Burned Out

 

Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, gin whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice. He will not grow faint or be discouraged till he has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for his law. (Isaiah 42:1-4 ESV).

 

After writing yesterday’s devotional, I was prompted to go just a bit further with the thought of “Bruised Reeds and Smoldering Wicks.” We hear a lot about burnout these days in the service professions: social workers, teachers, police officers, pastors, medical workers, and more. When your work focuses on serving people in distress, it’s difficult not to become distressed too. It can be unsettling to pour your heart and soul into helping others, and in the end to see little improvement and receive little gratitude.

 

With this in mind, we realize that Jesus is profoundly remarkable: “In faithfulness he will bring forth justice; he will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on earth.”

 

So, if you are faltering or discouraged, or are you supporting someone who is today’s reading is especially for you. Of course, you don’t need to be a service professional to experience burnout. Families often face wearying times. And working to love people in our communities who are grieving, dealing with broken relationships, or experiencing mental health struggles takes a toll on everyone. As our lifespans get longer and longer, more and more people are also serving as caregivers for elderly parents.

 

You and I are not Jesus; rather, we are called to be his followers. Because he does not falter or become discouraged, we can give ourselves permission to feel discouraged. And we can surrender our discouragement to him; we can let that part of us die too, and we can trust that at the right time (perhaps even a long time from now) we will be replenished and able to see the wonder of it all. We will know the grace of it all. We will experience joy even in those times when we felt we could not take another step forward.