Spiritually Tired

Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest                                           Matthew 11:28 (KJV)

Yesterday I talked about “The Tireds”, and I explained the three types of feeling fatigue- physical, spiritual and mental/emotional. I went on to say that the remedies for these three types are different. For physical fatigue, we need rest and sleep. For mental/emotional fatigue, I suggested physical exercise which refreshes our mind, and gives better blood flow to the entire body, including the brain. This helps our thinking to become clearer, and allows us the pause to think with a “renewed mind”.

Spiritual fatigue is something we rarely discuss. I must first say that spiritual fatigue looks like doubt, anger, hopelessness, feeling abandoned by God, disappointed by the church (or Church- there is a difference), or even apathy. There can be any number of feelings associated with such fatigue, but those feelings are just that- feelings. We have a right to our feelings, but we must own them and not blame anyone else for them. When negative feelings occur, we need to do something about them. Brooding or going to a place of victimhood are surefire poisons.

So, what are the remedies for spiritual fatigue? Truth and the expression of it. We must honestly own those negative feelings, then express them to safe people. To put that simply, the remedies are truth and fellowship.

Our anger at God, our doubts, disappointments, etc. are all things that God is not surprised at. He is the Maker, so he knows us very well. Being honest with God, and expressing to “safe” others our negative feelings is freeing. Yes, you know, the Truth sets us free.

I suggest that feeling guilty about being angry at God is not healthy or helpful. Sometimes letting others know our feelings about our sense of disappointment with God is just the thing to unlock that spiritual fatigue.

Finally, as I tell my clients, we can visit those places of our disappointment with God, but we can’t live there. Process those feelings honestly, and know that God is there in the end.

Prayer: Lord, we thank you for knowing us and accepting us right where we are. Send your refreshing Spirit to those who are suffering, Amen