The Danger Of Getting Tired

I’ve just had a very busy ministry weekend and am feeling exhausted! Whenever I feel like this it reminds me of the danger of getting tired. I have a tendency to do too much since I love serving and with small children it is very easy to overdo it.

It is only recently that I have realised how dangerous it is, and have made steps to try and avoid it. Here are some of the dangers that I have watched arise in my own life when I am tired:

Lack of discipline

It is a lot harder to be disciplined and stick to a schedule when you don’t have as much energy. I usually get up early to have devotions and get a head start on the day before the children get up, but when I am tired it is very easy to turn the alarm clock off and go back to sleep. That means I then have to fit my quiet time in later on in the day and I am behind on everything. I also eat more of the wrong things when I am tired!!

Giving in to temptation

When I get weary I have less strength to resist temptation and fall more easily into thinking, saying or doing the wrong thing.

A prime example for me is that when I am tired I catch myself getting irritable and impatient with the children when I usually wouldn’t.

Discouragement and depression

It wasn’t long ago that I was continually tired, and I would typically get down every afternoon when I had to summon up the energy to make dinner.

That in turn would lead to my eating comfort food and taking ages to do everything because I was tired AND depressed! Then I got behind, which made it even worse!

My mind is less sharp

I find it harder to think straight when I am tired, which makes it more difficult to do things that require a brain (like reading the Bible and scripture memory!) and also makes it easier to make bad decisions.

I heard some good advice that said to never quit your ministry when you are tired and discouraged, because you’re more likely to make the wrong decision.

Physical symptoms

I think many people have a tendency to get ill if they are too tired, plus we can get other stress symptoms like headaches. All this means that we can’t fulfil so well what God has called us to do, because we’re not functioning properly.

Burnout

Continual exhaustion can lead to burnout, where you lose sight of your goals, getting up in the morning is a mountainous task, and you feel like giving up. I have been in this place and am very glad I’m not there anymore!

These are some of the things that I have found can happen when we get tired. And I think we need to be careful to guard against it because tiredness can affect so many things, like our mood, our families, and our ministry.

I hope to write my next post about some of the safeguards and solutions that help me with tiredness, as I think this is so important! Here is one hint in the meantime 🙂