You don't realize that something is an idol until you are deprived of it. "Sleep" is one such thing. Since Owen's birth (Dec 1), we have not been deprived of our sleep, at least for too many nights; maybe three. In many ways, his sleep pattern has fit quite nicely into our sleep patterns, well more of Carrie's sleep pattern. All in all, I have not been up during the night for long if I have been up at all. Carrie's focus right now is the care of Owen 24 hours a day. I am thankful for my wife. She recognizes, however difficult it can be at times, that her job is the care of Owen. So much so, that she keeps telling me to go back to bed if/when I get up to attend to Owen. She recognized (on her own, mind you) that I should get my sleep in order for me to focus more aptly on my day-job. It is also a known fact that, well, at least to Carrie, if I don't get enough sleep one night, I most likely will not feel the effects for a couple of days. The one time I spent the whole night with a youth group at an all-nighter, I was wasted for 3 days. Even something fun and simple as watching LOTR-Extended in one sitting on a single Saturday wasted me for the next 2 days. But I digress...

To many, myself included, sleep is an extremely valued commodity. There have been times (3?) as I am going to bed at my normal time, Owen decides he's had enough sleep for the time being and begins to let us know about it. God uses our most beloved past times to manifest to us that our love is not directed toward Him but indeed is directed toward one of His gifts. I have found that my sleep has been one of my idols. On a side note, I ask the question, 'how do we know if something has become an idol in our lives?' The quick answer is demonstrated by how we react when we are deprived of that one thing. How do I know my sleep has been my idol? Quite simply, ungodly reactions overflowed from my innermost being.

The question to answer is, how do we replace the ungodly reactions with godly reactions? May I suggest it is nothing we can do but is a fruit of what God is doing in us. Galatians 5:16-26 is a familiar passage of Scripture. It is the passage characterized by the Fruit of the Spirit and is the epitome of Gospel-Centered living. "Walk by the Spirit" is a command to us but it, as well with any command God gives us, is unattainable. Any command God gives us can never be fulfilled by us. Never. Commands such as, "Be ye holy!", "Love God with all of your heart, soul, mind and strength... and your neighbor as yourself", "do not covet" and so many others, will never be fulfilled. But even though these commands are unattainable, the weight of responsibility to do them is still upon us. So what hope is there if the very commands God gives us are absolutely unattainable yet we are still responsible to do them? Is there any hope??!!

With this I answer with a emphatic and dogmatic, "yes!! There is Hope!!" The ungodly reactions which overflowed from my innermost being are natural. Scripture says there is none that does good, we are deceived by our own nature and desparately wicked, and there is nothing we can do to gain the favor of God. Period.

In years past, I used to say, "God is teaching me patience" and "God is teaching me humility", but is God really teaching us these things or is God working in your lives via the Gospel in such a way that the result is patience and humility? Are they not the fruit of Jesus' work which was done for us and in our place?

This is our hope. Jesus, Who came to earth as the Perfect Second Adam and fulfilled all the law for us and in our place also demonstrated the Fruits of the Spirit for us and in our place. This is why even our good works must be repented of for Jesus also did good works for us and in our place. There is nothing left for us to do because it has already been done. So what is the result or the fruit of what Christ did for us and in our place?

One such fruit is patience. Even though my natural self is not patient, the fruit (end result) of God in Christ and His Gospel is patience. This patience is not of my doing but of the finished work of Christ. God is not teaching me patience but is demonstrating His grace through the fruit of patience. Humility is another such fruit. Does God teach us humility or is the fruit of what God in Christ and His Gospel is doing in us humility? Humility is a fruit. It is the outflow from what God has shown us; that we are absolutely spiritually bankrupt to the core of our being YET Christ is our surplus of righteousness.

God showed me my sin of the idolatry of my sleep. He also showed me my reaction to this deprivation of what I so love was sin. And it is God's grace that gave me strength to ask of my 3+ week old son for forgiveness. God is good! He is showing how horrible I truly am, yet He is showing me how awesome my Savior is! What greater gift of Christmas could there ever be?