Rest for the Soul

A major problem for people today is exhaustion. “I’m so tired,” many people say every day. Others simply say, “I can’t take any more,” and there is another phrase we often hear: “No way—no one can go on like this.”

All these expressions show that those who say them are at the end of their strength. The most serious exhaustion is not physical. No matter how worn out a person is, a night’s sleep, or sometimes simply a good bath, can make us feel like new. There is another kind of exhaustion that does not disappear so easily. It builds up day after day, and when we wake each morning, it seems as though an inaccessible mountain lies ahead of us, impossible to climb. Have you ever felt that way?

This kind of exhaustion can destroy our desire to live. And it often does so regardless of our physical or financial circumstances or where we live. People grow weary—in every part of the world, though we sometimes tend to think otherwise. Whether you live in Havana, New York, Buenos Aires, or any city in Europe, the exhaustion that crushes our spirits and paralyzes us is universal. It is caused by recurring situations—family, social, or personal—that not only lie beyond our control but become inseparable companions in our lives.

“Every day it’s the same thing,” a man recently told me, desperate over a family situation to which, after many years of effort and good intentions, he could see no solution. I listened to him and looked around the house where he lived. It had everything needed for a comfortable life, free of worries, and much more besides. If money could have solved the problem troubling him, this man had enough. But he added, “My life is hell, and I’m tired, so very tired.”

The irony is that those who know him think he has an enviable, successful life without problems. I tell this story so my readers will understand that being so tired you feel you have no strength left is a common experience. If you feel this way, I assure you that you are not alone in this world. All of us feel this way far too often.

That is why the following words of Jesus seem to caress us: Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart; and you will find rest for your souls. For you and me, these are deeply comforting words. In a world where we are constantly at war with so many situations and people that assail us, how good it is to know that our Lord is gentle and humble in heart and is willing to give our souls rest and peace!

Many do not believe that Christ’s yoke is easy, as the passage says, but all of us who have tried it know that it is true. Life is much easier—and more restful—when we are united with Christ.

May God bless you and keep you!