The Thief of Exhaustion

Exhaustion is real! The kind of exhaustion I’m talking about is different than being burned out or tired. Exhaustion in this way shuts down our ability to see, hear and respond to life with clarity and expectation. Jesus’ human life teaches us the necessity of balance, rest, and recovery. So often in the scriptures we see where Jesus poured out and then Jesus retreated to be alone – He separated. He did not do this only because He was Jesus the Savior, He did it because He understood the need for His replenishing emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Replenishing is more than taking a little recreational space – that’s a very tiny piece. In 2017, I held three pilot caregiver spiritual retreats and in the second one I preached on the “Pressure Point” with Jesus at Gethsemane. In the last part of my sermon, I did a demonstration about an empty cup.

In it I took a full glass of water and explained how if the glass is already full it is impossible for the Lord to fill it – literally. When we eat something and become full, we cannot comfortably eat again until the food we just ate not only goes down but starts digesting. Our emotional and spiritual well-being are the same. What goes in must come out. We live in a world now where we honor faster and higher as better. When I hear things like grind culture I cringe because grinding until we are exhausted and can’t think is antithetical to living an abundant life in Christ. We’ve become so disconnected from our minds, bodies, and hearts that instead of living in a state of connection, we are living in a state of disconnection. That disconnection is robbing us of the peace and joy we yearn for. This comes in large part through rest and recovery.

The lack of emotional, physical, spiritual, and psychological recovery numbs our compass. It becomes harder to hear from God. It hinders our compassion and empathy for others and toward ourselves. It disguises our hurt, sorrow, and weariness. It strains our relationships. It hinders and diminishes the quality of our effectiveness - everywhere.What if we could see that living in a culture of pressure and immediacy was killing us; would we desire better for ourselves and rebuild a different foundation for living well? From a spiritual and emotional perspective, I encourage you with this reality. When we learn to empty our cups before the Lord – it is only then that He can fill it with all that is fervently intended to sustain you. Sometimes the things we go through in life are permitted so God can rearrange some things inside of us, while guiding us toward his absolute best and most abundant life experience.