It's 3:35 am. Do you know where your sleep is?

Gamifying sleeplessness with midnight Bible pops

Awaken. Art by J.E. Serait.

I’ve been waking up in the middle of the night lately.

It started a few months ago when our three year old hit what, apparently, is a sleep regression that’s typical for the age.

Thanks science!

Like health, have you noticed that sleep is so easy to take for granted until you’re lacking it?

(An aside: I'm reading Peter Attia’s book Outlive on longevity and what he terms Medicine 3.0, in which he ranks sleep and exercise as top wellness strategies).

But once our daughter’s wake ups stopped, mine continued in what's been a season of changes all around us: in my life and the lives of many in my community.

Instead of fixating on the fact of my wakefulness, I’ve started to gamify the wake up.

Breaking down the Bible pop

For me, the wake up often takes place between 3 a.m. and 4 a.m. at very specific, repeated times.

So how do I gamify it? I go on a little treasure hunt for a Bible verse that will encourage me and that I can mediate on in the wee hours. I’ve found the Psalms and Isaiah to be endlessly encouraging.

For Bible pops¹, they've been pretty encouraging, pretty clutch.

Spoiler alert: This may be a totally lame “game” in your view. But I find it really redeems the sleep disruption.

For instance, on a number of nights, I awoke at 3:35 a.m. and I’m so completely grateful. I discovered this verse and it reads like everything my soul needs, right now, speaking directly in to our times:

You’ll notice I use my BibleApp. And so, all the sleep therapists² reading this right now are yelling at the screen about blue light, how it mimics daylight and will throw off my circadian rhythm. Everyone else is googling “how to pronounce circadian rhythm.”

Circadian is already interrupted, though, my sleep therapist friends!

In a unique way, I’m learning what David meant about meditating on the word day and night. And my spirit is finding rest even if my body lacks it a little.

So, if you find yourself in a season where sleep is disrupted, whether it be from a new born, life circumstances making you a bit restless, due to a health condition, or {any other relevant or unexplained reason} maybe this post will help you make some midnight lemonade out of the sleep lemons.

(And will explain why I look a little haggard if you so happen to see me during the waking hours).

Hope you’re resting easy and popping biblically, my friends,

~ AK

1. A classic Bible pop is to open the good book at random and to read the verse your eye first lands upon. This is not a recommended theological or liturgical practice, but is practiced by two thirds of all evangelical Christians globally. (I made that last part up).

2. If you are a sleep therapist and are reading this right now, let me know, I legit want to give you a gift subscription!