I was noticing today how many people I’ve talked to that said they were tired. But I feel the better word for what they are feeling is downtrodden. Treated very badly by people of power, but do not gave the ability or the energy to do anything about it. Yes, I think that about sums his up.
We are all running a little tired right now. When we buy something for ourselves like a new cell phone or tablet, the feeling is amazing. The device runs fast and the battery seems to last forever. But our old device doesn’t work as well as it used to. You put on the charger at night and the next day it might be charged to 80%, and then it gets worse from there.
That’s a pretty good description of a lot of people right now. The last few years have been difficult for all of us. We’ve been in a burnout.
Along with covid, masks, social distancing, to riots, and the stressful inflation on everything, crime in the streets. These year’s has affected everyone differently.
Let me give you a little hope, in Isaiah 40 God’s people were in exile. It was intended for people who rebelled and had the destruction of God’s land -Isreal. They felt demoralized, exhausted, hopeless, and on the edge of despair. They felt like God had abandoned them, and there was no future left.
Isaiah 40 starts out by saying,
Comfort, comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her.”
God’s people needed comfort at this point. They were tired and discouraged and needed hope. And that’s what God gives them. We end up with one of the more encouraging verses in all of scripture.
God’s people need to start looking at what God is doing and not what’s going on the news, or social media. There is reason for us go hang in there when we feel tired.
Isaiah 40:1-26 tells us that we should not give up because there is nobody who compares in majesty to our God. When you get a glimpse at who God is and what He is willing to do for you, that He comes to you in overwhelming glory to restore what js broken, and conform you.
Our greatest need we have in this broken and discouraging world is to lift our eyes and see God for who He really is. God is our only hope, and the worse the world gets, the more we need Him.
It is in God’s strength that we not only endure what’s going on around us but also advance. To find hope for our tired souls we need only look up and away from our situations. We can rely on His promises with expectancy, confidence, faith, and trust. And “He will lift us up on eagles wings so that we can run and not be weary, walk than not be faint.” (Isaiah 40:31).
From Pity to Praise 