"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me--watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace." Jesus, as paraphrased in The Message
When that happens, where do you go for refilling? The answer for many people is to get away from the burdens of life. Plan a trip. Take a sabbatical. Just drop out. For others, the answer comes in trying to get fulfillment by doing something else. Take up a new challenge. Find a new hobby. Do something extreme.
I firmly believe that there is a place for some of these things in life. For example, in just a couple of weeks, I am taking up a new challenge in running a full marathon for the first time in my life. Sometimes that break from routine, or succeeding at that new challenge and riding the wave of accomplishment, can snap us out of the doldrums. But even then, it's only temporary.
I really like how Eugene Peterson puts Jesus' words at the end of Matthew 11 in The Message. "I'll show you how to take a real rest...learn the unforced rhythms of grace." Most often in life, we find our source of renewal and strength in the relationships we have. How much greater is it when we find that renewal and strength in the relationship with the God who has made us and redeemed us?
This isn't to say that you are going to completely recover from being burnt out by going on a prayer retreat, or some other kind of spiritual renewal. There is a time and place for those, but if those are the only times you spend with Jesus, you'll find that your renewal is, again, only temporary.
Renewal and new strength comes when we find ourselves in a regular relationship with Jesus, who shows us those unforced rhythms of grace. Instead of waiting til our tank is empty, a regular relationship with Jesus is more like filling up the tank even when it is still mostly full. Jesus doesn't intend His grace to fill us only when our tanks hit empty, but instead, it is to be as though we are hooked up to a refueling tanker throughout life. That constant relationship with Jesus keeps the tank full.
That's the relationship Jesus has with you. His death and resurrection has already secured God's grace for you. As a question worth pondering, I encourage you to think about this. When you find that you are empty and spent, do you have places in your life where you are pinching off God's grace to you in Jesus?
Every once in a while it happens to all of us. We put a lot of effort into something, only to see a minimal return. We get frustrated. We put our all into it, and the results seem too meager. We try again, only a little harder, and nothing changes (or if something changes, it seems that the results are even less). We wonder if it's all worth it, and feel our hopes fall, our energy drained, and our life spent.
When that happens, where do you go for refilling? The answer for many people is to get away from the burdens of life. Plan a trip. Take a sabbatical. Just drop out. For others, the answer comes in trying to get fulfillment by doing something else. Take up a new challenge. Find a new hobby. Do something extreme.
I firmly believe that there is a place for some of these things in life. For example, in just a couple of weeks, I am taking up a new challenge in running a full marathon for the first time in my life. Sometimes that break from routine, or succeeding at that new challenge and riding the wave of accomplishment, can snap us out of the doldrums. But even then, it's only temporary.
I really like how Eugene Peterson puts Jesus' words at the end of Matthew 11 in The Message. "I'll show you how to take a real rest...learn the unforced rhythms of grace." Most often in life, we find our source of renewal and strength in the relationships we have. How much greater is it when we find that renewal and strength in the relationship with the God who has made us and redeemed us?
This isn't to say that you are going to completely recover from being burnt out by going on a prayer retreat, or some other kind of spiritual renewal. There is a time and place for those, but if those are the only times you spend with Jesus, you'll find that your renewal is, again, only temporary.
Renewal and new strength comes when we find ourselves in a regular relationship with Jesus, who shows us those unforced rhythms of grace. Instead of waiting til our tank is empty, a regular relationship with Jesus is more like filling up the tank even when it is still mostly full. Jesus doesn't intend His grace to fill us only when our tanks hit empty, but instead, it is to be as though we are hooked up to a refueling tanker throughout life. That constant relationship with Jesus keeps the tank full.
That's the relationship Jesus has with you. His death and resurrection has already secured God's grace for you. As a question worth pondering, I encourage you to think about this. When you find that you are empty and spent, do you have places in your life where you are pinching off God's grace to you in Jesus?
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