Dear Fatigued Stranger,
I'm feeling it too. Like a wind-up toy losing power. Like a gerbil in a wheel. Like a playlist on repeat. You get the point. We're tired of the daily grind, and we feel like we can't keep going, but we have to: for work, for our kids, for our family, friends, spouses, random acquaintances or strangers asking us to support a cause. There are so many demands.
If you're feeling like a fire going out, it's time to bank the fire. Keep it low but alive. A man who has my deepest respect used an airplane analogy (Dieter F. Uchtdorf, https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2010/10/of-things-that-matter-most?lang=eng): when we fly through turbulence, we sometimes think we should proceed full speed ahead and get it over with, but we really lessen the turbulence by slowing down. So just keep it simple. Don't do anything extra.
A friend needed my help last week. And I said no. This might have made me a terrible friend. Jesus gave us a phenomenal example of service and sacrifice. Shouldn't I have said yes to my friend? And I say "No." You cannot give what you do not have. If you ask me for a golden elephant the size of my head, I can wish and wish and wish I could give it to you, but I don't have one.
Say no to people. There may come a genuine emergency, and you cannot say no, but these are exceedingly rare. Say no to being busy and running around frantically. Realize that there are some essential things in life that cannot be ignored, but these also are not as numerous as we think.
So just wait. The time will come to say yes. The time will come to do more. I have lived long enough to know that somehow we'll get more firewood from somewhere - even if that takes awhile.
But for now, be still. Know that God is God.
No comments:
Post a Comment