“The Lord is my Strength and my [impenetrable] Shield; my heart trusts in, relies on, and confidently leans on Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart greatly rejoices, and with my song will I praise Him.” (Psalm 28:7)
“I’m so tired. I don’t think I’m going to go to church tomorrow,” I whispered to the Lord last Saturday. “I have to go grocery shopping. Wash, blow dry, and curl my hair. And cook dinner,” I reasoned. “If I go to church, I’ll have no energy to do everything I need to do, so I’ll just stay home.”
Ever feel so tired and weary that you just want to drive your car out of the fast lane, pull over, and put it in park indefinitely? That’s the way I’ve been feeling lately. Worn out from the heavy workload on my job that zaps all of my strength during the week coupled with the tiresome errands I run on the weekends. I got up Sunday morning and decided not to go to church.
I cooked bacon, eggs, and toast, and made hot tea for my husband and son. We all sat down and ate together and enjoyed each other’s company. All the while, I felt God nudging me to go to church — to the later service. After wrestling with the idea for an hour or so, I changed my mind and got ready to go.
“Lord, please prepare my heart for your Word this morning,” I prayed. “Minister to me through the worship songs and through your Word, and give me the strength I need to do all that I need to do today, amen.”
Within minutes after arriving in the sanctuary, God started answering my prayers. He began speaking to me through the worship songs, and when my Pastor preached the Word. He brought additional scripture to mind for me to meditate on all week to renew my strength, and He gave me a great sense of peace.
If I hadn’t gone to church, I would have missed these blessings that God had stored up for me. The blessings of His presence, power, comfort, renewed strength, and the peace I so desperately needed to begin a very busy, challenging week. I probably would have gotten everything done that I wanted to get done, but I would have felt empty and even more depleted. Turns out, I didn’t get everything done, but I was able to complete it all by the middle of the week. A small sacrifice, considering the blessings I received from the Lord.
What I’ve learned is that life will continue to tire you out. But the Lord promises to renew your strength if you trust in, rely on and wait on Him. You can wait on Him anywhere and anyplace, and He’ll be there for you with open arms. Of course, the key to receiving what He has for you is to seek Him with all your heart. In doing so, He will be found.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, when we find ourselves tired and weary from our busy lives, put a desire in our hearts to seek your face, so you can renew our strength, give us your presence, and fill us with peace. In Jesus’ name, amen.
