Six days we work; the seventh is the Sabbath. The day of rest. When I'm tired and I think, "How the heck am I going to make it through the sixth (or seventh) service this weekend?" I remind myself, "Hang in there. Monday (our day of rest) is coming."
When we've been doing 10, 12 weekends in a row with no break, I think, "Hang in there. Vacation is coming. And then I'll sit and let God fill my soul back up with hope and joy and refreshment so I can start pouring back into others when I get home."
When I've had at least one sick child (or husband) almost every single day for almost FOUR weeks including Easter week, I think, "Hang in there. They'll all be healthy soon."
At this point, I haven't had a moment to myself (or so it feels) in ... hmmm ... forever, I think ... Frankly, I'm pretty tired, because...you know, it's always SOMETHING. I create space for myself to have alone, such as Fridays when Eric is writing his weekend talk and I don't go into the office. But when your kiddos are home sick or there's no school (such as Good Friday), it doesn't happen.
I love my life. I wake up in the morning and thank God I get to do my job, whether it's in the office or at home. I celebrate joyfully each life change story I get to hear. I dig with tenacity into the hard parts of my job. I change the paint color in my entryway. I take snacks to school for Teacher Appreciation Week. I do stuff everyone else does and some stuff no one would want to do. But I wouldn't ask for a different life.
Um, wow, this post is wandering a bit. I think when I sat down to write it, this is what I wanted to encourage you to do: Understand yourself enough to protect yourself.
What I mean is this: When you're tired, worn out, etc., guard yourself so you don't screw up.
As I believe I mentioned, right now I'm tired (one night this week I fell asleep before 8:30 pm on the couch, with my family doing their thing all around me; I slept nearly 12 hours). I know myself well enough to know that when I'm tired, I should keep my mouth shut. I should MISTRUST my emotions, because they aren't ruled by truth. When I feel frustrated by my family members or my brain starts to swirl with a "victim mentality," I need to "take those thoughts captive and make them obedient to Christ"--speaking the truth instead and shaming/binding the devil, who wants to make me believe that everything's horrible. And I bind in Jesus' name the spirit of victim mentality and turn to gratitude instead...and then tell myself "Hang in there" until something good is coming.
Because even if it's not something big-good, like a vacation, it can be little-good, like the time after 8 tonight when my kiddos will be in bed & I can snuggle with Eric. Or the coffee I'll drink in the morning in my back porch, which is finally warm enough to use. Or dinner at Hell's Kitchen tomorrow night for our anniversary. Or this weekend when God does cool stuff. Or next week when I get to go to Nashville for a retreat (yay!).
If you're tired today, keep your mouth shut, take those thoughts captive to the obedience of Christ. Then you won't think stuff that's not true, and you won't spew stuff you don't mean to the people you love most.
Hang in there. Something good is coming, even if it's just the garbage truck coming in the morning to empty your can.
