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Avoiding Spiritual Burnout, Part 1: The Cause

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Burn-out is a word with which many people today are familiar. It has, unfortunately, become too common a word for us. It taunts us: a society of people on the verge, or in the midst, of burnout—and we don’t always see it coming.

I find it interesting that this phrase is used when battling uncontrollable fires. They start a “burn off” fire in opposition to a raging grass or forest fires in order to burn up the remaining fuel, in turn causing the raging blaze to go out. This term has been adopted into the rest of our lives because burnout is what happens when you use up all your resources, or fuel, and are left empty. In fact, the original meaning of the word burn-out is “to stop producing a flame.”

Maybe you are feeling burned out in areas of your life right now. The biggest tell-tale sign: emotional exhaustion. It is not the same as being stressed, but rather being drained. You see, burnout is not the same as stress. We often mix up these two. Stress can, at times, lead to a burnout, but it is not burnout. Stress is about things being “too much,” and burnout is about “not enough.” If stress can make you feel like you are drowning in a situation, then burnout will make you feel parched. Because of this, like stress, burnout can cause you to lose your perspective on things. It can cause you to lose your passion. It can cause you to stop producing a flame. Hmm.

I wonder: can we end up using all of our spiritual resources until we find ourselves spiritually empty? Are we in danger of losing our flame? I believe, unfortunately, that we are. In fact, we are in more danger of this than ever before. Spiritual Burnout is one of the greatest threats that face us today. We need God’s help. We need it now.

Before we can overcome it, though, we must learn what causes it. I have found that there are two main things that burden us spiritually; two things which quickly lead to spiritual burn out (there are many things that can burden us, but I believe that the following two situations are a foundation to all the others).

The first cause of burn-out is that we can be overly burdened by personal guilt—or our own unrealistic expectations for ourselves. Notice what David says in Psalm 38:4—“My guilt [iniquities] has overwhelmed me like a burden too heavy to bear.” As long as we think we are not forgiven, or can’t be, the heaviness placed upon us is too much to bear. By focusing on our own sins and struggles, rather than on God, we take on a burden that can drain us spiritually. As we struggle to fight the quick-sand battle of “being better,” we may ultimately find ourselves without any spark of passion left for God.

Next, in Numbers 11:11–14, we find Moses struggling. He basically tells God, “These people are putting burdens on me that are too heavy to bear.” So the second foundational cause is that we can be burdened by the requirements put on us by those around us. The expectations of others are often impossible to fulfill. Of course, too frequently, the expectations we have for others, or they have for us, are greater than even God requires. Thus, we can work hard to meet man’s requirements only to find our selves dried up spiritually.

So in essence, our spiritual burdens boil down to these two things: focusing on ourselves and trying to fulfill man’s requirements. These are “flame killers.” If we are doing either of these we are headed for serious burnout (if we’re not already there).

Of course, just because you may be spiritually and emotionally spent, feeling less passionate about the things of God, or just “running on empty,” you must not assume that there’s no hope. There’s always hope when it comes to God.

In my next post, we’ll read about this hope—we’ll find the cure.

Is Knowing God a Priority?

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I found this story some time ago (I do not remember where) and recently re-read it. It is thought provoking, so I thought I’d share it:

A philosophy professor stood before his class and had some items in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly he picked up a large empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with rock right to the top, rocks about two inches in diameter. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them in to the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles, of course, rolled into the open areas between the rocks. The students laughed. He asked his students again if the jar was full. They again agreed that it was.

So the professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up every-thing else.

“Now,” said the professor, “I want you to recognize that this is your life. The rocks are the important things—your family, your partner, your health, or your children—anything that is so important to you that if it were lost, you would be nearly destroyed.

“The pebbles represent the other things in life that matter, but on a smaller scale—things like your job, house, or car.

“The sand is everything else, the small stuff.

“If you put the sand or the pebbles into the jar first, there is no room for the rocks. The same goes for your life. If you spend all your energy and time on the small stuff, material things, you will never have room for the things that are truly most important.”

As we go through our lives we encounter a few “rocks,” plenty of “pebbles,” and tons of “sand.” Walking on this journey to get to know God, I find that it has become a new thing to place in my jar of priorities. Of course, for those wanting to know God, a question must first be answered: is knowing God a high priority in your life? Is it a “rock” or just some more “sand”? If it is important enough to be a “rock” in your life, then getting to know Him must be placed as first priority in your life.

I hear many say they wish they could spend more time with devotionals or other ways of spending time with God. Yet, they feel they cannot because their lives are too rushed to fit that in. I struggle with that feeling too. However, like the story, we have to realize that if we fill our lives with the smaller stuff of life first, we will never have time for God. If we never have time for God, we will never get to know Him. But isn’t that the point of being a Christian: building a relationship with our Savior? Therefore, we must re-evaluate what is really important.

If we are to deepen our relationship with Him—or get to know Him in the first place—time with Him must take priority. It has to be a whole-hearted effort, not a left-over attempt. So we must be diligent to place God first in our lives. Give Him the best, and the first, of our lives.

God says, “You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord…” (Jeremiah 29:13).

Revisiting Ancient Stones

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The Israelites stood at the side of the Jordan river, having just crossed, and they were listening to their next instructions. Before any battles, before facing any enemies, before the fall of Jericho, God instructed them to gather stones. Twelve stones, one for each tribe in Israel. Not just any stones either, they were to be gathered from the middle of the river—where the priests were still standing, on dry ground, with the Ark of God. Then Joshua set them up.

Why? According to Joshua, the stones would remain at this place so that in the future, when their children would ask, “what do these stones mean?” They would tell them the story of God parting the Jordan River. The stones were to be “a memorial to the people of Israel forever” (Joshua 4:7). Furthermore, the stones were to serve as a reminder “so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you may always fear the Lord your God” (verse 24).

One would think that stories of the miracles and the power of God would easily continue to be passed down and taught throughout future generations. However, not many years after Canaan was conquered, Israel had already forgotten. Tragically, their grandchildren were already worshiping pagan gods.

How could this happen? How can people so easily forget what God has done in their lives? How did these “people of God” forget their God? Yet, it continues to happen today. Many claim to be “Christian” yet forget about Christ in their daily lives.

Moses warned the Israelites, in Deuteronomy 8:10–14, that something would come that would challenge their memories: A life of peace and personal success. Because of this, Moses counseled them to praise the Lord for everything they received, otherwise they would become proud and forget God. Truly, the greatest danger in their success was that Israel could begin to think they were doing so well because of their own efforts (vs 17). As scripture reveals, though, they didn’t follow Moses’ advice.

Sadly, in times of plenty, we also tend to forget about God, rather than praise Him for His blessings. Sure, when we’ve reached “the bottom” it feels necessary to look up, but what about when we reach “the top”—the times of peace? We call on God when we are sick, but do we remember to praise Him when we are well? We seek God when we have nothing, but what about those times when we seem to have all we need?

We think we are rich! We have great churches and cathedrals, extravagant worship services with incredible musical talent, and a warm caring atmosphere. Yet that incessant knocking (Revelation 3:20) just won’t go away: something’s not right. You may have even felt that, with all that you have, there’s still something definitely missing.

We need a reminder of the greatness of our God so that we can learn to fear God again. We need to remind ourselves where we have been, how God has delivered us, and how far He has brought us. That’s what the stones were for: memorials of God’s greatness.

Photo by Flo P on Unsplash

So we must return to the stones. What stones have you set up? Have you set up any? Maybe you’ve kept a journal. Maybe you scrapbook (or Instagram) events in your life. Perhaps you’re simply relying on your good memory. Regardless on how you’ve set up your stones, there are memorials established in your mind of how God has worked in your life—a song, a text, a special location. Go back to those memorials and meditate on those times you experienced the greatness of God.

Of course, it is possible that you have not set up any stones lately. Unfortunately, if we live our lives forgetting God, we do not recognize His blessings and will not remember them. So you may have to go back further. You may have to go back to when you first heard the gospel—when you first looked upon your Savior hanging on the cross. Go back to the first time you felt God working in your life. Who cares how ancient the stones are, revisit those memories and remind yourself of why you fell in love with God.

But this will take effort. You will have to want it. Do you want to know God—to experience Him? Do you want a revival in your heart? If so, then make a decision right now to seek God with all of your heart—put everything you have into knowing Him more. Then, as God says, “‘You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you,’ declares the Lord” (Jeremiah 29:13, 14).

Psalm 23: When God is My Shepherd

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There’s a story about a tour group traveling in Israel, enjoying the surrounding scenery, when their bus comes to a stop. As they looked to see what caused the stop, they noticed a flock of sheep crossing the road. They watched as the large flock moved past, until a man brought up the rear. One of the passengers, curious, asked their tour-guide, “I thought the shepherd always walked at the front of the flock?” The tour-guide answered, “Yes, but that was the butcher.”

Did you know that there are two who are interested in sheep? There is a “butcher” who desires to have you. The Bible says that Satan “prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). However, there is also a Good Shepherd who wants to lead you. David wrote how things are much different with the Shepherd. The following is what I learned from my study of Psalm 23:

“The Lord is my Shepherd.” It is not “the Lord is a shepherd,” but He is my shepherd. This must be a personal decision. It is not enough to say “he is my pastor’s shepherd,” or “he is my neighbor’s shepherd.” Nothing in this Psalm will mean a thing, unless the Lord is my shepherd. Yes, it is nice to say the Lord is a shepherd, but it is powerful to say that He is my shepherd.

“I shall not lack anything.” Does this mean that I will get everything that I want? No, it means that I’ll have everything I need. If I don’t have it, maybe I don’t need it. Have you ever thought of it that way before? I hadn’t. Maybe we don’t get that treasured item, because it is not truly good for us. But a good shepherd knows what his sheep need and when they need it. So, when God is my shepherd, I will not lack anything. I will have everything I need, when I need it.

“In pastures/ meadows of green grass, He will cause me to lie down.” I have been told by people who know sheep that a hungry sheep will not lie down. When sheep are lying down, it means they have been fed. When was the last time you were fed spiritually? Last week? Why is it that we put so little value on our spiritual health? The shepherd cares. He’ll feed us. Notice what He feeds us with: green grass. I may not always choose the healthiest nourishment on my own, but when God is my shepherd, I will not only be fed, but I will be fed with the best!

“Beside quiet/ restful waters, He (intentionally) leads me.” The verb means “to lead to a watering place and cause them to rest there.” I’ve read that Rottweilers (because of loyalty and a high endurance to pain) may, when playing at a lake, continue running into the water chasing a ball past the point of exhaustion, even to the point of drowning. Their owners are told that they must make the dog take a break regularly. Sometimes we can be like Rottweilers. The world says that there’s “no rest for the weary,” but when God is my shepherd, “there is a place of quiet rest”—and He intentionally leads me to restful waters.

“My soul He brings back/ restores/ returns/ refreshes.” After being fed by green pastures, and rested by peaceful waters, our soul is refreshed or renewed. This is the same verb that God used when He called His people to “return” to Him. Life is hard on us and sometimes we can feel lost. But when God is my Shepherd, He restores my soul—He returns my soul—He refreshes my soul—in preparation for an incredible journey:

“He leads me in the tracks/ entrenchment of Righteousness, for his name sake.” These “tracks” are basically wagon tracks and, because of the alternate meaning of “entrenchment,” it gives the idea of ruts in the road. Now think about this one for a moment. We all have been stuck in a rut of some kind before, but David is talking about a very different kind of rut: we will be led in the well-worn straight and narrow path of righteousness. You see, when God is my shepherd, He makes the way of righteousness a rut in my life!

“Also, when I shall walk through the valley of the Shadow of Death, I will not fear evil, for You are with me.” This is not death—this is the shadow of death. This is when you feel like all hope is gone. You can’t see God leading, you can’t see where you are going, and you can barely see where you just came from. This may be the darkest period in your life. But, when God is my shepherd, even when I walk in the darkest period in my life—the deep darkness of the valley—I do not have to fear any evil because the Good Shepherd never leaves the sheep’s side.

“Your rod and Your staff comfort me.” The rod (a larger staff often used as a weapon) would be used to keep danger from getting into the flock and to teach the sheep not to leave the flock. If they did leave, the staff could guide them back or be used to lift them up out of trouble. Therefore, I don’t have to fear the dark valleys of life because, when God is my shepherd, He keeps me out of trouble and keeps trouble out of me.

“You shall spread out/ prepare/ arrange before me a table (for private use) in the sight of my enemies.” According to historians, this is one of the ways a person would welcome you into their home as a guest. This is saying that God will welcome you into His house as a guest even as all your enemies, those who showed hostility towards you, watch. So, when God is my shepherd, He will publicly accept me as a guest in His house.

“You anoint my head with oil.” One reason shepherds did this was to keep bugs off the sheep. It was like an insecticide. This is also more frequently used to set someone apart from the rest, often as a sign of an honored guest. This tells us that, when God is my shepherd, I will not only be a guest, but I will be set aside as an honored guest.

“My cup overflows (is saturated).” Everything God sets apart is blessed. Everything God blesses overflows. In His presence there is no end to blessings. What a thought: when God is my shepherd, I receive more blessings than I can handle.

“Surely good things and goodness/ kindness shall pursue me all the days of my life.” “Follow” gives me the idea of a puppy dog: following you around the house just to be where you are. The verb literally means, “to pursue, in order to overtake, especially with hostile purpose.” This gives me the idea of a rabid dog. We spend our lifetime seeking happiness and good things. But when God is my shepherd, good things and kindness will hunt me down with the purpose of overtaking me! Oh, to be persecuted with goodness!

“I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.” This is what it is all about. This is the purpose of the journey: Our shepherd brings us all the way from the green pastures and still waters, through the paths of righteousness and the valley of the shadow of death, to His house, where we will live forever.

This is why Satan wants to be your butcher: to keep you out—to keep you lost. Because when God is your shepherd, when it’s His voice you are following, you will end up home.

Do I Have to Forgive?

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Anytime the topic of forgiveness comes up, people begin to squirm in their seats. It’s not that we do not like to hear of God’s forgiveness. His forgiveness is awesome—we love to hear about His forgiveness. No, we start to fidget because we know what is coming next: the requirement for us to forgive.

When this subject is brought up we quickly revert to child-like mentality (said as whiny as possible): “do I have to?” I am too often guilty of this attitude myself. I am saddened that forgiveness doesn’t come more naturally to me. I know I am not alone, though. Why do we seem to insist on holding on to grudges for much longer than we should and refuse to grant forgiveness to others? Do we actually benefit by holding the grudge? Not that I’ve experienced. Still, many of Christians want to know: do we have to forgive?

Paul said in Ephesians 4:32, “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.” Similarly, in Colossians 3:13 he says, “as the Lord has forgiven you, so you must also forgive.” According to this we do have to forgive. We are called to forgive because we have been forgiven. We are supposed to show the same forgiving attitude that God shows us. Yeah, I know, I’m starting to squirm too.

It brings to my mind a parable of Jesus recorded in Matthew 18:21–35. He told the parable after Peter asked how often one should forgive—or another way to ask it, how forgiving should we be? Jesus began by telling Peter that we should forgive someone seventy-times seven. (I’d say that is being very forgiving!)

Then Jesus told a parable: it was about a king who wanted to settle his accounts with those who owed him. When one servant who owed ten thousand talents (one talent was approximately 20-30 years wages) couldn’t pay, the king ordered him to be sold, along with his family and any possessions in order to provide payment. The servant pleaded for mercy and patience and promised to pay everything. As a result, the king had mercy and forgave the debt. Don’t let this slip by. He forgave the whole debt! That would be 20-30 thousand years of wages! Another example of the awesomeness of God’s forgiveness.

The newly forgiven servant left and soon found a man who owed him a hundred denarii (one denarii was about a day’s wage), grabbed his neck and began to choke him, demanding payment. The man also begs for mercy and promises to pay. However, the servant refuses the pleas and sends him to prison until the debt could be paid.

Once the king heard this, he summoned the servant and said to him, “you wicked servant! I forgave your whole debt because I took pity on your plea. Should you not have also had pity on your fellow servant?” Then the king reinstated the man’s debt and threw him into prison until it was paid off.

Then Jesus ends the parable with the statement: “So also my heavenly Father will do to everyone of you, if you do not forgive your brother from your heart.” (Matthew 18:35).

If the parable isn’t clear enough, in Matthew 6:14, 15 Jesus said it bluntly: “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (See also Mark 11:25.)

We are supposed to forgive. Plain and simple. Jesus doesn’t say that forgiveness would be easy. He only says that we should do it—if we also want forgiveness.

It seems a bit harsh, but if you think about it, it makes sense. If God is willing to forgive us our HUGE debt of sin, why would we refuse to forgive others when they hurt us? As the parable showed, if a person asks for forgiveness we must forgive them (Luke 17:3, 4 also says this—even if they ask seven times in the same day).

But what about the person who doesn’t ask for forgiveness? Do we still have to forgive them? I’m not sure I know the answer to this. At least, not an easy answer. However, when looking at our example, Jesus, I believe that we should. When on the cross, while being mocked and abused, Jesus prayed that God would “forgive them for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). Did they ask for forgiveness? No. Yet, Jesus forgave them and asked God to forgive them on their behalf.

Again, Jesus didn’t say it was easy to forgive. Forgiveness always cost something to the one offering it. When the king in the parable forgave his servant’s debt, he forgave a massive amount of debt—no small cost to the king. When God forgives us, it costs Him to forgive our massive debt. Likewise, it will cost us to forgive others. It is not easy to get past the pain and humiliation to find forgiveness and the scars may not go away, but we have to let go. We have to let go of their neck and find mercy and forgiveness. In fact, forgiving others has often a greater effect on us than on the other person. As Corrie ten Boom said, “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.”

I know this is not an easy teaching. I also know that there are very tough situations we may go through that causes us to ask, “but do I have to forgive them?” Hurt feelings and damaged pride aside, I can only point to the Biblical examples given to us: according to the Bible, and Jesus Himself, we shouldn’t be looking for ways not to forgive, but should be willing to freely forgive as often as we can—just like our Father in Heaven does towards us.

Sandcastle Churches

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There’s a classic children’s song that talks about a wise man and a foolish man, both desiring to build a house (it is based off of one of Jesus’ parables—see Matthew 7:24–27). Here’s the gist of the story: The wise man chooses to build his house upon a rock (either a pretty big rock or a really small house) and the foolish man builds his house upon the sand. According to the song, and the parable, in both cases rains come down and floods come up. Because the wise man built his house on solid rocky ground, his house stays firm in spite of the stormy weather. The foolish man, however, who was enjoying a beach house, had different results—when the rains and the floods came, his house went splat.

It’s an interesting story. While some may think to use this as guidelines for when they’re searching for a house to purchase, Jesus had a different application in mind. He said that those who hear His words and do them are like the wise man—able to weather any storm Satan sends. However, those who hear Jesus’ words, but do not put them to practice are like the foolish man—they’ll fall hard when the storms blow.

Jesus emphasized this concept many times, and in many parables: listening is not enough, we must also do. We deceive ourselves if we think hearing is enough (James 1:22). Of course, His counsel makes sense. Consider how it applies in any other area of life. You will get healthier and in better shape if you not only listen to the personal trainers but do what they say. Also, it would not be enough to just listen to the instructors teaching you how to open your parachute when you jump out of a plane, you must do what they say as well, right? Because, when you are taught something valuable you are benefitted by that teaching only once you put it into practice. Likewise, you’ll find eternal life and more happiness here on earth if you will not only listen to Jesus, but actually do what He says (obey).

It seems like it should be an easy concept but it isn’t. Some have subscribed to the idea that knowledge is really the key and all we have to do is absorb it—through reading, watching, or just listening—to improve ourselves. Our culture heavily promotes this too. We have become conditioned to believe that as long as we have taken the class we are safe. Look around and it’s easy to see that that isn’t true.

Unfortunately, this mindset has also invaded the church. While Jesus may have meant His illustration for the individual, I believe churches (God’s people corporately) can suffer from it as well. A group of God’s followers also have to choose between building the foundation of their group on the Rock or on sand.

Of course, Jesus is supposed to be the foundation on which God’s people stand, both individually and corporately. He is the cornerstone upon which the church stands (Acts 4:11); He is the head of the body of His people (Colossians 1:18). As I mentioned in a previous blog, we are united, or become one, in Him. Therefore, any group that bears His name should be anchored in Him.

I am using phrases like “should be” and “supposed to be” because I have seen that churches can have very sandy foundations. Some churches have been built on division, split from another because of different ideas of theology, or worship, or leadership. Other churches are built only on a mutual agreement—they’ve found unity in a similar cause or belief. Some churches are even built on deception by a greedy false “prophet” or “messiah” seeking to steal people from God and pad their own pocket books. I’m sure there are many more “foundations” on which a church may be built, but if a church does not have following Jesus as their foundation they have built on sand—and they will fall. If you find yourself in one of these churches, be careful! You do not want to be inside a sandcastle church when the the angels of Revelation let the winds blow (Revelation 7:1).

I’m not saying that one day, all of a sudden, their church building will collapse due to high winds, but rather that they will not be able to stand the severe spiritual tests of the last days. There will be tests, difficult ones. Deceptions so strong that they could almost deceive those truly following God (Matthew 24:24). Only those who have made hearing and obeying Jesus their foundation will remain standing when all is done.

You may not have any influence on the foundation of your church, but you can choose a proper foundation for yourself. You can choose, like too many proclaimed Christians today, to sit in a church every week (or month or twice a year) and hear God’s word and be finished with your Christian “duties”. Or you can choose to act upon what you hear from God and plant yourself on solid rock. As another song says, “On Christ the Solid Rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.”