how to fight weariness and exhaustion
"An action of small value performed with much love of God is far more excellent than one of a higher virtue, done with less love of God."
St. Francis de Sales
Do not let your hearts be troubled.
Jesus
So many of us today are weary.
We are experiencing exhaustion at almost every level.
Physical exhaustion. Mental exhaustion. Emotional exhaustion. Socialexhaustion. Existential exhaustion. Vocational exhaustion. Compassionexhaustion. Justice exhaustion. Digital exhaustion. Creative exhaustion. Culturalexhaustion. Spiritual exhaustion.
That was exhausting to read.
If we were writing the gospel of modern humanity today, it would say something like this…
“By this will all men know that you are being discipled by the culture--your weariness and exhaustion.”
This pressure can weigh our hearts down and paralyze us.
Jesus warned us against this in Luke 21:34.
“Be careful, or your hearts will be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and the anxieties of life.”
The word used in Greek to describe this ‘weighing down” is bareō. Part of its meaning is the idea of becoming sleepy. We see this with the disciples in Luke 22:45.
“When He rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, He found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow.”
Exhausted from sorrow. That’s what many of us feel like.
__________________________________
Part of the exhaustion stems from the expectations the culture puts on us. We are constantly told we should do something about everything.
But this is impossible.
You can’t save America from Trump or Kamala.
You can’t close the economic gap.
You can’t stop the melting of the ice caps.
You can’t fix educational inequality in the nation.
You can’t get rid of toxic technology and go back in time.
Yeah???
Says who?
Reality.
To be clear, I’m not pushing fatalism and passivity. I’m pushing discernment and responsibility.
You are not accountable to do the will of the whole world.
You are just accountable to do the will of God for your life.
This is how Jesus lived. In John 17, he told the Father, “I have finished the work you gave me to do.”
Considering the scope of the needs of His day, Jesus did precious little in the eyes of the world. He didn’t write a best seller. He didn’t start an official organization. He didn’t travel to global cities.
He discipled those He was given, preached the gospel of the Kingdom, and died as a sacrifice for sins. Potent. History-shaping. Magnificent. But relatively small at the time.
It took centuries for His short, local life of love to bear fruit in the world.
But it was enough because it was the Father's will. He was so full of the food of His Father’s will that He wasn’t tempted to feast on the opportunity and anxiety of His day.
May God teach us all to live this way, too.
One of the first things therapists tell us is the need to learn what is ours to carry and what is another’s. There is so much missional enmeshment in the church today.
Many of us are exhausted because we carry burdens that Jesus never asked us to carry.
God will always give us power for our assignments, but not our own ambition.
God will always give us grace for our calling, but there is no promise for our own agendas.
We will always have time for what God has called us to, but not the demands of the world.
__________________________________
Each of us must find and do the work God has assigned for us to do.
How?
It’s both easier and harder than we think.
Here are the three questions I use to carry the burden God has given me.
Who am I?
Where am I?
What do I have?
WHO AM I?
How has God uniquely designed and gifted me for my calling?
What identity do I hold onto that might not align with what God says about me?
What lies or distractions are causing me to forget who I am in Christ?
How does my relationship with God define my purpose and priorities?
In what ways am I called to live out my identity as a child of God in this current situation?
WHERE AM I?
What season of life am I in, and how is God shaping me through it?
What circumstances or challenges around me could God be using for my growth?
How does my current situation fit into the larger narrative of God’s plan for my life?
What opportunities to serve or love are right in front of me?
How can I be fully present where I am, trusting that God has placed me here for a reason?
WHAT’S IN YOUR HAND?
What resources, talents, or abilities has God already given me to fulfill my calling?
How can I use what I have right now to bring glory to God, even if it feels small?
What tasks or responsibilities are mine to handle today, and what can I release to God?
How might God want me to steward the gifts or relationships that are currently in my life?
What small steps of obedience can I take with what’s already in my hand, trusting God with the outcome?
Moses became deliverer of Israel as a runaway prince, living as a shepherd, with a stick in his hand. Paul became an apostle as a Jewish/Roman Citizen fixing tents along the way. Jesus saved the world from an obscure village, walking out of a carpenter shop to the cross.
Who are you, where are you, what’s in your hand?
Steward what you have been given.
Let Jesus free you from having to do everything about something.
Live your call; that will be more than enough.
Fighting exhaustion with you.
Cheers
Jon.
Folks, just a reminder: Here are a couple of free resources to help you get into community with other men and get after your call.
How to build a brotherhood.
Core community guide.
Grateful for you.
