Photo by Phadon Pisuttiwong Have you ever felt emotionally exhausted? Personally, I find emotional exhaustion to often be worse than physical exhaustion. There are some days when I had a full night’s rest and would still awaken fatigued. How could this be? That question once plagued me. However, with time it was ultimately easy for me to discern that my lack of rejuvenation was due to the poor emotional condition I attempted to “rest” in. How can the body rest when the mind is consumed with a perpetual cycle of unhealthy, self-defeating thoughts? It was no wonder I was not refreshed when I would awaken the following morning.
Even though I, or rather we, may not want to admit it, often the debilitating torment of emotional exhaustion is self-inflicted. Naturally, we may first want to dispute this argument, especially if our emotions are in response to an attack or wrongdoing of another. However, even if our initial anguish is the result of the sins or transgressions of another; an inability to allow restoration of emotional health to its optimal state is generally a personal doing. Though others may harm and commit crimes against us, ultimately, no person on this earth can control our feelings, emotions and responses. We are not powerless over the state of our emotional well being, we determine the power and influence we allot to any given person or issue. Though life and all of its issues may push us to the brink, we voluntarily dive into the cyst pool of worry, stress, anxiety and emotional exhaustion. Given our dive into emotional exhaustion is voluntary, we can refuse to jump and we can instead choose to thrive in the midst of the adversity, thereby maintaining our peace of mind.
How so? By trusting in the Word of God. More reassuring than our personal role in resisting and combating emotional exhaustion is what God has promised He will do for the weary of heart. Isaiah 40: 28-31 (ESV) states, “Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.” So my dear friend, soar over the valleys of emotional exhaustion and heed to the Word of God, forever trusting He is with you, empowering and strengthening you along the way. God bless!
Photo by Rodion Kutsaev
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