Proverbs 30:1 Worn Out
Have you ever felt worn out? I would say 99.999% of us have at one time or another. Where do you turn when this happens to you? God is waiting to lift our burden.
We are introduced to a new writer of proverbs. He doesn’t speak to us anywhere else in scriptures but what he says is ‘spot on’ for all of us. The first of these is his comment on being worn out. I believe we ALL experience this from time to time. How we deal with it is what matters.
When I’m weary, I get frustrated much easier. I tend to verbally snap at those who test my patience during those times. There is a shirt that I identify so clearly with! It says; “I had my patience tested. I’m negative.” There is another that has a picture of a perturbed being, sometimes a rooster, other times a cat, and sometimes even a young child. It says; “Why y’all trying to test the Jesus in me?” This is how I feel when I’m tired, or more accurately tired of what I’m doing at the time.
There are other reactions to being weary, worn out, or just plain tired. Some go somewhere to hide and get some “alone time.” This is a fairly helpful one IF you can do it. Some of us don’t get to go very far from our ‘challenges’ and if/when we do we worry about them while we are away. So stress reducing, NOT!
Another reaction is to cry. Tears can help cleanse the soul of hurt or angry emotions but if you don’t do something after the good cry nothing gets resolved. It takes a lot of energy for a good cry too. It exhausts me in more ways than the original weary did.
There is the option to go out somewhere secluded and SCREAM out your frustrations. If you can’t get away a pillow can muffle the sound but you still run the risk of bringing uninvited spectators who want to know “what’s wrong” with you. And it really turns bad if you remove the pillow and scream at the person you’re are weary of dealing with. That can be a relationship breaker or a spirit breaker for the other person.
Then there is the ‘bottle it up tight’ way of dealing with being weary. You keep stuffing your feelings and trudging on. This is NOT a healthy long-term solution. Shake a bottle of soda and see what happens when the lid is turned even a little bit. What has been stirred up inside comes roaring to the surface. This leads to ulcers and burnout instead of a solution.
The ‘climb under the covers and sleep it away’ method has its advantages. Your body is probably in need of that rest but that doesn’t solve the problem. If left to go on too long it turns into depression and a full withdrawal from the world. Nothing gets solved; it only gets heavier.
And the solution we are hoping we all finally come to involves talking. Talking to the ones who care about you and talking to God about it all. Ask Him to lighten the burden. Even if the tasks never go away, He can change your heart about those tasks. I’m living proof of that.
When I first began caring for my husband full time, it didn’t seem that big to me. Each new hurdle was another test of my ingenuity. As time wore on, the day to day over and Over and OVER again nature of it began to wear me down. Then the little things began to bother me. The requests for one more thing right after I left the room, or for me to do tasks that should have been easy for him to do (or so I thought). It got old and I got grumpy. This couldn’t be allowed to continue. It was impacting my ‘love’ (really like) for my husband.
I am unable to tell him these things because they would crush his spirit. So, I had to do something else. I started asking God to help me with my frustration level. It is still a work in progress but I started turning to humor. I look for the funny things in all we do. I found ways to make us both laugh. And when we laughed, my heart lifted a little more each time. I now enjoy finding new ways to label things just to make him laugh. (I’m smiling now just thinking about it.) I could NOT have done this without help from my Heavenly Father. Telling Him how I felt and asking Him to help change my attitude saved both of us; my husband and myself. Things currently are on the weightier side in his care but my heart isn’t weary anymore; or at least very often. I don’t know what tomorrow holds, but as long as God is holding my hand, I WILL get through it and find a way to laugh in it.
Father God, THANK YOU FOR THE LAUGHTER! I know You shared this same thing with me before; laughter, but I seem to have forgotten. Thanks for the refresher course. Help me with my frustration; especially over the little things. I don’t know for certain what lies ahead and that scares me. But I DO know that You will be with me IN ALL OF IT! You won’t make me walk alone. Remind me to bring my weariness to You; the ONLY One who can truly help me. Right now Father, I’m physically tired. Help me rest well tonight and wake refreshed.
Two songs that are running through my head now:
