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“He who watches over you will not slumber.” Psalm 121:3  

Have you ever witnessed someone who is sleepwalking? My younger sister was a sleepwalker, and having to share a bedroom with her, I had firsthand experience watching a sleepwalker in action. As a result, when my middle son went through a phase of leaving his bedroom in the middle of the night to take a few laps around the kitchen table before returning to his room, I was used to it.

However, my most frightening experience with a sleepwalker occurred many years ago, when my seven-year-old neighbor boy visited me at 2:00 a.m. The event happened around this time of year, and we were experiencing extreme below-zero wind chills as well. The night was one when I had fallen asleep on the couch, but woke to the sound of light tapping.

As I tried to focus, gather my wits, and figure out where the noise was coming from, my attention was drawn to the glass of my front door. Imagine my shock when I saw little Caleb’s face looking at me! Although it was less than ten degrees outside, he was dressed only in pajama shorts and a T-shirt—and he was barefoot!

I panicked and rushed to open the door. He immediately came inside and asked if his older brother was at my house.

“Honey, it’s very late, and it’s a school night. Connor isn’t here—he’s at your house,” I replied.

“But I couldn’t find him,” he said, sounding confused.

Realizing that he was sleepwalking, I wrapped him in a blanket, slipped on my boots, and gently convinced him that we needed to go back to his house. When I arrived at his front porch, the main door was wide open—just as he had left it when he set out on his search mission for his brother. I told him that I needed him to go inside and shut the front door behind him.

I then returned home and called his parents, thinking it would be best to explain what had transpired over the phone rather than enter their bedroom to inform them of their son’s moonlight travels. After my call, his dad immediately went looking for him, only to find that he had already lain down on the living room floor and returned to a deep sleep.

The next day, my little buddy came back—wide awake this time—with a “thank you” gift. As I retold the sequence of events from the previous evening, he barely remembered any of it. He had been in such a deep sleep that neither the frigid temperatures nor the snow on his bare feet had woken him. He told me he remembered dreaming about looking for his brother, but that was all.

As a result of his early-morning journey, his family began activating their home security system each night.

However, the most fascinating part of this entire situation was the clear evidence of God’s hand of protection. There are no coincidences. Had I not been asleep on the living room couch, I don’t think that I would have heard his light knocking from my upstairs bedroom. I had to intentionally stop myself from dwelling on the “what ifs” of that night and instead focus on praising God for His watchful eye. His orchestration of events led directly to this little boy’s safety.

Even more amazing is that just as the Lord watched over this child, He continues to watch over each of us in the same way every day. Scripture reminds us in Psalm 121:3, “He who watches over you will not slumber.” How reassuring it is to know that we are always in His field of vision.

May you find peace and comfort this week, knowing that you are always in His care.

In His Love,

Mrs. Palka