When You're Worn Out From Caring for Someone

Good morning. This is Morning Prayer from Bearing Fruit.

God knows exactly how much strength you have this morning, and He isn't disappointed in you for having limits. If you're worn out from caring for someone you love, Psalm one hundred and three says He knows what we're made of. Let's bring this to God together.

In Psalm one hundred and three, verses thirteen and fourteen, David writes this.

As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He is mindful that we are dust.

Psalm 103:13-14

Psalm one hundred and three is mostly praise. David tells his own soul not to forget God's kindness, and then he counts it out. God forgives. He redeems. He satisfies. Then David comes to these verses. The Lord is like a father with his children. He knows how we're made. He remembers that we're dust.

That isn't an insult. It's simply true. God formed us from the dust of the ground, and He doesn't expect dust to behave like iron. We get tired. We get sick. We run out. He knows, and what He feels toward us is compassion.

Many of you woke up to another day of caring for someone. You were up twice in the night to help your dad to the bathroom, and now the pills need sorting before breakfast. Or your child has needs that never take a day off, and the forms and appointments never seem to end. Or your husband doesn't always remember your name now, and you're grieving someone who's still here.

That kind of caring is love, and it costs. It's right to say so. Paul told the churches in Galatia,

Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:2

You're doing exactly that. And the verse runs both ways. Other people are meant to help carry yours. Asking for help is part of how the church was meant to work.

Jesus cared about tired people. Once, His apostles came back from a busy stretch of work, so busy they hadn't even had time to eat. He said to them,

Come with Me privately to a solitary place, and let us rest for a while.

Mark 6:31

Rest this week may not look like a boat trip across the lake. It might be an hour when a friend sits with your mother. It might be ten minutes in the car before you go back inside.

Even on the cross, Jesus made sure His mother would be looked after. He saw her standing there with the disciple He loved, and He gave her into that disciple's care. John writes,

So from that hour, this disciple took her into his home.

John 19:27

Jesus knows what caring for someone means. He was dying for our sins as He did it, and three days later the Father raised Him. Now He cares for you, while you care for them.

Paul knew what it was to be worn down. He wrote this to the church in Corinth.

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.

2 Corinthians 4:16

Day by day. God gives His renewing a day at a time, and today is one of those days. You don't have to earn it by coping well. He gives it because He's your Father.

Let's pray. You can pray these words with me, out loud or in your heart.

Father, I come to You through Jesus. He carried my sins on the cross, and even there He made sure His mother was cared for. You raised Him from the dead. Through Him You're my Father, and by Your Spirit You're with me in every room I'll walk into today.

You're full of compassion. Your word says, “As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on those who fear Him. For He knows our frame; He is mindful that we are dust.” You know my frame. You know I'm dust. Thank You that You don't look at my tiredness with disappointment. You look at me with a father's love.

I'm worn out, Father. I love the person I'm caring for, and I'm so tired. Some days I resent it, and then I feel guilty for resenting it. I've snapped at them when it wasn't their fault. I've been short with You too. Where I've pushed away help out of pride or fear, forgive me. And where no one has offered help, You know how much I've had to carry. And thank You for all the times You've carried me without my noticing.

I need help today. Give me strength for the next task, and for the task after it. Give me patience when the same question comes for the tenth time. Send people to carry some of this with me, and help me say yes when they offer. Show me where I can rest, even for ten minutes, without guilt. Give me wisdom with the doctors and the forms and the hard decisions. And help me see the person I'm caring for the way You see them, as someone You made and love.

I can't hold all of this together, and You've never asked me to. I'm putting them in Your hands, and myself too. You know how this will go, and I don't. Your word says, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though our outer self is wasting away, yet our inner self is being renewed day by day.” Renew me today, Father, on the inside where no one else can reach.

I pray for the one I'm caring for. Comfort them, and let them know they're loved, even on the hard days. Give them peace in their body and in their mind. And I lift up others who woke up tired from caring this morning. For parents of a child who needs them every hour of the day. For someone looking after a husband or wife who's slowly forgetting. Be their Father too. Send them help, and let them rest.

Father, here's another day of caring, and I'm already tired. Walk with me through it. I can't see the end of this season, and You can. When I lift them, or help them dress, or sit with them in a waiting room, let me know You're there too. When I'm about to snap, give me a breath and a gentle word. When someone offers to help, let me say yes. Find me a few minutes to rest, and let me actually rest in them. And tonight, when I finally sit down, remind me that You've been caring for me all day long. You know my frame. You remember that I'm dust. And You're still my Father.

In Jesus' name, amen.

Take a moment of quiet now, and bring Him whatever's in front of you today.

Hear this blessing from Numbers chapter six, the words God gave His priests to bless His people.

May the Lord bless you and keep you; may the Lord cause His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you; may the Lord lift up His countenance toward you and give you peace.

Numbers 6:24-26