Chapter 6 · 2 min read · 2 min listen
The Man Who Never Sleeps
“In the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out into a solitary place, and there prayed.” — from Mark 1
John’s work was in the villages of the Punjab. He travelled by train, on horseback and in little carts, and his luggage went by ox cart. Many of the people who came to Jesus there were very poor. Other people looked down on them and would not even touch them.
But John loved them. He would greet them with a hug, laying his hand first on one shoulder and then on the other. He lived with the Indian preachers he worked with, and ate and slept with them. One man said, “Love won him victories.”
One night John had to stay up all night getting a Bible talk ready. The talk went well. But afterwards a thought came to him. He had spent a whole night getting his message ready. Shouldn’t he spend a night getting himself ready too, by praying? So he did. He enjoyed it so much that he did it again the next night, and other people came and joined him.
John still prepared his talks carefully. But he often said that getting the messenger ready was just as important as getting the message ready.
John rose very early to pray and read his Bible. When he knelt, his Bible lay open in front of him with his hands resting on it. In the night he would light his lamp to read a verse and talk with God. So the people of the Punjab gave him a name: “the man who never sleeps.” It wasn’t really true. He did sleep! But not very much.
You need your sleep! But you can begin each day like John, by saying good morning to God and asking him to get you ready for the day.
Dear God, good morning! Please get me ready for today, and help me to love everyone I meet, just as you love them. Amen.
Talk about it together
Ask the questions first — then tap one for a note for grown-ups.
How did John treat the poor people in the villages?
He loved them. He greeted them with a hug, and he lived, ate and slept with the Indian preachers he worked with.
Why did the people call John “the man who never sleeps”?
Because he spent so much of the night praying and reading his Bible. He did sleep, but not very much.
What could you say to God at the start of your day?
Any honest answer is good here. The chapter’s point is that, like John, we can begin each day with God and ask him to get us ready.
Chapter 6 complete
The Man Who Never Sleeps