Are You Weary? Bible Verses to Prevent Burnout

Have you ever taken a nap and felt guilty? You’re weary—mentally and physically exhausted—but taking a nap feels like giving in. So you keep pushing on, while your work and relationships suffer and inside you’re desperate for relief before you completely burn out.

Burnout can happen to the best of us. It happens when we rely too heavily on our own strength, our own efforts to “push through,” whether by pride or arrogance or a naïve desire to please the boss, keep the spouse happy, or prove ourselves to our mother-in-law. It happens when we don’t understand God’s provision and care.

God Offers Rest for the Weary

God offers rest. He has designed times of refreshing for His people—for you and for me. A time to cease from our labor, to close the computer, lay down the phone, and maybe even take a nap. It begins with trusting Him when we are weary.

“But those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:31 NLT).

The Prophet Elijah Grew Weary

The prophet Elijah suffered burnout. He had won a major victory on Mt.Carmel. (See 1 Kings 18, 19.) He had witnessed God’s miraculous response of fire to his offering on the mountain. And yet, he was on the run—hiding, fearful, done.

As a friend of mine likes to say, “Well, stick me with a fork. I’m done, I’m done.” Have you ever felt that way?

Elijah was at his wits’ end. In fact, he was so distraught and weary that he prayed to God to take his life!

“He sat down under a solitary broom tree and prayed that he might die. ‘I have had enough, Lord,’ he said. ‘Take my life, for I am no better than my ancestors who have already died’” (I Kings 19:4).

But God sent rest. Elijah lay down and slept. He awoke when an angel of the Lord touched him and told him to arise and eat. God sent an angel with bread to nourish him, and a jar of water to refresh him and prepare him for the next season in his prophetic ministry.

Times of Refreshing – The Sabbath

God does that for us too. He has times to refresh and restore built into the Christian walk. It began in Genesis. God worked for six days creating the heavens and the earth, the birds and all living creatures, and man, male and female. And then God rested on the seventh day.

He rested from all his work and a weekly sabbath was established. As Jesus describes, “‘The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath’” (Mark 2:27). God set it in motion in the garden of Eden.

All throughout scripture, God emphasizes times of rest. He is aware of the pushes and pulls of the world, of the relationships that may wear you out emotionally, or long hard hours at work that tire you physically. God knows. He has made provision for you to recharge.

He Restores My Soul

The Lord cares for you. Like a good shepherd, He knows when you need a break. The Bible tells us He has green pastures and still waters to renew your heart and mind and body.

“The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need. He lets me rest in green meadows; He leads me beside peaceful streams. He renews my strength” (Psalm 23:1-3).

Imagine that—green meadows, far away from the busyness of life—a place of peace, of letting go… of relaxing. When was the last time you did that? Relaxed? Rested?

What does that look like for you? What refreshes and recharges you?

What Recharges You?

For some, a “recharge” may be a relaxed gathering with family and friends—a chance to stop thinking about work and enjoy sweet company, different perspectives.

Maybe for you, it’s taking a walk. I love to step away from my desk at the end of a workday and take a walk—clear my mind, stretch my legs. It’s a chance to breathe and let the stress of the day go, to cast all my care and work situations upon the Lord and trust Him to work while I step away.

When my kids were little, I’d tuck them in a stroller or a backpack carrier—or when there was only one small one, I’d strap them into a bike carrier—and off we’d go. Stepping away from the laundry and the dishes to enjoy the blues and greens of the sky and earth, letting the beauty of God’s creation refresh my soul.

As a homeschool mom years ago, 3 pm was our endpoint. School was finished for the day. The kids would run and play and for me—I’d flip on the Christian radio station and fill the house with uplifting music. It was a signal to my heart and mind to shift gears, rest and breathe and have a break before it was time to start supper.

I do the same thing now as I work remotely from home. When the workday is done, I push away from my computer, often slip in a much-needed walk, then turn on the radio as I move on to other tasks.

That may not sound like rest to you, but for me, it’s a signal to shift my heart and mind to other things—and it keeps me from burning out. It refreshes my soul!

Listen to the Lord

“For everything there is a season…” (Ecclesiastes 3:1).

If you are weary, or like the prophet Elijah, feel like you’ve had enough, I encourage you to pay attention to the rhythms of your life.

Are you keeping the Sabbath? Or do the days all mesh together, never-ending like a long tunnel?

If you work from home, do you set parameters around your workday?

Are you listening to the Lord to rest when He says rest? To lie down in the green pastures He provides? Give yourself permission to take that nap, get a sitter if you need to or pile the kids in a stroller and go for a walk.

The Lord offers times of refreshing in His presence. Trust Him and He will strengthen your soul.