by Jess Connolly
I love a good meme or hilarious quote that makes its way around the internet. Some of my favorites are the following:
The real miracle Jesus performed was having twelve friends in his thirties.
Sitting in your car outside your house is self-care. I don’t know why—it just is.
You don’t go to Target because you need something. You go to Target and let Target tell you what you need.
I don’t love when a meme starts making its way around the internet and settles in our hearts as truth but is actually a horrible lie that will mess with us for the rest of our lives.
And in that category, I’d like to present Exhibit A, my least favorite meme phrase:
Adulthood is a cycle of constantly saying, “I just have to get through these few weeks,” repeatedly.
Of course, I hate it because I’ve said it way too often myself. But probably right around the first time I saw a little graphic with this quote pop up, I began questioning if there was potentially any other way for me, for us, to live.
Because, friends, I can’t do it anymore.
I refuse to keep living a life where the best I can hope for is an endless loop of exhaustion and listless living.
I refuse to live a life where I’m numb all day until I eventually crash, constantly hypnotized by hurry, and missing the million tiny miracles of every day.
Unfortunately, the depiction of spiritual exhaustion has become so normal—it’s like one big inside joke we all make about ourselves. Spiritual exhaustion becomes our reality when we trade God’s care for our obligation, God’s grace for earning love, and God’s abundance for just getting through the day.
And at the very core of my soul, I cannot believe that Jesus meant for us to live like this. I cannot imagine that our loving Father, who created us with care and creativity, who placed us on earth as an act of glorifying Himself, who sent His Son to redeem our souls, who gave us the Spirit that raised Jesus Himself from the dead . . . I cannot imagine He wants us to live at a pace that leaves us so exhausted that our only option is getting through.
Every single expression of exhaustion (physical, mental, and emotional) hinges on a spiritual tension that we as women of God have to explore: If God loves us and He gives rest to those He loves, then why are we living so incredibly tired and accepting this as our only possible reality?
Why are we buying the lie that our lives are not meant to be abundant, whole, and free but instead, exhausted, overextended, and desperate for relief?
At its core, the fact that we’re tired of being tired is a spiritual issue, and we need renewal in the form of spiritual revival as much as we need a nap, a day off, or a smaller to-do list.
Jess Connolly, Tired of Being Tired, Baker Books, a division of Baker Publishing Group, © 2024, Used by permission. (http://www.bakerpublishinggroup.com).
Jess Connolly is the author of several books, including You Are the Girl for the Job and Breaking Free from Body Shame, and coauthor of Wild and Free. She and her husband, Nick, planted Bright City Church in Charleston, South Carolina, where they live with their four children. As the lead coach and founder of Go + Tell Gals and the host of The Jess Connolly Podcast, Jess wants to leave her generation more in awe of God than she found it. She's passionate about her family, women, God's Word, and the local church. Find her on Instagram @JessAConnolly or on her website, JessConnolly.com.