Reignite Your Light
In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:16)
I read about this archaeologist who hired some Inca tribesmen to lead him to an archaeological site deep in the mountains in the late 19th century. After they had been moving for some time, the tribesmen stopped and insisted they should go no further. The archaeologist grew impatient and then angry. But no matter how much he cajoled, the tribesmen would not go any further.
Then all of a sudden, the tribesmen changed their attitude. They picked up the gear and set off once more. When the bewildered archaeologist asked why they had stopped and refused to move for so long, the tribesmen answered, “We had been moving too fast and had to wait for our souls to catch up.”
Some of us have been moving so fast that our souls haven’t caught up. Burnout is real. A good working definition of burnout is when the demands placed on you are greater than the resources you have within you.
I reflected on burnout in the context of Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:14-16, where He says that we are the light of the world, and that we ought to let our lights shine before others, so that they may see our good works and give glory to our Father in heaven. But here’s the thing, we can’t be the light God wants us to be if our light is burned out. We cannot fulfill the assignment that God has given us if the flame of our lives is always low. We cannot accomplish what God wants us to accomplish for the kingdom if we are constantly drained, constantly out of energy, and constantly worn down.
It’s hard to be used by God when our light is slowly and quietly becoming dim; dim from being stretched too thin, from being overstressed, and trying to juggle so many hats all at the same time. This is why we must take the time to rest, recoup, and refuel if we want to fulfill the work God has laid out for us.
When was the last time you intentionally took time to rest? When was the last time you cleared a day on your calendar to rest, refuel, and reset? If it’s been a while, my prayer is that you will carve out some time this week so that God can refill you and reignite the light inside of you so that you might shine even brighter for Him.
I read about this archaeologist who hired some Inca tribesmen to lead him to an archaeological site deep in the mountains in the late 19th century. After they had been moving for some time, the tribesmen stopped and insisted they should go no further. The archaeologist grew impatient and then angry. But no matter how much he cajoled, the tribesmen would not go any further.
Then all of a sudden, the tribesmen changed their attitude. They picked up the gear and set off once more. When the bewildered archaeologist asked why they had stopped and refused to move for so long, the tribesmen answered, “We had been moving too fast and had to wait for our souls to catch up.”
Some of us have been moving so fast that our souls haven’t caught up. Burnout is real. A good working definition of burnout is when the demands placed on you are greater than the resources you have within you.
I reflected on burnout in the context of Jesus’ words in Matthew 5:14-16, where He says that we are the light of the world, and that we ought to let our lights shine before others, so that they may see our good works and give glory to our Father in heaven. But here’s the thing, we can’t be the light God wants us to be if our light is burned out. We cannot fulfill the assignment that God has given us if the flame of our lives is always low. We cannot accomplish what God wants us to accomplish for the kingdom if we are constantly drained, constantly out of energy, and constantly worn down.
It’s hard to be used by God when our light is slowly and quietly becoming dim; dim from being stretched too thin, from being overstressed, and trying to juggle so many hats all at the same time. This is why we must take the time to rest, recoup, and refuel if we want to fulfill the work God has laid out for us.
When was the last time you intentionally took time to rest? When was the last time you cleared a day on your calendar to rest, refuel, and reset? If it’s been a while, my prayer is that you will carve out some time this week so that God can refill you and reignite the light inside of you so that you might shine even brighter for Him.
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