Listening Faithfully Meditation: Isaiah 40:28-31 [New American Standard Bible]
28 Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, do not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. 29 He gives strength to the weary, And to him, who lacks it, might He increase power.
30 Though youths grow weary and tired, and vigorous young men stumble badly, 31 Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles; they will run and not get tired; they will walk and not become weary.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, how many of you are being worn down because of life’s troubles? Is the struggle taking all your energy? Are you a leader, teacher, preacher, husband or wife? Are you a teen with real-world problems in your corner of the world? Has the week stretched into feeling like months, maybe even years? Do you feel like your flame is about to go out, and if it does, will you lose your mind—or sit down, throw your hands up, and quit? Then let us listen faithfully to God’s word…
BURNOUT IS REAL. It affects all of us differently. We live in a torrent of daily issues—then we go to work. We come home, watch the nightly news, and face the world’s garbage. How could you not be burnt out?
GUIDING QUESTION: “How should you, as a Christian, respond to the overwhelming cacophony of the world’s noise?”
FIRST, DO THIS: SURRENDER TO GOD!
7 Submit yourselves, therefore, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. - James 4:7 [New Revised Standard Version, Anglicized Catholic Edition (NRSVACE)]
I know… you have probably been told to surrender a thousand times by a thousand different people. However, it is the most rock-solid thing you could ever do! Surrender! I mean, really surrender! While you are at it, surrender everything to the Lord your God! Don’t hold anything back… just let it rip! Tell him everything that is bothering you! Tell him how you are feeling about the yoke on your shoulders. Explain in detail the roadblocks you are facing that are causing your frustration, then say this, “Abba, I am burnt out. I need your help because you are my greatest helper! You alone are my salvation—there is nothing you cannot do!” I cry a bit every time I acknowledge God this way. In the back of my head, I know this is what He wants us all to do. Come to him, tell him our problems. Then, sit back and let Him perform His miracles. Oh, I almost forgot… end your prayer this way, “Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts as well as our debtors. And lead us not into temptation. But deliver us from evil.” Then say, “These things I ask in the name of your only son, Jesus Christ. Amen!”
SECOND, DO THIS: TRUST THE LORD—RELY ON HIM.
24 One who keeps the law preserves himself, and one who trusts the Lord will not suffer loss. - Sirach 32:24 (NRSVACE)
I know… relinquishing control to someone else is a hard thing to do. Trusting someone else to have your back—I think we get stuck with personally trusting others. I mean, how many people have stabbed you in the back? People who you loved deeply, who confessed they loved you! Someone you may have helped, taught, and spent time with, and what did they go off and do? Yes. That really hurts! How many people have betrayed you and thrown you under the bus? I mean, all four wheels are crushing you under the bus! Our kids? Good Lord… our kids! How often have they done stuff they knew they should have never done? I’m talking about things that came back to bite us in the pants! Just remember they are God’s children too. Before you lash out, know that Jesus suffered betrayal and took the punishment for something he was wrongly convicted of. Remember that God is not someone else; he is not a stranger. NO! He is your Father in heaven—your Creator! How could you not trust Him? Remember that there are some things you, as a faulty, sinning human being, cannot fix. You need to remember that this is how things are and why God loves and forgives us of all our personal sins. There is no reason to be afraid to confide in Him. Ask Him for help. Spend an hour daily… He is there and will hear you! Don’t be the roadblock from allowing God to bring about a solution to your problems! 1 “As a deer longs for flowing streams, so my soul longs for you, O’ God.” – Psalm 42:1 (NRSVACE)
THIRD, DO THIS: TRUST IN HIM.
1 "In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to me, 'Flee like a bird to the mountains;' - Psalm 11:1 (NRSVACE)]
Again… I know! Trust is a super hard thing if you have been hurt numerous times. Just remember before you go complaining that our God has love to spare! He has never betrayed you. It’s not like He hasn’t heard your pleas! Trust me, He isn’t ignoring you. Instead, God might not have answered you as fast or in the moment you would have liked. So, keep this close to your heart—Our God will not do everything you ask, but such is life. He does not do things on our time scale… but in His own time, and rightfully so. God is keenly aware of everything you don’t see happening. His view is the universal view; our view is minute, minuscule, and tiny—perhaps a bit selfish!
Example: I am a rule follower—to a fault! I expect everyone else around me to be the same. Do you want to know a secret? I am being selfish. Everyone else is not me and perhaps not rule followers to a fault. Maybe some of them see the minutiae of life’s events; they see everything with a splash of color—not just black and white. I think God sees things in neon flashing lights and reacts with wisdom because of it.
Regardless, God wants to take care of all your problems and make everything right in your world. He is also the ultimate parent, teacher, and savior. He will let you learn your lessons the hard way if need be. So, brothers and sisters, change your mindset and look for all the invisible blessings God leaves around you; in other words, look for what is unseen!
16 "So, we do not lose heart. Even though our outer nature is wasting away, our inner nature is renewed daily. 17 This slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, 18 because we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal." - 2 Corinthians 4:16-18 (NRSVACE)
We often burn ourselves out, allowing the world to dominate our lives. Know that God does not want you to feel this way—moping about. Instead, He wants you to rest in him.
29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your soul." - Matt 11:29 (NRSVACE)
PARTING SCRIPTURE—TAKE COMFORT IN THE WORD OF GOD:
7 Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. - 1 Peter 5:7 (NRSVACE)
19 When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. - Psalm 94:19 (NRSVACE)
6 To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. - Romans 8:6 (NRSVACE)
LET US PRAY:
[THE DIVINE OFFICE: CHRISTIAN PRAYER: The Liturgy of the Hours]
FRIDAY, WEEK III
INVENTORY
Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will proclaim your praise.
MORNING PRAYER
Ant. Come, let us adore Christ the Lord who promised to send the Holy Spirit on his people, alleluia.
Psalm 95 – A call to praise God
“Encourage each other daily while it is still today” (Hebrews 3:13).
1 COME, let us praise the Lord with joy: let us joyfully sing to God, our savior!
2 Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving and make a joyful noise to him with psalms.
Ant. Come, let us adore Christ the Lord who promised to send the Holy Spirit on his people, alleluia.
3 For the Lord is a great God and a great King above all gods.
4 For in his hand are all the ends of the earth, and the heights of the mountains are his.
5 For the sea is his, and he made it, and his hands formed the dry land.
Ant. Come, let us adore Christ the Lord who promised to send the Holy Spirit on his people, alleluia.
6 Come, let us adore and fall down: and weep before the Lord that made us!
7 For he is the Lord our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand.
Ant. Come, let us adore Christ the Lord who promised to send the Holy Spirit on his people, alleluia.
8 Today, if you shall hear his voice, harden not your hearts:
9 As in the provocation, according to the day of temptation in the wilderness: where your fathers tempted me, they proved me and saw my works.
Ant. Come, let us adore Christ the Lord who promised to send the Holy Spirit on his people, alleluia.
10 Forty years long was I offended with that generation and I said, ‘These always err in heart.’
11 And these men have not known my ways: so, I swore in my wrath that, ‘They shall not enter into my rest.’
Ant. Come, let us adore Christ the Lord who promised to send the Holy Spirit on his people, alleluia.
Glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.
Easter: Lord, wash away my guilt, alleluia.
Psalm 51—O God, have mercy on me!
"Your inmost being must be renewed, and you must put on the new man." (Ephesians 4:23-24)
1 Have mercy on me, O God, because of your unfailing love. Because of your great compassion, blot out the stain of my sins.
2 Wash me clean from my guilt. Purify me from my sin.
3 For I recognize my rebellion; it haunts me day and night.
4 Against you, and you alone, have I sinned; I have done what is evil in your sight. You will be proved right in what you say, and your judgment against me is just.
5 For I was born a sinner—yes, from the moment my mother conceived me.
6 But you desire honesty from the womb, teaching me wisdom even there.
7 Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
8 Oh, give me back my joy again; you have broken me—now let me rejoice.
9 Don’t keep looking at my sins. Remove the stain of my guilt.
10 Create in me a clean heart, O God. Renew a loyal spirit within me.
11 Do not banish me from your presence, and don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.
12 Restore to me the joy of your salvation, and make me willing to obey you.
13 Then I will teach your ways to rebels, and they will return to you.
14 Forgive me for shedding blood, O God who saves; Then, I will joyfully sing for your forgiveness.
15 Unseal my lips, O Lord, that my mouth may praise you.
16 You do not desire a sacrifice, or I would offer one. You do not want a burnt offering.
17 The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.
18 Look with favor on Zion and help he rebuild the walls of Jerusalem.
19 Then you will be pleased with sacrifices offered in the right spirit— with burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings. Then, bulls will again be sacrificed on your altar.
Glory to the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit: as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen.
Psalm Prayer
Father, He who knew no sin was made sin for us, to save us and restore us to your friendship. Look upon our contrite heart and afflicted spirit and heal our troubled conscience, so that in the joy and strength of the Holy Spirit we may proclaim your praise and glory before all the nations.
Lord, wash away my guilt, alleluia.
For the Full Morning, Daytime, Evening, and Night Prayers, and Office of Readings – download iBreviary on the App Store or purchase the Christian Prayer on Amazon]
PRAYER TO DEFEAT BURN OUT!
Dear Lord,
Father in heaven, do not turn away from me. Hear my voice, for I cry out to you. My heart is heavy, my soul crushed, for the world has crashed in upon me. O God, please hear my prayers, for I cry out to you. I ask for solace, to be renewed in you, and to feel your presence in my heart again.
[Tell God all your problems]
Abba, I am burnt out. I need your help because you are my greatest helper! You alone are my salvation—there is nothing you cannot do! Please do not turn away from me; hear my prayer, for I am in distress! Amen.
Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation. But deliver us from evil.
These things I ask in the name of your only son, Jesus Christ. Amen!
Saint Joseph, Pray for us. Sancte Ioseph, Ora pro nobis
May the Lord Bless you and keep you—forever and ever. Amen
Dearly Yours, Brother Brian
