You know, when you’re tired, it’s reflected in your voice, in your face, in your body language, in your attitude. It affects all areas of your life. So, it is something to consider and by God’s grace to control in our lives. Otherwise, you can find yourself on a not-so-merry merry-go-round!
First, let me assure you it’s okay to be tired. It’s not necessarily a sin. Jesus was often tired while he was here on earth. You remember when he went to sleep on the boat and a terrible storm didn’t awaken him? He was tired.
Have you ever been tired from traveling? You may see travel as exciting, which doesn’t sound like hard work, nonetheless travel can be very exhausting. We read in John 4 that Jesus was tired from a long journey. He understands that kind of tiredness.
Sometimes having a lot of people around is tiring, isn’t it? As much as I enjoy being with people, speaking and getting to know new people, I find that after a time of being surrounded with people, I’m tired—not of people, just mentally and physically tired. I think there is abundant evidence that Jesus frequently grew tired from having so many people crowding around him all the time.
He also grew weary from dealing with people who were not always so easy or pleasant to deal with. You can hear the exhaustion in his voice in Matthew 17:17:
“You unbelieving and perverse generation,” Jesus replied, “how long shall I stay with you? How long shall I put up with you?”
I think, like us, he was just tired of the hassle that people sometimes brought into his life.
I’m not sure which is the most tiring—physical or mental exhaustion. But it’s for sure that as long as we are in these earthbound bodies, we will be tired and weary at times. Jesus was tired in body often and also tired mentally, just like you and me.
It’s good to know that Jesus understands our tired bodies and minds, because he experienced all it while he took the form of man here on earth. He sympathizes with our weaknesses and the limitations we face. Just knowing that helps me a lot.
Jesus was tired from bodily exhaustion because he was continually involved in giving his life for others. Giving of yourself to others’ needs is tiring, both physically, mentally and emotionally. Is that why you’re tired today? Have you been doing and giving to others so much that you’re truly tired from it? That’s to be expected when you are a caregiver and a servant of others. Jesus calls us to a life of service, that’s true, but he also understands it is tiring.
You remember how exhausted Elijah was after his victorious encounter with Baal, where he performed mighty miracles of God and defeated the enemies. He was so tired, he wanted to die. You should expect to be tired and weary after a spiritual high. Maybe God has been using you in an unusual way, and you’ve seen God’s blessings on your life. Remember after those times to expect to feel tired and weary.
There are many occasions in Scripture where we see the disciples tired. They were so tired that sometimes they fell asleep at inappropriate times. Our physical bodies have limitations, and we must understand and accept that they will be tired.
But it’s important to consider if you are tired for the wrong reasons. Have you been trying to be all things to all people lately? That’s exhausting and you can never succeed. Perhaps you’ve taken on jobs God never intended you to do, and you’re tired from trying to do too much. Maybe you’re trying to do everything to total perfection. Perfectionists are usually very tired people, trying to prove something to themselves and to the world by being perfect all the time.
Lately God has been quietly showing me that there is only one Savior in this world, and it is not me! I cannot solve other’s problems or concerns, as much as I may want to. Does that strike a chord with you? Are your overhelping and rescuing inclinations running on overdrive? It can happen even when your motivation and intentions are good.
Our culture is in fast forward mode. Everything about us is geared for speed, and that is very tiring. You would think with all our modern conveniences today, life would be easier for us, and we’d be less tired. But it isn’t true, is it? Our time saving technology seems to have made us more tired.
And then, let’s face it, sometimes we are the guilty party, don’t you agree? Do you find you are often your own worst enemy because you unnecessarily push yourself too far, too often. I remember when my daughter was a teenager, and we had chosen some new wallpaper for her room. It was lovely, and it was my intention to install the wallpaper that day. As I found myself rushed and stressed because I had decided it must be done that day, my daughter simply said, “Mom, we don’t have to do it today.”
I remember that moment because it was a new thought—to just stop and say, “I don’t have to do this today.” I had set an unnecessary and unrealistic expectation of myself, causing unwarranted stress for my daughter and me.
When you’re tired because of unrealistic expectations and pressures you put on yourself, it’s time to ask, “Why am I imposing these unrealistic expectations on myself?” Perhaps you need to take a red marker and get rid of a few items on your schedule.
It’s easy to get our priorities confused, and that is very tiring. When you get the cart before the horse, you’ll find yourself in burn-out mode quite easily. Someone has said, “There’s always time to do God’s will,” and I think it’s true that God would never ask of us more than our bodies and minds can do without going into overload and burn-out. But when we confuse our priorities, it causes weariness and exhaustion.
Let me say to you again what I so often have to say to myself: God has not called you to be a superwoman or superman. He is not asking you to do everything and do it perfectly. When Jesus was here on earth, he refused to do many things asked of him. He knew how to say “no.” Do you?
There’s one principle which we see throughout Scripture that we need to understand, and that is that God has ordained periods of rest for us. The Old Testament law ensures that people took one day out of seven for absolute rest. He established the Year of Jubilee, when every seven years the land would be rested for one full year so it could refresh itself. God knows we must have periods of rest for tired bodies and minds.
How about it? Have you been neglecting those needed rest periods? You may think you don’t have time for them, but the truth is, you can’t afford to neglect them. If you don’t make certain that your body has one in seven days to refresh, you’re going to discover you’re always tired.
Another thing I notice in Scripture is we have to allow others to help us. In Exodus 17, we see a moment when Moses got tired. He was holding up his arms as the people of Israel fought the Amalekites. As long as he held up his arms, they won, but when he lowered his arms, the enemy won. However, Moses got tired trying to keep holding up his arms. So, we see in verse 12 that Aaron got on one side of Moses and Hur on the other, and they held his arms up for him.
Moses had a job to do for God but he needed help. He grew tired doing God’s work. I have to confess that sometimes I have a wrong perception that I can abuse my body and ignore my needed rest as long as I’m doing God’s work. But God is teaching me his principles of needed rest apply, even when we’re involved in ministry for him.
God wasn’t asking Moses to do it all by himself. He sent needed helpers alongside him. Maybe you’re trying to do it all by yourself today, and you need to ask for help. Or you might need to volunteer to walk alongside someone in ministry and tell them you’ll be glad to hold up their arms.
Two principles about being tired: We must have rest periods—the equivalent of one day in seven—and we must share the workload. Many hands make light work, and how true it is that when we share the load, it’s so much easier.
I know when I’m tired, I need encouragement. When someone is tired, that is not the time to offer advice or criticism or start making plans for the future. It is a time to simply encourage. So, I want to give you some encouragement.
First, let me read a poem that really encourages me:
Dear child, God does not say today, “Be strong;”
He knows your strength is spent; He knows how long
The road has been, how weary you have grown,
For He who walked the earthly roads alone,
Each bogging lowland, and each rugged hill,
Can understand, and so He says, “Be still,
And know that I am God.” The hour is late,
And you must rest awhile, and you must wait
Until life’s empty reservoirs fill up
As slow rain fills an empty upturned cup.
Hold up your cup, dear child, for God to fill.
He only asks today that you be still.1
Grace Noll Crowell
Are you tired and weary today? Just turn your empty cup to God. Admit your weariness; that’s a good place to start. And then start searching your mind, your schedule, and your lifestyle to see if you are causing some of this tiredness unnecessarily. Are you trying to be a super-person? Are you trying to do everything to total perfection? Have you never learned how to say “no”? Do you have some confused priorities which contribute to the problem? Are you always in rush mode? How about those rest periods? Do you make certain that you have times of rest for your body and mind?
Take a good look at these areas in your life and confess to the Lord anything that needs to be changed. Then turn your empty cup up to him and ask him to fill it for you. Remember, he understands what it’s like to be tired; he’s been there, and he knows how to refresh you.
And nothing can fill that cup like God’s Word, so let me give you some priceless treasures from the Bible right straight to your tired body and mind:
Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint (Isaiah 40:28-31).
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30).
Nothing refreshes like God’s Word; like simply sitting still and knowing that he is God. I know you have duties and responsibilities that cannot be ignored, but I remind you that perhaps you are often guilty of trying to do too much, reluctant to ask help from others. And when that happens, resentment and anger can start to build up in your heart. Then without realizing it, your service for others becomes a drudgery—a drain, a slog. And the joy of the Lord is gone, which means you lose the strength you need, and you are doubly tired.
I encourage you to examine your priorities, your lifestyle, and your commitments. Make sure you are doing what God wants you to do, you’re not trying to please everybody—because you can’t—and you are resting in the knowledge that God will give you the strength you need to do his will.
Sources:

Grace Noll Crowell, “For One Who Is Tired.”