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When a Weary Heart Beats within Us

     Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Matt. 11:28-29 (ESV)

     He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle. Isa. 43:2 (NLT)

Dear Lord Jesus, thank you for perpetually presiding at the throne of grace, and for doing so with burden-bearing love and world-changing strength. When we feel our weakest—like “fragile reeds” or “flickering candles,” you don’t resent our weariness or tell us to “buck up”; you open your arms with delight and lavish compassion on us. You promise us a rest you alone can give, and we are ready to receive.

We bring you the exhaustion that comes from seeking to love well. No aspect of our lives is more delightful and more depleting than our relationships. As parents and spouses, friends and workers, grant us grace, wisdom, and strength.

Jesus, we bring you our fatigue born from our stories of grief and loss, care-giving and criticism-taking. Jesus, help us to accept the reality of our emotional depletion and mental tiredness, physical limits and spiritual warfare. Grant us thick skin and big hearts for staying present and engaged.

Jesus, we bring you the exhaustion we feel from having longer “to do” lists than there are hours in the day. Sometimes the sheer “demanding-ness” of life makes us want to buy a one-way ticket to a far away place. But since that would solve nothing, we ask for wisdom and grace, to choose between the critical things and the less important things.

Grant us deep, restorative sleep, and joy-fueling heart-centering fun. Free us from running to caffeine and sugar, too much whine and too much wine, the approval of people and the lust for more. Jesus, we trust you for all the grace, encouragement, and strength we need, for the days and demands in front of us. So very Amen we pray, in your kind and trust-worthy name.

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