This week, I am tired. Not my usual kind of tired... but extra tired with a cherry. And some hot fudge. Yep, I am eating a plate of tired with all the fixin's.Truth be told, that's nothing new. In any given week, I am asked to fulfill a plethora of roles (in no particular order): husband, firefighter, salesman, service man, mission team member, fire administrator, and occasionally even a friend. You know what I am most of all, though? Exhausted.
Flash back. Remember in middle school/ high school sports when your coach used to tell you to "leave it all on the field?" When I think about life, and the gift we are given, I believe life is more about leaving it all on the field and being physically spent than slowing down to the point that we are awoken with a refreshed perspective every single day.Don't get me wrong. I believe there are seasons of our lives that we are called to slow down and experience the hope and joy we are promised in Christ. I really do. But I think we often misconstrue the desire for a "joy in Christ," and confuse it with a physical energy based on a cup of joe and a wonderful night's slumber. I don't think that's true refreshment. Let me explain:
My favorite time of day is right before I fall asleep, utterly exhausted, and I lay down my head. The sensation of knowing my day was so long that I will almost immediately drop into a night of rest is the best feeling of the day. It means I really did something important. Whether it comes from waking early in the morning and working all day or whether it is due to a long late-night fire, it almost always means I filled my day with the work God has laid before me. Sometimes it's pay work. Sometimes it's volunteering at the FD. But almost always, I can say it is a product of hard work.But with the refreshment of being in Christ, why would you want to be tired? Proverbs 14:23 gives honor to a day's work. Chris's ministry displayed a sense of urgency. The first Christians are often described as if they were working at a panic rate. I think the question quickly becomes "why do you always desire refreshment and relaxation?" I truly believe we are promised rest after this life. Yet, in spite of this promise, this current generation lives life in expectation of immediate result. If a show ends with "to be continued" we walk away disappointed. If our work does not immediately reap rewards, we look for new work. The worst example is that we so often sell our cars with life left in them simply because we desire something refreshed and new. But I truly believe that God desires us to put off rest for later. Instead of desiring that rest now, I would rather spend this body he gave me so that when I am finally laid in my final resting place on this earth, my body is tired and worn. What worth is my body if I die with plenty of life left in me? What good is my flesh if I live 100 years but fail to exert energy on fulfilling God's desires in me.
So, going back to the roles I fill every week. I am a husband, but one who desires to give everything he has to care for his wife and family. I am a firefighter... one who desires to put it all on the line when life is at stake. I am a salesman... a salesman who would rather bust it day in and day out for an ounce of success, rather than sit at home as an order-taker. I am a mission team member; I desire to do what it takes and travel to the ends of the earth if that's what it takes to fulfill God's mission in me. I am a fire administrator... a treasurer whose desire is to see my fire department progress into this century and beyond with the resources to protect a community. I am a friend... the kind that you can text and 2am and expect an immediate response. What does that make me? Not superman. Just tired.
But tired is OK with me, because I want to leave it all on the field.
