Instead of Doing That, Do This

Isaiah 57:10(NLT)
“You grew weary in your search, but you never gave up. Desire gave you renewed strength, and you did not grow weary.”

How many Christians do you know today that are tired of life and are constantly feeling like there’s no good left in the world?  Christians are not exempt from trials and tribulations, and life has a way of moving at a pace some of us don’t like. We either wish it would speed up a bit faster or slow down to meet us at our comfort level. There are so many people that are saved by the blood of the lamb, but we’re not as overjoyed about it as we should be. The toils of life seem very heavy on our shoulders, and some of us might be tempted to think that nothing will make us feel better about our lives.

A believer in the Lord Jesus Christ told me that he just doesn’t feel the need to get out of bed anymore, and that it takes so much mental energy just to do the simple things in life. Anyone that knows anything about tribulations knows that the devil tries to really do a number on you. The mental and emotional exhaustion from both internal and external pressures can leave you weary and depleted. This isn’t what God wants for us. It’s bondage, and we must have confidence that there is a better way for us to live. Jesus Christ said in John 8:32(NLT) that when we know the truth, the truth will make us free. Many of us will not stretch our minds to believe this. We’re seeking everything else but the truth.

Fear keeps so many of us in bondage. You might be thinking, “What does fear have to do with feeling exhausted from the pressures of life?” Fear is the thing that tricks our minds into believing that exhaustion is our only option. When we’ve suffered abuse, even if it was years ago, the trauma can become locked in our bodies, and it is corrosive. It can turn into chronic illness and pain if unaddressed. We don’t want to hurt anymore, so we develop walls around ourselves—around our hearts—and they keep us locked in, and if we’re not careful, they can also keep love locked out. Fear and pain try to convince us that God will not shine His light in our lives, but He will. We must give Him a chance. He will change our dark nights to sunny days if we will allow Him to do it. Fear manifests itself in many ways, but the good news is that we don’t have to know all the details of our pain to be healed from it. We simply must be willing to give it over to Christ. 

We have to feed our minds, souls, and spirits the right stuff.  Pain, weariness, fear, loneliness, and emotional exhaustion, these show us that we are works in progress. We’re not perfect, but we are being perfected in Christ each day. We need to let God’s Word mold and shape us into the person He has called us to be, and this means we have to seek God and pursue Him with faith. Isaiah 40:31 (NLT) tells us, “But those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.” Trusting God is our life, and when we run low on trust, life will reflect our depleted state. The answer isn’t to concede to this pattern and continue expecting the worse. The answer is to make a greater commitment to feed our minds and hearts the Word of God. 

God is our strength! When you feel like you can’t go on any longer, his love will carry you through. Jesus Christ said in Luke 18:1 that we need to pray at all times and not lose heart. In Galatians 6:9, God tells us not to grow weary in well-doing, because in due time, we’re going to reap a harvest if we don’t give up. Instead of being comfortable with feeling low, make even the smallest change to surrender your burdens to God with a heart that believes in His power and love. Pray and ask Him to renew a right spirit within you, and ask Him to give you a new heart. Be committed to never look back, and let the Lord show you how He heals, restores, and makes everything better.■ 

New King James Version (NKJV)
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved. 

“Instead of Doing That, Do This”, written by Kim for https://rescuefromdomesticviolence.blogspot.com© 2020. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.