Sleep, let him meditate ſomewhat of Me, or confer with Me: For ſo, although he ſleep in Body, yet he ſhall watch in Mind unto Me: Yea, let every one which is ready to cloſe his Eyes, deſire that I would receive every breath which he ſhall fetch that Night, as it were to my exceeding Praiſe; and I who cannot be wanting to the holy Wiſhes of a pious and loving Soul, will fulfil his deſires in Truth. It is of great advantage to a Chriſtian, to reduce all things in this manner to the Honour of God; and there is no moment of time, but we might be on the getting hand.
It is good to empty your ſelves, before you ſleep of all that troubles you. It was Pythagoras his rule to his Scholar, Non te prius ſomno tradideris quam diurna opera ter mente revolveris: Betake not thy ſelf to ſleep, till thou haſt in thy Mind gone thrice over the works of the Day.
The ſleep of a Godly Man is ſweet; but the ſleep of many wicked Men is very troubleſome. Richard the Third, King of England; after the murder of his two Nephews, had fearful Dreams, and would leap off of his Bed, and take his Sword in his hand, as if he had been ſeeking an Enemy. And Charles IX, King of France, after the French Maſſacre, was laid to ſleep every Night, and wakened by Muſicians.
But good Men ſometimes through Grief and Pain, may find little eaſe, or refreſhing from their Beds. Thus Job amplifies his Sorrows, inſtancing in thoſe ordinary Ways, which give ſick and diſtempered Bodies ſome abatement, or intermiſſion of their Pain, lying down upon their Bed, or Couch. When I ſay, my Bed ſhall comfort me, Job 7.13, 14.my Couch ſhall eaſe my complaint, then thou ſcareſt me with Dreams, and terrifieſt me with Viſions. As if he had ſaid, Whilſt I was all Day conflicting with my Sorrows, I yet had ſome hope to find comfort at Night, that I ſhould find reſt on my Bed: Or whilſt in the Day my Spirit is overwhelmed within me, I think ſometimes to deceive my Pains a little, by taking a Nap on my Couch.
Conſider here, That the moſt probable and proper Means, are unable of themſelves to miniſter any Eaſe or Comfort to us. A Man may go to his Bed, and lie down upon his Couch in vain: unleſs God command a Bed to comfort us, it ſhall yield us no Comfort; and unleſs he ſay to a Couch, Eaſe ſuch a Man's Complaint, it ſhall not do it. But if God will ſay to an hard Stone, give ſuch a Man reſt, he ſhall reſt and ſleep ſweetly upon it; as Jacob did when he journeyed from Beer-ſheba towards Haran, making Stones his Pillows in the place where he lay down to ſleep, Gen. 28.11, 12, 13, 14.there dreaming of a Ladder ſet upon the Earth, the top whereof reached to Heaven, and the Angels of God aſcending and deſcending on it, and the Lord ſtanding above it, promiſing to give the Land whereon he lay, to him and his Seed, and to multiply his Seed exceedingly; and that in his Seed all the Families of the Earth ſhould be bleſſed.
How often doth God ſcare ſome Men with Dreams, and terrifie them with Viſions? as Job ſpeaks concerning himſelf. Sometimes Satan cauſeth ſinful and filthy Dreams, Auguſt. Confeſſ. lib. 10. cap. 30.as St. Auguſtine bewails in the tenth Book of his Confeſſions: Sometimes treacherous and deluding Dreams. Some conceive, that the Dream of Pilat's Wife, Mat. 27.19. was from the Devil, becauſe Satan would thereby have hindred the work of Man's Redemption. She comes to Pilat, and deſires him to have nothing to do with that Juſt Man, For (ſaith ſhe) I have ſuffered many things this Night in a Dream becauſe of him. As our waking times are in God's Hand, ſo our ſleeping times. Sometimes God makes ſleep an Affliction to us. Job's Dreams were Terrifying and Scaring to him. Some Dreams are for Warning and Admonition; The Lord warned Joſeph in a Dream; the Angel of the Lord appeared to him in a Dream whilſt he thought on thoſe things, and gave him Counſel what to do, Mat. 1.20. Holy Meditations even upon our Beds, do many times meet with the Lord's Meſſages. The Angels are at God's Service to aſſiſt his Saints, as here of Joſeph; he helps him out of his perplexed Thoughts. He was contriving how to pleaſe God in that Buſineſs of ſo great Importance, and God ſends an Angel to aſſiſt him. No time is unſeaſonable for God to help his Children: No time but he watcheth over them: When they are ſleeping, when they think neither harm nor good, then doth the Lord watch over them for good. God can give us better direction ſleeping, than we can find out waking. Many a one hath taſted more of Heaven in a Night-dream, than in many Days attendance on holy Ordinances. Yet this is no Pillow for Lazineſs: If we do our beſt while we are waking, God will relieve us ſleeping. Let us go to God, and not diſtract our ſelves, nor be careleſs. Joſeph thought what to do, yet his thoughts were not ſo diſtracting as to break his ſleep: God helps him ſleeping. God will have us be doing, and yet it may be, he will do his own Work without us.
Let every Chriſtian labour to be well employed in the Day-time, for (as Ariſtotle ſpeaks) it is poſſible, that our Fancy in the Night may hold ſome conformity with the Days employment: F… Four Mind in the Day-time be intent upon good Employment, and well fixed thereon, our ſleep may reliſh of the ſame Employment alſo, and our Fancy may make return of ſomething whereof we ſo faſtened on in the Day, as well as it will do in other Vanities. The Wiſe Man ſaith, In the multitude of Dreams, and many Words, there are alſo divers Vanities; but fear thou God, Eccleſ. 5.7. If thou feareſt God, thou needeſt not fear thy Fancy, nor thy Dreams. I ſhall Conclude with the Advice of Chryſoſtom, Chryfoſt. in Gen. Serm. 6.Cloſe thine Eyes with the thoughts of God and his Goodneſs, and thou ſhalt have ſweet Dreams, thy Fancy ſhall not be troubled.
FINIS.