Lord, help me stand!

There's nothing quite like a good night's sleep. When my body is aching with fatigue, when I cannot think clearly because of lack of sleep - there is nothing like sinking into my bed and drifting into a deep, peaceful sleep. After 7 or 8 hours, I am ready to take up my responsibilities again. Those issues that seemed so overwhelming at 10 o'clock the night before are not so daunting at 7 in the morning, if I have rested. There is a time to rest spiritually as well. After slogging through a long fight with evil in one way or another, or helping to settle someone's conflict, or pouring love into a situation that needs healing- my soul sometimes feels numb with fatigue. In that time, if I pick up the Bible, even familiar and beloved passages are just words on a page. When I try to pray, I have little sense of the Presence of God. Just as I know I need sleep when I am physically exhausted, I know that I need soul rest when I am spiritually spent!

David, whose life story is told in the Bible, offers us a model in dealing with exhaustion. When he was a fugitive from King Saul, living in exile in Philistia, on one occasion he and his men returned from a military expedition to find that their wives, children, and wealth had been carried off by raiders. Their homes in Ziklag were burned to the ground. Feel the emotion that throbs through this verse. "So David and his men wept aloud until they had no strength left to weep." (1 Samuel 30:4, NIV) These were not weak men, either! They were seasoned, tough warriors. But, it was too much. On top of physical fatigue, they were overwhelmed with loss. Adding to his personal loss, David had to carry an additional burden. "And suddenly David was in even worse trouble. There was talk among the men, bitter over the loss of their families, of stoning him." (1 Samuel 30:6, The Message) His own friends, needing someone to blame, needing a way to express their outrage, were ready to turn on their leader. So what did he do? "David strengthened himself with trust in his God."

He turned to God! So, must we! It is not so much what we say, or going somewhere - it is a refocus of our attitude that says, "Lord, I will put myself at rest in you!" Isaiah wrote of the importance of resting in the Lord. "Those who wait upon God get fresh strength. They spread their wings and soar like eagles, They run and don’t get tired, they walk and don’t lag behind." (Isaiah 40:31, The Message) There are times when we must take a soul-Sabbath, times when we settle ourselves in Him. How a person comes to that rest will differ. It may be as simple as acknowledging - "You are God, and I am not." It may be letting music of worship and adoration play as we sit in silence. It may be going fishing, or sitting down at a piano, or picking up a guitar, or sitting gazing at a sunrise ... but it always means setting aside our 'work' for a time to rest.

In a crisis, it may seem to go against common sense to do nothing for a while. Our first thought may be to turn up the heat, to pour on more effort. But, we need to remember that without the strength of the Lord, our strength is very small. Even our best efforts will accomplish so little unless God, the Holy Spirit, is working in us. There is real wisdom in knowing when it is time to take a strategic 'time out!'

Here are a couple of passages, one from the Old Testament, one from the New Testament. Think on them and my prayer is that the Lord will help you to know when it is time to rest and pray, "Lord, help me stand!"

“Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls. But you said, ‘We will not walk in it.’ I appointed watchmen over you and said, ‘Listen to the sound of the trumpet!’ But you said, ‘We will not listen.’ Therefore hear, O nations; observe, O witnesses, what will happen to them. Hear, O earth: I am bringing disaster on this people, the fruit of their schemes, because they have not listened to my words." (Jeremiah 6:16-20, NIV)

Jesus said, “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” (Matthew 11:28-30, The Message)
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Precious Lord, take my hand,
Lead me on, help me stand!
I am tired, I am weak, I am worn.
Through the storm, through the night,
Lead me on to the light.
Take my hand, precious Lord,
Lead me home.

When my way grows drear,
Precious Lord, linger near.
When my life is almost gone
Hear my cry, hear my call;
Hold my hand lest I fall.
Take my hand, precious Lord,
Lead me home

Precious Lord, Take My Hand
Tommy DorseyCCLI License No. 810055