In Galatians 6:9-10, God calls us to persevere in doing good – but that doesn’t mean He calls us to weariness. What’s the difference?
Paul Hurckman of Venture Expeditions says it comes down to moral fortitude. He points out that the apostle Paul, in writing to the Galatians, isn’t saying not to be tired. He’s telling us not to grow weary. Are we willing to persevere even when things are hard?
“‘Tired’ happens every single day; that’s why God created night and sleep. It happens every week; that’s why He created Sabbath. It happens for the ground, and that’s why every seven years we’re supposed to let it go fallow.”
But weariness is something different. Weary means we’ve given up. It means we’ve allowed the cares of the world to drain our passion and our heart for service. It means we’ve lose the moral fortitude to serve others because we’ve become focused on ourselves.
When Susie was a young mom battling Lyme’s disease, God knew her struggle. But even there, in the midst of her fatigue, Susie felt the Lord inviting her to serve.
Even in the midst of financial and health-related hardship, God invites us to serve. He invites us to be “flow-through accounts of His blessings.” He still cares about our needs and is intimately acquainted with our struggles, but when we’re hurting, we must choose to look out to others and up to God.
Weariness is also a sign that we’ve lost our gratitude. We can stop and thank God for every gift we have to restore our perspective and joy. Thankfulness is a refreshing practice and one we don’t lose without significant cost to our faith.
Paul reminds us of the ultimate promise of God to work in our lives in every season. We can be generous because, as God promises, “He who began a good work in us will be faithful to complete it.”
Key Scriptures: Isaiah 58:10-11; Galatians 6:9-10
Featured Songs: Deeper by Meredith Andrews; Move – Keep Walkin’ by Toby Mac; You Never Stop by Lincoln Brewster
