Escaping Exhaustion

Pastors Blake and Andrew Cromwell

Feeling exhausted and overloaded? You’re not the only one. The fact is that most of us feel overloaded and overtired at sometime or another. The problem is that our lives are speeding up not slowing down, and we have less and less space for the times of rejuvenation that our souls so desperately need. In fact, we’re so busy that sometimes we ignore the fact that we’re exhausted and heading for serious overload.

For those of us who haven’t had time to evaluate whether we’re exhausted or not, let me outline a few symptoms of exhaustion taken from the life of Elijah (I Kings 19:1-16). If you find that several of these symptoms are characteristic of your life, then it’s time to take action. Many of us will discover that we’re long past the symptomatic stage and have a full-blown case of overload. If that’s you, then be sure to read on, I’ll discuss the cure for exhaustion at the end of this article.

The Symptoms of Exhaustion

1. Having a negative self-image. Ever noticed that when you’re tired, things always look hopeless? It’s as if we completely loose our perspective. Every bad decision and every negative memory suddenly return to confront us. In a moment we go from being halfway decent people, to utter miscreants. There are two ways we go about rating ourselves in a negative way during these times: through negative comparison and through self-criticism.

Negative comparison is when we choose to compare ourselves to others who are "better" then us. We might compare ourselves to someone who is more successful financially, who is better looking physically, who has better communication skills, or who has a better family life. This exercise is devastating to our personal self-worth.

Self-criticism is when the voice of that inner critic begins to speak up and pick on everything we do or say. This inner critic second-guesses all of our motivations, our emotions, and our decisions. If we allow this voice to run uncontrolled, then we loose our ability to enjoy life and be content with who we are as people.

2. Devaluing our impact. When we’re tired and overwhelmed all of our efforts seem fruitless and futile. Perhaps we can remember back to those days when we felt that our work was worthwhile, or when we felt that the time we spent with our children was actually benefiting them. But today is a different story. Today, it seems that our efforts are useless. There are two ways we devalue ourselves: by trying to control everything and by losing our ability to accept imperfection from ourselves.

When we feel overwhelmed, we also feel out of control. Our natural response is to begin to try to control everything. Of course, this is impossible and the result is only more frustration. But the cycle doesn’t end there. Next we begin to malign ourselves because we think we should be able to handle it all. The final result is not only frustration, but also a loss of self worth because we are no longer able to see the progress we’re making in our particular area. All we can see is that life in general is out of our grasp.

Burnout also leads to an inability to accept our own limitations and imperfections. When we’re tired, we over-react at mistakes that are normal. We suddenly expect that we should perform at one hundred percent capacity and excellence or else we are total failures. This skewed view is self-perpetuating because we can’t help but make more mistakes when we’re exhausted.

3. Amplifying our problems. A tired mind is not able to handle the stresses of everyday life. Little things become big things just because they pop up at the wrong time. The electric bill suddenly looks three times larger then it did last month, the kids are three times more obnoxious, and the neighbor is three times more irritating. Usually, it’s the little things that seem the most overwhelming. We tend to amplify our problems in two ways: by listening to our feelings rather then the facts and by concentrating on the negative.

Listening to our feelings instead of the facts can be detrimental to our state of well-being. The problem with our feelings is that when we’re tired, they’re one of the first things to go. We all have had the experience of staying up just a little bit too late and suddenly feeling highly elated and like we could take on the world. Most of us know that in these moments of high-spirit, as soon as we tackle that project we thought we’d be able to complete in just a few moments, we want to break into tears because it suddenly seems impossible. Feelings are often deceiving.

Concentrating on the negative seems to be the rule of thumb when we’re tired. Everything looks bleak. Any optimism that might have buoyed our spirits at another time, has been lost at the bottom of the sea. The operative word at this stage is "impossible." Everything looks impossible because the only light that shines is a negative one.

4. Losing our vision. When we’re tired we loose our focus, both literally and figuratively. And just as a loss of focus is deadly on the road when we’re driving with tired eyes, loss of focus is also deadly when we’re forging ahead with a tired soul. There are two ways we loose our vision: by embracing despair and by believing it’s not worth it.

To embrace despair is to give up. It is a choice that shuts off all hope for the future. We must be careful to guard ourselves from this level of burnout. Always remember, there is hope, there is a future, and there is promise. God is for you, not against you.

Similarly, when we believe that it’s no longer worth the effort to continue, we choose to turn our backs on hope. This too must never be an option for us.

The Cure for Exhaustion

The cure for exhaustion is a dose of R — E — S — T. Resting your body, Expressing your feelings, Staying in His Presence, and Thinking about your destiny and rewards. These simple principles come from the biblical story of Elijah in 1 Kings chapter 19.

1. Rest Your Body. There are four ways you can do this. First, do something that is joy producing. Get out and get active. Switch up your routine and inject a little joy into it. Second, rearrange your schedule. Make time for activities that are out of the ordinary. Don’t get locked in to work. Third, get more exercise and rest. We all know the importance of treating our body correctly. It makes all the difference in the world when we’re able to get enough sleep. Fourth, delight yourself in food. Hey, enjoy a hot fudge Sunday once in a while, it’ll make you feel a whole lot better. Elijah after an exhausting time of work is encouraged to rest and refuel. He sleeps and eats as God’s angel watches over him.

2. Express Your Feelings. It is so very important to talk about what you are feeling inside. Tell God what you’re feeling. God says, "I’ll listen until you run out of words." God is not afraid of your feelings, He created them in the first place. Talk to Him. Elijah pours out his bitter complaint to God. There is no rebuke from God as Elijah is brutally honest about his confusion.

3. Stay in His Presence. It is so important to stay in God’s presence and to allow Him to heal your weary soul. There are four ways you can do this. First, wait on God. Just ask Him to come. Second, mediate on His Words. Spend some time reading the Scripture. Third, praise Him. Praise is a powerful weapon against the darkness of burnout. Sing a song and feel your heart lift! Fourth, surrender to Him. Remember, He’s in control anyway! Elijah runs away from the pressures of his life and yet he always runs into the arms of a loving God.

4. Think about your destiny and rewards. If the present seems to bleak at the moment, choose to focus on the future and on what God has in store for you. He wants the best for you and He desires to give you good things. Heaven is a very real promise to those who trust in Him. In the story of Elijah, God recharges him by telling him of his future work and rewards.

The next time you feel exhausted and discouraged I would encourage you to read about Elijah and practice these simple principles from his life. Also keep this in mind you are precious to Jesus.

Stop by of the churches in the Kings County this weekend and learn more about God’s truth for daily living.