I have given rest to the weary and joy to the sorrowing.
Jeremiah 31:25 (NLT)
Weariness is hard to define. It’s so much more than fatigue from a deficit of sleep. Weariness is a mixture of tiredness, discouragement, and lassitude which drags at every bone and sinew of our being. Sleep alone won’t fix weariness. Like a house that is rundown inside and out, both our body and spirit need some repairs.
As I researched the topic in the context of autism, I was prepared to find quite a few blogs and articles about weariness in parents and caregivers; raising a child who’s on the autism spectrum can be physically and mentally draining. And I did – no big surprise there. I also found a multitude of blog posts by individuals on the spectrum who regularly battle weariness as a direct result of their diagnosis. Coping with sensory overload, anxiety, depression, and fears, on top of the regular stressors of everyday life leaves them constantly drained.
Thankfully, there is hope for the weary. That hope is found in God who has promised to give rest to the weary and joy to the sorrowing. “That’s a wonderful promise,” you say. “But that doesn’t help me right now when I’m so worn out I can’t even pray.”
I get it. I’ve been there. I went through a time when simply getting out of bed was an achievement. But there is hope for the weary. My breakthrough came when I read John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.”
My weariness was the result of too much ‘doing’ and not enough ‘being.’ When I stopped trying to rely on my own strength, my own wisdom, my own resources, and leaned into the One who fills me with all this and more, then the burden felt lighter and easier to bear. Because, ultimately, my struggles became His. And He is so much better equipped and able to deal with them than me.
Thought: “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
For further reading:
- John 15:1-8
- Matthew 11:28-30
- Hebrews 12:3
- Isaiah 40:27-31
Excerpt from my devotional, A Year in God’s Classroom