The dictionary definition for the word lunatic is someone who is insane or crazy.

Wikipedia says – The term lunatic is derived from the Latin lunaticus which originally referred mainly to epilepsy and “madness” as diseases caused by the Moon.  Astrologers began to commonly use the term to refer to neurological and psychiatric diseases. Philosophers argued that the full Moon induced insane individuals with bipolar disorder by providing light during nights which would otherwise have been dark, and affecting susceptible individuals through the well-known route of sleep deprivation. Until the 1700’s, it was also a common belief that the Moon influenced fevers, rheumatism, episodes of epilepsy and other diseases.

Okay, so I admit it……. I’m a lunatic. Arguably, some would claim the crazy variety; but I’m referring to the line above that reads, “affecting susceptible individuals through the well-known route of sleep deprivation.” Sleep deprivation can make you crazy; ask any first time parent. When a baby cries all night and you only get an hour of sleep, its hard to function.

Believe it or not, sleep patterns are affected by the moon phases. At least mine are. Frequently, when there is a full moon, I don’t sleep well. I used to think it was caused by the moon’s light; but I’m inclined today to think it has more to do with the gravitational pull. It would be somewhat difficult for the moon’s light to affect my sleep since my bedroom has no windows. (But that’s a story for another day.) Also, I’m a reasonably light sleeper; once I’m awake, I generally stay awake. I don’t let it bother me as much now. But in the past, the longer I stayed awake, the angrier I got. Then, it was practically impossible to fall asleep again. I don’t know why I let it frustrate me so. I guess when you’re overly tired, you just don’t react to adversity as well.

One of the things I admire most about Jesus was his humanity. He got hungry, he got angry, and he got tired. But even when situations were bad, he always remained calm.

In Luke 8 there is an amazing story about Jesus –

²² One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. ²³ As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger.

²⁴ The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!”

He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. ²⁵ “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples.

In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”

You have to wonder, how is it possible that a storm could rage so fiercely that the disciples, some of whom were fishermen who had lived their entire lives on the Sea of Galilee, could be so afraid of perishing, while Jesus….. was……simply….. asleep? He must have been really tired. Yet when his friends needed his help, he didn’t complain. He sat up, told the storm to be quiet and it ceased. I wish I could be that steady in the face of a storm.

One night, after many years of fighting my sleeplessness, it dawned on me: maybe there was a reason I was awake. Maybe God had been trying to speak to me during the day, but I’d been too busy to hear. Maybe, he was the one waking me at night, when there were no distractions, no phone calls, no demanding children. I began to use that time to pray and read the scriptures. Gradually, the sleep issues became less important to me. In fact, my sleepless nights were some of my most productive hours. If I slept, great; if I didn’t sleep, well honestly, I didn’t miss it all that much.

Today the mug is lifted to all you other lunatics. Here’s to a good night’s sleep tonight……….. or not.