“I can do all this through him who gives me strength.” — Philippians 4:13
There’s tired and then there’s … tired.
Regular tired involves coming in from mowing the grass on a lawn that’s an acre or less on a flat surface. Regular tired is carrying three baskets of laundry upstairs. Regular tired is cooking a big meal for your family and finally sitting down to enjoy it. Regular tired is coming home from work, dropping your things on the couch and standing still in the shower while the water pours over you.
But what about being really tired?
What if the lawn was on a hill, and the grass was wet, and the mower kept making strange noises you’ve never heard before?
What if the laundry was for your child who came home from college, angry and frustrated and disillusioned, and this is at the end of your list to try to get into their room and talk to them?
What if the meal came from the groceries that represented the last $30 in your bank account, it’s Wednesday, and you don’t get paid until Friday?
What if you were a health care provider, you had just worked for 12 hours in a COVID unit in full gear with no lunch, and you feel like the shower will never wash the virus threat away?
I’m sure we all have been through experiences like these, trying to finish the race set out for us, but feeling like if we have to take one more step, we’ll collapse.
When we are at our most tired, Jesus comes alongside us. He supports us, prays with us, cries with us, embraces us and, ultimately, delivers us.
Even if you can only spare a moment to breathe (and trust me, from personal experience, it’s difficult in the N95 mask you have had on all day), remember that Jesus is closer than the air around us and permeates through every atom of our bodies.
We will get rest, Jesus promises us. But we need to look for it in small doses sometimes, such as stopping the lawnmower for a second to take in the fresh-cut grass smell. Or pausing halfway up the stairs to rest the basket on a step and catch your breath. Or slurping in the last bit of pasta that is hanging halfway out of your mouth. Or taking off the COVID gear and washing your hot, sweaty hands in cool water.
So find that rest, no matter how small, that will rejuvenate your spirit, if only for a second or two. Then you can claim the bigger rest that restores your body, mind, heart and soul forever. Jesus is beside you for each step.
— Mary Nuckols
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