I spent this past weekend with our teen and adult leaders at a retreat. It was a good time for hiking and team building. But one of the things I’m finding is it is harder and harder for me to do it. Each year, I have to make compromises in how I do things and the recovery time is longer. The next day, even after what I would consider a good night’s sleep, I am exhausted! I can use age as an excuse, but the reality is, feeling this way getting too commonplace!

Tired and weary! How many people feel this way about their lives! In our lives, we are often overwhelmed with challenges. For those who work, we are burned out by long hours and the pressure. of deadlines. Students feel the pressure of assignments and exams, worried that their results will affect their future education and vocation. Still, others are restless about family and financial burdens.

Seeking to escape this weariness, many turns to pleasure. I think all of us want to get some “good news” or experience some kind of happiness for a change. But because we feel trapped in a difficult situation, maybe we feel frustrated or discouraged, we look for things to escape to. Some may look at making changes in their lives or situations to relieve the stresses they are currently in like a new job, move to a new city, or begin a new relationship. All these things can be forms of escapism with the hope of finding relief! The adage “Sometimes change is as good as a rest,” comes to mind.

In the end, many of these things can end up just cosmetic changes. Our world is like that, recycling fashion trends, music styles, whatever sells in order to make sales by making life interesting again. Some of those things are pretty cool, but many should never be resurrected! Although these changes can make a difference, at least to some extent, what they often neglect is that which is at the root of the stress.

The Bible reminds us of many fundamental truths about life. We need to remember that “there is no new thing under the sun.” What is new today becomes old tomorrow. What seems fresh today may seem commonplace tomorrow. What seems exciting today can seem routine tomorrow. What feels like a revelation today becomes old news tomorrow.

The writer of Ecclesiastes says this in 1:8-9: “All things are wearisome, more than one can say. The eye never has enough of seeing, nor the ear its fill of hearing. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.”

This isn’t the most optimistic passage of the Bible, but it speaks a truth that many of us experience in life. Even when things change, they also remain the same. As much as our environment and circumstances change, the human condition remains the same. We crave so much more than what this world offers.

So what is the answer? It can be easy just to focus on temporary escapes and short-term pleasures. But the Bible tells us that these things are like chasing the wind. They end in wasted energy and in some cases, foolishness. But God offers us something deeper. He offers a life of meaning and purpose. And when we discover this truth, we also discover answers to life’s challenges. Meaning and purpose have a name…

What can help in these difficult and trying days? The Bible urges us to realize that the key is to trust God. Now many believe in God, but to trust Him is significantly different. Belief focuses on existence and trust is about a relationship. This trust ultimately leads to transformation and change. It moves us to serve Him rather than self. It moves us to depend on Him rather than ourselves. When we experience the truth of Isaiah 40:31, that “those who trust in the LORD will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint”, life takes on a different meaning and perspective.

So my question to each of us today is, “Do you feel tired?” Are you feeling weary or overwhelmed? Are the circumstances in life leaving you frustrated? These are moments we are reminded to seek God. He is here and is only a prayer away. When we seek His help, rely on His strength and discover His perspective on life, everything changes.

As Paul too discovered in 2 Corinthians 12:9-11, “But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ’s sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”