Those Aching Muscles

Have you ever been so tired that your legs just ache? In my recent attempts to get back into physical shape, the reward for my exercising has been aching muscles. Emily encouraged me with the reminder that soreness is good because it tells you your body is growing stronger. But there is another kind of ache and exhaustion. It comes from an anxious and weary heart.

There will come a time, if it hasn’t come already, when you will experience the anguish that sin creates. It may be from guilt and consequences of your own bad decisions, or it may be the result of someone else’s choices. It may be from a death or illness that was no one’s fault, but is still yours to bear because sin entered the world through Adam, and death through sin. No matter the reason, the burden can be very heavy, and it often brings with it fear of the future. Our response to these emotions can affect the way we work for God or how we follow His leading.

Thankfully, God does not leave us to carry these burdens alone. He has made a way of provision for sin through the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus Christ. Though sin will continue to create heartaches on this earth, we can be assured that God will make everything right.

The prophet Isaiah had a devastating message for the children of Israel. Throughout his ministry, which encompassed the reign of four kings, he warned of the coming dispersion of the Jews. Enemy nations would capture them and take them from their homes to strange and foreign lands. This would be punishment for their rejection of God. Isaiah foresaw the heartbreak that would come to Israel and Judah because of their sin, and he must have felt the great weight in his own heart as well.

But Isaiah’s message was not all doom and gloom. Along with the themes of God’s holiness and hatred of sin, he also continually proclaimed God’s grace, mercy, love, and blessings for obedience. Isaiah was able to look past all the suffering that would come to the time when God would save the nation from its enemies. His encouraging words to the exhausted, the weak, and the anxious of heart can also encourage us today.

If you have sinned, confess to God. He is faithful and just to forgive you and cleanse you from all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9). If you are suffering from the results of another’s sins or the repercussions of living in a godless generation, then don’t give up or give in. Encourage the exhausted and strengthen the feeble. Say to those with anxious heart. ‘Take courage, fear not!’

When the time comes that the ache and exhaustion you are feeling are from more than overused muscles, remember the words of Isaiah. Do not stop working for God or following His leading. Let the emotions you feel drive you to the One Who will soon come and make all things right. He will save you because He is faithful!