Exhausted, Yet Pursuing...

​"I'm exhausted!" My husband and I have exclaimed this many times lately! Anyone who has ever gone through the tiring process of moving, getting a house ready to put on the market, downsizing, trying to sell stuff that has accumulated over the years, etc., knows what I'm talking about.
 
Perhaps it is because of my own state of mind that a phrase in a verse I was reading this morning really caught my attention: "exhausted yet pursuing" (Judges 8:4). It was in reference to Gideon and his men in pursuit of the kings of Midian. Twice they asked others for help, food to help them keep up their strength, but did not receive it. Yet they continue to pursue, tired, hungry, and exhausted. Because of their perseverance, they were successful and won a great victory.
 
This reminded me of another instance when King David and his men were pursuing the  Amalekites in order to retrieve their families that had been taken captive. There were some soldiers that were just too exhausted to go on, and David allowed them to stay and watch over the baggage. (1 Samuel 30:8-25) They were fairly rewarded with the spoils of war because of their faithfulness. They could not go on, but they did not desert.
 
That brings me to a third example of exhaustion displayed by Esau when he returned from hunting. He was so self-absorbed that all he could think of was his exhaustion, to the point of selling his birthright. (Genesis 25:29-34)
 
I would like to use these three examples today to encourage someone to not give up! You may be tired, exhausted both physically and spiritually, but keep the faith! Even if you reach a point where you feel like you can't go on, be faithful in what you can do. Take the time for restoration and refreshing, but don't be a deserter from God's army. God rewards faithfulness! Don't sell out and lose all that God has promised to those who endure to the end.
 
Are you feeling exhausted today? Go to God, the source of our strength! He reminds us in Isaiah, that even young people get exhausted at times. If we will spend time in His presence, He will renew our strength and allow us to rise up once again, and our spirits can soar!
 
Isaiah 40:28-31 (ESV)
Have you not known? Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He does not faint or grow weary;
his understanding is unsearchable.
He gives power to the faint,
and to him who has no might he increases strength.
Even youths shall faint and be weary,
and young men shall fall exhausted;
but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;
they shall mount up with wings like eagles;
they shall run and not be weary;
they shall walk and not faint.

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