Strength When We're Tired

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Usually on Fridays I share and link up a Five Minute Friday post, but that link-up is taking a holiday break for three weeks. Oddly, as it turns out, I discovered that I missed writing on three words way back in February when I did the Write 28 Days Blogging Challenge. My theme was Coping With Change, and it also turns out those three words are perfect for the most recent changes in life that I've been coping with. Bonus words to write about for five minutes (or more) during the holidays.

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One word. Five minutes to write about it. This is the idea behind Five Minute Friday and this is today's free-writing post.

sick and tired

too tired to care

bone tired

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Life is one long process of getting tired. ~Samuel Butler

This has been quite a year. So many ups and downs and unexpected twists and turns on this roller coaster of life. And honestly, I'm just tired. Some days I'm just exhausted and weary and not sure how I'll find the motivation to do what needs to be done. I think we all experience that one way or another, and some of us suffer more than others.

We get bone tired. Physically tired and achy. Our bodies have limits and as we age or deal with health problems, we just start to wear out and few of us have as much energy as we did when we were in our twenties.

We get tired of trying. Emotionally drained. It feels like nothing is going right or that we somehow keep getting the short end of the stick. We keep trying to do better, to mend a relationship rift, to find joy and purpose, but we can easily get discouraged and lose our motivation.

Tired minds don't plan well. Sleep first, plan later. ~Walter Reisch

Physical changes, circumstantial changes, emotional upheaval can all combine to make us feel tired. And perhaps right after Christmas, we feel it even more. I often do, and I certainly do this year! It's cold and my joints ache, and gloomy weather makes me feel sleepy. I'm emotionally rather worn down by all the things related to the move and trying to settle into a new home. And we don't yet have friends or a church home locally to help with the burdens. And so, I feel tired, and even discouraged.

But when I am weak, Christ is strong. When I can't, he has already made a way. When I'm weary, he does provide rest and renewed strength.

We can be tired, weary and emotionally distraught, but after spending time alone with God, we find that He injects into our bodies energy, power and strength. ~Charles Stanley

I'm reminded of the disciples gathering around Jesus to report all their ministry successes, being interrupted and bothered by a crowd, and Jesus says, "You need to get some rest." He knows what we need.

The apostles gathered around Jesus and reported to him all they had done and taught. Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, 

"Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest."

~Mark 6:30-31~

When I'm tired of all the change and all the trying, Jesus offers rest and renewal. 

Do you not know? Have you not heard?

The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth.

He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom.

He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak.

Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall;

but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strenght.

They will soar on wings like eagles;

they will run and not grow weary,

they will walk and not be faint.

~Isaiah 40:28-31~

Perhaps here, at the end of the year, is a good time to rest. To pause and reflect. To remember all the times God has been faithful and carried us through. Use our tiredness as a reminder to stop and rest in him, and to receive the renewal we need to head into a new year. Selah. 

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See my related posts: Ease The Burden and Dear Homeschool Mom . . . Come To A Quiet Place

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For the recent Write 28 Days Blogging Challenge, I had decided to explore the theme of living well and with purpose during times of change. A few years ago, as I neared the end of my years as a homeschool mom, I realized my world would change when my youngest graduated. My roles in the homeschool community and in my social circles were affected. Things changed in the workplace. Things are ever changing at church. And as my children grew up and the nest has begun to empty, family dynamics are changing. To our surprise, my husband's job ended at the very beginning of 2022, which brought another round of changes to consider! (He started a new position in February, and moving was a change we did not have to deal with after all!) Fast forward to the fall of 2022, and the new job ended, and we did have to make a move and cope with a lot of changes! I know very well that writing about coping with change is not the same as having all the answers. I'll do my best to share what I'm learning and experiencing, and I'd love to hear from others in the comments. I didn't finish writing and posting everything at the tail end of the challenge, so I think maybe these last couple of prompts were serendipitously left for me to write about now, as I'm reflecting on the most recent changes I've had to cope with.

This post is part of the Write 28 Days Blogging Challenge hosted by Anita Ojeda. Find all my posts for the 2022 challenge here: 28 Days of Coping With Change

Although not linked at Five Minute Friday due to the holiday break, this post more or less follows my usual Five Minute Friday format.

This post will be linked at Inspire Me Monday and at Let's Have Coffee hosted by Joanne Viola: Days and Thoughts

 

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