“My flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.” Psalm 73:26
My soul is tired. My heart is tired. My mind is tired. I feel like an overcooked noodle. Recently, my pastor preached on persisting in the spiritual battle, especially when we are weary. He made the comment that as the spiritual battle grows in length, some Christians wither away and slowly fade from the battlefield. They get tired, the leave the front lines, they fade to the back, and then they are gone. I don’t want to be a Christian that withers away, I want to be one that can stay on the front lines. But I am also so very tired.
Have you ever been to someone’s house who has a green thumb and many thriving indoor plants? If you come to my house, you will see many plants, but I’m not sure you would label them as thriving. When I think of the word ‘wither’ I think of my house plants when I forget to water them. Before they get crispy and past the point of no return for survival, they wither. If I am paying attention, the withering leaves is an indication that they need water. When I take a moment to bring them water, they bounce right back. If I don’t take the time to water them, they become crispy-friend plants, and I will find myself back at the greenhouse buying more. Do you know what would be even better than noticing they are withering and giving them enough water to bring them back? Watering them consistently in the first place.
On our own, we do not have the strength to stay in the spiritual battle. We need the strength only Christ can give – and we need it regularly and consistently. There will be spiritual battles that hit us so hard we find ourselves starting to wither. The solution is not to withdraw, it is to go get more water! The strength to stay in the battle comes from drawing closer to our Savior and leaning into Him!
“But it is good for me to draw near to God: I have put my trust in the Lord God, that I may declare all thy works.” Psalm 73:28
We need to be spending time daily reading our Bibles, praying, and building our relationship with Christ. When we do this, we are drawing strength from Him for our day. There is no way to know what spiritual battle awaits us each day, but we do know where to find the strength we need to face it and not wither away.
When I feel myself starting to wither despite my daily devotion time. When my soul, heart, and mind are exhausted, and I just want to sleep or vegetate on the couch. I don’t need rest; I need to renew with the water of the Word and with time spent with the Lord.
