Pillows play a large role in how well we rest. A poor pillow can cause nights of tossing and turning, resulting in poor sleep. Nights of poor sleep affect your mental sharpness, and eventually your health. What you rest your head on is important.
There are many different types of pillows out there to choose from – slim, thick, soft, firm – one to suit anyone’s taste. I prefer a somewhat firm pillow with a little give in the middle. What I don’t like is a pillow that is stiff and “hard as a rock”. It doesn’t work for me.
One day I was reading my Bible and came across the story in Genesis 28 where Jacob was traveling to visit his Uncle Laban, and he made his camp for the night. What I read surprised me:
10 Then Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Harran. 11 He came to a certain place and stayed there all night, because the sun had set. He took one of the stones of that place and put it under his head, and lay down in that place to sleep.
Jacob took one of the stones of that place and put it under his head, and then laid down to sleep. He used a rock for a pillow. At first glance, a rock for a pillow sounds horrible. Hard and cold, it wouldn’t ever be mistaken for a My Pillow. Surely Jacob had a cloak or something that would have served him better than a rock? I thought about this verse over the next few weeks, and decided there had to be more to things than Jacob merely being so tired that he grabbed the first thing he could find to lay his head on.
What I learned was that the practice of using a rock for a pillow was common in Ancient Mesopotamia. In fact, the Egyptians had refined the practice to creating elaborate hard pillows, for the affluent up to the Pharaoh. These weren’t rocks that your head laid on, ear first. They were specifically selected stones that provided the correct form for a person’s head and neck to rest comfortably in and be supported by.
When Jacob made his camp that night, he selected a stone that was suitable to provide him the proper support for his head and neck as he laid down to rest. It would have a curvature to it that would allow his head to sit down in it a bit to provide a level of comfort. That same stone would keep his head up off of the ground at an angle that would keep bugs and other critters from easily crawling onto his head – serving as a type of safety device. Jacob didn’t necessarily pick up the first stone he came across. He selected the stone that he found would provide him the support, comfort, safety and rest he needed.
All of this caused me to think about my choice of pillows. I’ve had several over the years, but lately I’ve been using a My Pillow. It is comfortable to me, and to my wife – as she said it keeps me from snoring. I also thought about that stone for a pillow that Jacob used, and how a rock can be of great use, even if you don’t first see it as such.
It made me think of life and the constant pursuit we all share in finding support, comfort, safety and rest. Then I thought of a rock – The Rock. No, not Dewayne Johnson. Jesus. In several scriptures He is referred to as a stone, or cornerstone. In Psalm 18:2, David spoke of The Lord as a rock:
The Lord is my pillar, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower.
David understood that he could use a rock as his pillow. Later in vs. 46 he states:
The Lord lives! And blessed be my Rock! May the God of my salvation be exalted.
Like Jacob, David looked and selected the rock he chose to lay his head on. He calls that stone, “My Rock”. He says who that rock is – “My God”. David had made his selection and had learned to lay his head down on his rock for support, comfort, safety and rest in his life.
His Rock upheld him in both good and bad times. God was a source of stability in David’s life.
His Rock comforted him in times that were hard. Even in the face of betrayal and death, David found comfort in God.
His Rock provided him safety, from the days of his youth when he fought a lion and a bear to his later days fighting for his kingdom.
His Rock provided him rest, peace in the midst of trials, and peace when struggles had ceased.
I’ve decided in life, a rock for a pillow is to be highly prized. True support, comfort, safety and rest are only found in Jesus. He is the rock to choose for your pillow. He will provide you the support you need, the peace you desire, and the security that can only be found in Him. When you lay your head on Him and place your burdens on Him, you will find the rest you so desperately desire. God meets you and reveals Himself to you as you rest in Him. Select your stone for a pillow today, and find the rest you’ve been looking for.
