Part 3. Identify being tired and what does scripture say? (Series: Being Tired)
- May 29
- 7 min read
Updated: May 29
Let’s just address the elephant in the room. What’s the big deal about being tired?
“Why identify it and why try to solve it? Just rest! It’s simple.”
If I ever hear these words… I feel a small whirlwind within me start to rise. Because it’s true, why don’t we just rest?
Why don’t we just stop?
The problem is that it’s no longer just that simple.
I’m not making excuses, but the truth is, we live in a fallen/broken world with crazy amounts of demands. We live in a world where everything is always expected of us, we’re always on the move, always trying to outdo, so we can ‘prove’ we mean something. So that we can ‘prove’ we are worth something to someone… Hoping we are noticed, seen, and understood.
Being tired isn’t just a one-off thing that can be fixed. Sure, there is a spiritual solution, and we will discuss it later in this blog. But first and foremost, we have to identify what it means to be tired.
In what ways can you become tired? I would say that almost any aspect can probably fall into one of the following categories:
Physically
Mentally
Emotionally
Spiritually
If you are still wondering, “Okay, but what’s the point of sharing all of this? I would say that we can all do with some more understanding.
You might just have a family member, a friend, a spouse, a co-worker, or a boss who is at the point of no return. The problem is, not everyone is verbal about how they’re doing, and the more we are aware of what it looks like, the more we can identify it for ourselves, for others and then learn how to deal with it biblically.
Here’s a story, bear with me…
She sits terrified of the unknown, she sits exhausted of the concept of never measuring up, she sits exhausted because she wonders if she will ever be enough… Brainwashed full of overthinking thoughts… a roller coaster within her of overwhelming fears, and a ticking time bomb of energy. Will she ever be enough? Without realising it, she kept busy. Busy with people, busy with work, busy with all the things that kept her distracted from herself. She always knew she had the love of family and close friends to count on and she loved her life but it wasn’t enough to satisfy her deep hunger for feeling known, seen, heard, and understood. So, once again, she buckled down and got to work… striving, saying yes because no meant rejection. And learning to be silent, learning to be in the shadows and only speak when requested personally. All of this had become a subtle bias within her thinking pattern. She learnt the simple truth that people didn’t always care (and often because they were fighting their own battles too). She learnt that staying numb at times saved her the heartache. But she was only kidding herself; she felt so deeply, experienced the burden of others, and knew she was called to more. But how, where, why her? Many nights she cried out to the Father. Many nights she couldn’t bear it…
She was either stuck miles behind, reliving the past as though she could change it or stuck miles ahead, hoping she could live the dream she had imagined. This mentality didn’t just disappear; it became second nature. She became confident in knowing that overthinking was just a part of her life. She became consumed by the reality that she had ‘to do’ it all just so she would be worth something to herself, to others… to God.
She burned out badly… it broke her.
She burned out because she never stopped… maybe she did physically, but mentally, she never slowed down.
She reached the point of no return, where the love she once had for her calling (her work) became dull and the exhaustion finally took it's overall toll on her... mentally, emotionally, then physically, and spiritually.
What did it look like? She lost her spark… she broke… she was done… She struggled when someone would ask her how she was doing or someone asking, "What are you up to these days? What’s the plan?” She never had the answers for those questions. She felt far from everyone and everything. She no longer had purpose, or so she thought. She found zero interest in living… only surviving…
Her name is Jessie… I lost sight of the beauty, of the sunshine, of the light peering through a window as the sun sets. I lost sight of a butterfly created so intricately by the Creator God. I lost sight of the little things to be grateful for . I lost sight of the fact that I needed to let go of my idea of who I was supposed to be and let God define my identity instead of the pressure I put on myself. I needed to stop then and there and take time to rest, to recover, to heal from wounds I never healed from, and to let God use it all. And I mean.... it all! Why did I get to this point? Well, it wasn’t just experiencing war (because I knew God had me there for a time such as this), it wasn’t just bad habits of no boundaries and committing to more than I could actually handle. It wasn’t just a lack of rest mentally and emotionally; it wasn’t just a lack of community, it wasn’t just feeling alone (though I clearly had family and friends who supported me), it wasn’t just feeling numb, sad, depressed, and hollowed out… it was all of the above and more. I didn't take care of the rest our bodies, our souls, our minds need. My soul was sad… My soul was broken, my heart was torn, and my mind was restless. It was a build up of one thing after the other.
No rest one week, led to a stressful situation the next, led to running on adrenaline and loving life, to crashing the week after because I didn't know my limits. So it would go on. Life wasn't all bad, honestly, I enjoyed my life and felt like I was living the dream, but a subtle inside craving of 'more,' of not having the fulfilment, of not letting go, of not being enough... eventually got the better of me.
The point is, maybe you haven’t experienced burnout or being tired in all the same ways that I have, maybe it was a lot more physical exhaustion but I’m willing to bet that you, too, can relate to a lot of it. So here’s my challenge this week… sit at the feet of Jesus and ask Him. Ask Him if any of this is applicable to you. Ask Him what’s making me tired? Ask Him to show you. It’s a journey, and I’m nowhere near being done learning, growing, and recovering, but always know, that He is with You ever step of the way if you let Him in.
He is faithful. In the pain, in the sadness, in the emotional roller coaster… He is right there in it.
The simple truth is, I was trying to be more than what he called me to be. God didn’t create ‘doings,’ He created ‘being.’
Sometimes, we just have to STOP. Full stop. End of the sentence.
Learning how to set boundaries in busy schedules, how to stop the overthinking spirals, or how to turn to Jesus in anxious moments are all a part of the process, and we will get to these in later blogs during this series. But for now…
What do we do? Does God take our pain?
Yes.
Matthew 11:28-30 (ESV)
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”
“Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I WILL GIVE YOU REST.
Take My yoke upon you, and learn from Me,
For I am gentle and lowly in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS.
FOR MY YOKE IS EASY, AND MY BURDEN IS LIGHT.”
This passage is part of a much larger passage emphasising Jesus saying that He will give rest. “He isn’t speaking here of physical burdens. Rather, it was the heavy burden of the system of works that the Pharisees laid on the backs of the people that Jesus was offering to relieve. Later on in Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus will rebuke the Pharisees for laying heavy burdens on the shoulders of the people—Matthew 23:1-4 (Got Questions).
He carries the burden because He knows we can’t. We will never be able to fulfil God’s law perfectly, only Jesus (because He is God). And earning salvation by works is not His way. That is why we need Jesus because we fall short… we are imperfect, broken, sinners in need of His redemption.
When we come to terms with the thought that we will never be enough, and our life’s purpose isn’t to try to become enough, we realise that He is all we need. We need His perfection to cover us as we become justified and continue on this journey of becoming sanctified.
When we simply come to the feet of Jesus and surrender… When we COME to Him, He gives us rest.
And therefore, learning that our striving must cease in order to truly find rest, peace, and THE burden that is light… (Jesus’), we realise that He is enough.
I pray the Lord’s comfort, peace, wisdom, strength, and guidance over you. I pray that you will run to the Father, run to His feet in the highs and the lows. I pray that He will become your total source of strength, fulfilment, satisfaction, hope, and purpose. I pray that you know that you don’t have to carry that heavy burden. He’s got you; run to Him.
I know this isn't always easy, you and me both but it's so worth it when we choose Him and surrender.
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