SLEEP NOT< ?xml version='1.0' encoding='utf-8'?>

Judges 16

Time and time again he could not be brought down by forces of the wicked. Once, a lion caught up with him by surprise and he was able to tear up the lion like a young goat (Judges14:5-6). The spirit of God never stops to locate and deliver him from trouble. Samson was a mighty man of God. He was above all that attempted to take his life because the hand of God was upon him, and also because he was awake and alive. Despite all that God has deposited in his life, he overthrew himself by revealing what was to be kept secret to Delilah. Samson should have seen the warning signs when he started to deal with Delilah, whose name means lustful. Lust and temptation are birds of the same feather. All that will take for Samson to die before his time is to enter into a sleep that will bring forth temptation. Indeed, he entered into sleep after revealing the source of what God had deposited in his life. Judges 16:20, ÒAnd she said, ÔThe Philistines are upon you, Samson! So he awoke from the sleep, and said, ÔI will go out as before, at other times, and shake myself free! But he did not know that the LORD had departed from him.ÕÓ A lulled sleep sent the power in Samson away, thus delivering him into the hand of his enemy. What kind of sleep are you sleeping? Whatever it is that is taking away prayer time from you is a sleep. SamsonÕs lulled sleep was his self exile from the presence of God. It is time for you to become alive in your prayer time.