What makes you weary?

Life is weary, sin is weary, work is weary. There’s no denying it—everyone experiences weariness, whether it be from one cause or another.

What makes you weary? I asked myself this question recently and came up with this list:

• Never gettting enough work done
• Fighting my own sin and facing the sins of others
• Fighting the enemy and his attacks on me
• Worrying about my future and trying to make plans
• My body hurting in sickness

As I reflected on these things I wondered: Should I be weary with them? Should I be weary at all? I decided to take a look at what Scripture has to say on weariness, and I found what the Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:

We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you. (2 Cor. 4:8–12, NIV)

What these verses describe is a lifetime of weariness. It would be a tragedy if this were where the story ended—but we have Jesus. What does Jesus say about weariness? What does Jesus know about weariness?

Jesus walked everywhere without the luxury of a car or the comfort of a home. Crowds followed him constantly as he healed the sick and fed the multitudes. He went without food for 40 days and nights while being tempted intensely by Satan. In the hours before his death, he was abandoned by his closest friends. He then died the more horrific death, in our place, for our sin, and called it all joy to the full! How did he live that kind of life and call it “joy”?

1. Jesus was secure in his identity (Mark 1:12–14). He resisted the enemy in the face of condemnation and temptation.
2. Jesus was in constant communication with the Father (John 5:1–21). What a privilege that we have the same Father!
3. Jesus spent time alone with his Father (Luke 5:16). How often do you withdraw to spend time with the Lord?
4. Jesus set his mind on an eternal kingdom yet to come (Rev. 21; John 14:1–3). How often do you have your eyes set on the things unseen?
5. Jesus was obedient to the point of death (Phil. 2:3–8). How far does your obedience go?
6. Jesus was a servant (John 13:13–15). Do you consider others more highly than yourself?
7. Jesus did not fear man (Matt. 10:26–32). Do you fear the Lord more than man?
8. Jesus had a mission (Matt. 17:4). Do you know your mission and calling?

When we get weary, we are to remember that we can rely on God for his strength, as we look to Jesus as our perfect, wearied, glorious example.

Lynne Wilson is a deacon at Mars Hill Ballard where she serves on staff as a biblical counselor and Redemption Group leader.