When You Are Too Weary to Rejoice - Serenity in Suffering

Does this Christmas season feel heavy for you? Perhaps the normal joy of the season feels elusive. Or maybe you find things not much altered than the usual for you at this time of year. Either way, the current COVID conditions bring everyone a longing for better times. Navigating restriction adds a layer of complexity we prefer was not a part of our Christmas. When you are too weary to rejoice, what do you do?

Welcome to Mindfulness Monday! Where we learn some easy ways to be more present “in the moment” at our jobs, in our homes, with our families and friends. Learning to recognize God and what He has for us in each divine moment He offers. We acknowledge the belief that God is with us always. We confess His presence is available to us, lifting our spirit and helping us with power and grace. Learning to “be still”, so we can hear His voice and view ourselves, others and our surroundings through His eyes.

A Weary World

Weariness appears the word for December 2020. Many people express weariness with the seeming endless COVID restrictions. Weary voices lament limited shopping, formal gathering closures and cancelled beloved Christmas programs. Back in March, no one imagined we would face “the most wonderful time of the year” wearing masks, social distancing and quarantining from family and friends.

Weariness in the current environment brings another companion to many people; grief. I spoke to several people this week with loved ones in assisted living or skilled care facilities. The last time they saw their loved one was nine months ago. Then even more difficult is the cry of a father whose daughter lay dying in the hospital, but denied the opportunity of a visit, he can only weep on the phone. How do we absorb the pain around us? What do you do when you are too weary to rejoice?

a weary heart

Thinking back to that first Christmas, God’s people experienced great weariness. No audible word came from God since the prophet Malachi 400 years prior. So many years waiting for the Messiah to come, sitting in darkness; had God forgotten them? No Advent devotional can really convey the extent and experience of waiting Israel endured before the birth of the Messiah. Weariness of heart tempting even the most faithful to lose hope.

The familiar story of the angel Gabriel appearing to Zacharias to announce the birth of John the Baptist perhaps betrays a weary heart. When Zacharias questions the possibility of Elisabeth conceiving a child, he is struck dumb, unable to speak. Formerly, I viewed that as a punishment, but what if instead of a punishment, it was a gift? Perhaps Zacharias’ response elicited from a weary heart, tottering on the edge of hopelessness?

The Gift of Silence

I wonder if God didn’t look upon Zacharias with an eye of compassion. He knew Zacharias, his faithful service in the temple, in the very holy of holies. Surely God knew the years dealt disappointment after disappointment to Zacharias and he just wasn’t quite ready to rejoice. I wonder if God knew the response of doubt from Zacharias merely stemmed from a heart too weary to hope again.

Instead of displeasure I offer that God in His steadfast love provided Zacharias with the gift of silence. A silence that ushered Zacharias into a position of belief and trust in God. The gift of silence allowed Zacharias to truly listen; to his own heart and to the voice of God. We see the results of this gift of silence in the Song of Zacharias in Luke 1:67-79. Beautiful words of redemption, in the past tense, so sure is he of God’s intent and plan.

When you are too weary to rejoice

Possibly you may feel a bit like Zacharias this Christmas. Disappointment after disappointment throughout the past nine months of 2020. No stranger to hard seasons of life, I confess a weary heart beats in my chest. So what do you do when you are too weary to rejoice? Pursuing the gift of silence through mindfulness offers one way to bring refreshment to a weary heart. My recent article on ways to bring joy to your Christmas provides another resource for help.

Try the following practices daily if possible throughout the next two weeks. Plan roughly 15 to 20 minutes total, but don’t feel time bound, watching the clock. Begin each session with a Mindful Check-in; I mention this often, you can find the instructions for this brief five minute preparation in this post. A Mindful Check-in offers a brief pause or provides a transition from “doing” to “being”. Choose a place that provides quiet, and is free of distractions.

Faltering Faith

Sitting with Yourself. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you identify what you hold in your heart. What emotions surface the most right now? Have persistent disappointments over the past months brought weariness to your heart? How have those disappointments affected your faith?

Sitting with God. Trust in God’s compassion and care for you. Envision bringing those disappointments, sorrows, and losses to Him and placing them in His hands. Confess where you failed and where you need help. Ask Him to bring healing to your heart so that your faith may be renewed and healed.

Sitting with Others. Take a few moments to consider family, friends or others and what they may bring into this season. How can you stay present with them in their grief, loneliness or disappointments? How can you create space for them providing active listening and a safe place where they may share their heart?

Discovering God’s Presence

Sitting with Yourself. Consider the past days, weeks or months; what challenges did you face? Where can you see God working in a purposeful and redemptive way through those challenges? What unexpected gifts can you find? As you anticipate your Christmas celebration, ask the Holy Spirit to open your eyes to God at work in your circumstances.

Sitting with God. Ask God to open the eyes of your heart that you may see His good hand in your disappointments. Ask that He would give you understanding and the ability to accept the hard things. Seek to watch for Him this Christmas.

Sitting with Others. Think about those in your circle of influence, those with whom you spend time. Seek the Holy Spirit’s help for eyes to see beyond the external, that you may meet their heart needs. How can you encourage someone in a hard season?

Accepting Change

Sitting with Yourself. Consider your recent responses to change; change of plans for the season, changes to traditions or other changes outside your control. What emotions come to the surface? How do those emotions affect your “joy”? Ask the Holy Spirit for assurance and help you move into the changes before you.

Sitting with God. Bring your fears and struggles with change to God. Honestly lay before Him your disillusionment, and confusion. Ask Him to reveal His presence to you in a fresh way, providing the security you need to trust Him with the changes you face.

Sitting with Others. Consider what the Christmas season looks like for you, and others in your family. How are changes affecting them? How can you offer flexibility with your plans to help others? What can you hold more loosely, creating space for others who may be struggling?

Receiving Grace

Sitting with Yourself. Consider the kindnesses shown you by others, whether help given in time of need, physical needs supplied, or emotional support. How did you receive those gifts of grace? How open are you to receiving undeserved gifts? Ask the Holy Spirit to reveal areas of resistance so you may receive God’s blessings through others.

Sitting with God. Consider God’s benevolence towards you the past days and weeks. How has He provided for you? Where did He show up in your days? How do you receive His grace gifts especially when you harbor unfaithfulness? Reminding yourself all is grace, ask him to give you a fresh view of His grace. Open your heart, receiving His amazing grace anew today.

Sitting with others. Imagine truly receiving gifts others may offer you this Christmas. Do you feel uncomfortable receiving from others? Commit to receiving any gifts with full open awareness. Take time, look at each gift, ponder the gift and the giver. Enjoy sitting with grace.

Present with Emmanuel

Sitting with yourself. Consider the things distracting you the most right now. Envision placing them in the hands of God. Feel the release and freedom from the weight of performance. With the space created, how will you be present to Emmanuel? What are some ways you can watch and listen for His Presence with you? When you hear Him, how will you respond?

Sitting with God. Remember the babe in the manger, fully God, yet fully man and the purpose He came. Consider what lies before Him. Contemplate He will experience pain, sorrow, betrayal and rejection. How does this affect your intimacy with the One, ever with you? As you sit in His Presence, open your heart to Him knowing He fully understands your pain.

Sitting with others. Consider ways you may encounter Emmanuel in others this Christmas. Will you recognize Him? How can you show His love through presence with others this Christmas?

rejoicing in weariness

Taking time for the gift of silence through mindfulness won’t solve all of your problems. But time spent in quiet reflection nurtures the soul. It provides a respite from demands, expectations (both our own and others’) and burdens overwhelming us. In the stillness, we listen, even more, we hear. We create space for God to speak into our weariness. We receive rest for our souls, peace in the hard places and the comfort of Emmanuel.

The gift of silence encourages the Holy Spirit’s gentle work of altering our perspective based on disappointment and brokenness to one of hope and faith. No, our circumstances will not change, but the way we view them will. Like Zacharias, our encounter with Emmanuel will strengthen our faith and breathe hope into the dry places. From that place of hope rejoicing pours forth even from he weariest of hearts.

new resource

Whether or not you have a specific Advent tradition, my new resource, “Welcoming Emmanuel” Bible Verse Reflections to Prepare Your Heart For Christmas”, is a wonderful addition or stand alone resource designed to enrich your daily quiet times. The best part? It’s FREE! Sign up below and grab your copy today!

Feature Image Photo by Oleg Zaicev from Pexels