I’m so tired – maybe you are, too?

I used to find myself exhausted at this time of year because the demands of my kids’ schedules kept me running from morning til night. These next few weeks were supposed to be a blur of rehearsals, recitals, concerts, end of the school year events, and final exams. But April and May are cancelled. 

I’m tired. But I’m not tired from my life. I’m tired of this life. I’m tired of the isolation, the uncertainty, and the monotony. I’m tired of the daily routine of cook – clean – repeat. I’m tired of deleting events from my calendar that I had really looked forward to. I’m tired of not knowing how or when this will end.  

As I dragged the weariness in my heart to the Lord this morning, He brought this promise to mind: 

“He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” (Isaiah 40:29-31)

God gave Isaiah these words of comfort and encouragement for the Israelites who would one day be carted off to exile in Babylon. They would feel like their world had been turned upside down. They would be weary of their strange new way of life. They would wonder when and if life would ever be normal again. 

In the midst of their weariness, God gave them this promise: He will renew their strength. To those who have no might—who are laid out on the floor thinking they can’t take one more step—He will supply the power they need to run and not be weary. 

The verse right before this reassurance gives us the proof that God can keep His promise: 

“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable.” (Isaiah 40:28)

Our God is the everlasting God who created the universe. He never gets tired, and He never lacks understanding. And He promises His sufficient, sustaining, satisfying strength to those who call out to Him. 

No matter what you face this week, the Lord gives strength to the weary. 

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Back in the days when we used to travel to other states (that will happen again someday, right?!), my daughter stared up at the snow-covered Rocky Mountains rising above her. Her small voice said what the rest of us were thinking: “Whenever I see the mountains around me, I feel so small.” 

Often the challenges in our lives feel like mountains and make us feel small. Right now we are all facing the mountain of a global pandemic and all the struggles that come with it. Maybe you were facing other difficulties before this crisis, and now your mountain has turned into an entire mountain range.

Where do you turn when your problems seem like giant mountains you can’t conquer? How do you even begin when you feel weakened by anxiety, sadness, and overwhelm? 

When the stresses of life are looming, remember these words from Psalm 121:  

“I lift my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth.” (Psalm 121:1-2)

When you look at those mountains and see your smallness, remember the limitless One who created all things. The snow-covered mountains, the depths of the ocean, the infant knitted in his mother’s womb . . . everywhere around us, God is giving us a glimpse of His power, goodness, and might.  

The God who raised those mountains from the ground? He’s planned my future.  

The Lord who holds the ocean depths in the palm of His hand? He loves me with an everlasting love.  

My Father who knit me together in my mother’s womb? Every cell in my body answers to Him.  

When you see the mountain before you and cry out to the Lord for help, you are depending on the One created the universe and upholds it by His will. He has promised to be your Helper and your Deliverer. He can keep all His promises because He rules over all that He has made. Let the wonders of His creation remind you of His power and might at work in your life and in your circumstances.  

No matter what you face this week, your help comes from the Maker of heaven and earth.  

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As we start the 4^th week of social distancing and #covidtine, it feels like knowing what day it is hardly matters. But this week is different. This week we remember and celebrate the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This Sunday, I won’t let my family worship in their pjs, much to their dismay! We’re going to get dressed and take a photo to look back on and remember this Easter when everything was different. 

All these changes in our way of life have been forced upon us because of the threat of death. If this virus didn’t kill so often, we wouldn’t be quarantined in our homes, we wouldn’t be cancelling school, and we wouldn’t be willing to shut down our economy as we attempt to slow its spread. Our world has come face-to-face with death in a way that we haven’t before in our lifetime. 

As we take these drastic measures to preserve life, we can do so with hope in the One who willingly gave His life to conquer death for us: 

“But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep . . . ‘Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?’” (I Cor. 15:20 and 55, NIV)

Friend, this is good news: Jesus is alive! He is a suffering Savior who died in your place and also a reigning King who conquered the power of death. We read in Revelation 1:18 that Jesus holds the keys to death and hades. Death has no power over Him.

Our risen Savior is the firstfruits of the resurrection. “Firstfruits” implies that there are more resurrection fruits to come! When He stepped out of the grave, He made a way for us to have new life in Him now and eternal life with Him forever. Death has no power over Him, and it also has no power over those of us who are in Christ. 

And so even though we feel the pain of death here temporarily, we can look at Christ’s empty grave and say with Paul, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” Jesus Christ took the sting of death for us, so we can face the threat of death with confident hope in Him. 

No matter what you face this week, the risen Christ conquered death for you. 

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How is your heart responding to your new way of life during the coronavirus crisis? The first week, I think I was mostly in shock. The second week, the shock started to wear off and sadness kept creeping in. And now as we face the third week of feeling like we’re living in a movie that we never wanted to see, the questions keep reverberating in my mind: “How long? When will this end? How will life ever be normal again?” 

I’m tired, stressed, and scared, and I think if I just knew how and when this would be over, I could face each day with more endurance, hope, and peace. And yet, God isn’t giving us the answers we desperately crave. I think I know why. 

If I knew an end date, I’d be tempted to trust my ability to manage life until then. When I don’t know how this will end, I must place my trust in the One who knows and who will provide what I need for each day. The Lord is asking us to look ahead at an unknown future and trust Him every morning. 

“But this I call to mind, and therefore I have hope: The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” (Lamentations 3:21-23)

We don’t know how long this will last. But we know that it won’t outlast God’s steadfast love, His endless mercies, or His great faithfulness. As He provides for the lilies of the field and the birds in the trees, He will provide for us, His beloved children. 

When we look ahead and wonder how we’ll cope next week or next month, we will grow anxious. This is so hard for me – I want to be prepared and plan for every possibility. But God is asking us to trust Him for today and not worry about tomorrow. All our tomorrows are resting securely in His hands. His faithfulness will be sufficient no matter what comes. We can let Him take care of all the worries of tomorrow as He faithfully provides for us today. 

No matter what you face this week, your hardship will not outlast God’s faithfulness. 

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