5 Refreshing Bible Verses for the Weary and Burdened
The translucent breath of heaven lingers on the morning window panes, and burdock lifts barbed hands toward a grey sky. Sometimes this season of sleep, cold, and darkness starts to leave us all feeling just a little too threadbare. We crave light and warmth. If this is you today, I invite you to soak in these refreshing Bible verses for the weary and worn.
As I prepare my heart to walk through this season, I’m reminded of the burdens our little family faced throughout past winters.
Our past few winters have been difficult.
We have faced struggles that often felt beyond our strength.
We have faced blustery afternoons spent over the freshly displaced earth of gravesites. Our loved ones suffered long bouts with illness. We have felt weary and burdened in a dozen different ways.
You might be carrying your own sort of burdens this winter, burdens that feel just a little too heavy for you to lift to the throne of the God you’re beginning to doubt.
If you need truth to stand on today, here are five Bible verses for the weary and worn:
Bible Verses for the Weary
1. Galatians 6:9, ESV
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.
We all grow weary at times. However, those of us who don’t give up will reap God’s rewards.
Are you on the brink of giving up? Talk to God about your struggle. He might be calling you to change directions. However, if you sense that he is asking you to stay the course, you can trust that he will give you all you need to keep going.
2. Isaiah 40:31
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.
God invites you to turn to him in your weariness. Tell him all about it. Then, ask him to give you strength. He is waiting to help you.
A good way to turn to God for strength is to find daily routines that help you connect with him. Use these times to draw near to him and drink from his Living Water. For five morning routines to help you connect with him, join me here.
3. Matthew 11:28
Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
When I feel weary, I tend to take matters into my own hands. I forget that if I would just turn to Jesus and rest in his embrace, he would give me rest.
For practical ways to rest with Jesus, join me here.
4. Psalm 73:26
My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever.
Your body may grow weary. However, God wants to be the strength of your heart.
Stand on this promise when you are weak and weary. You might memorize it and repeat it. God wants to give you his rest. He is waiting to reveal himself as your portion.
5. John 16:33
I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.
Some of us are surprised when troubles come our way.
Meanwhile, Jesus told us to expect trouble.
If you are weary because you are facing a trial or troubled time, turn to Jesus. He will use this time to help you become more mature and complete. He will also carry you through it.
I invite you to join me as we dig into a longer passage about being weary, as well. May the truths in this passage encourage you as you turn to Jesus in your weariness.
Bible Verses for the Weary From 2 Corinthians
“For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many” (2 Corinthians 1:8-11).
Paul’s words to the Corinthian church resonate with my soul, and from them, I glean a few truths for the days when the burdens linger low and heavy. Regardless of what obstacles you face today, may these Bible verses for the weary offer hope and insight:
1. Your weary and burdened seasons are opportunities to teach you to rely on God instead of yourself.
I am a woman who thrives on my sense of self-reliance. I like to fix things, help people, and pull myself up by my bootstraps.
Your weary and burdened seasons are opportunities to teach you to rely on God instead of yourself. #heavyburdens #burdensinlife #wearyandburdened Click To TweetBut what happens when our best-laid plans fall apart? These are the moments when our faith is deepened as we learn to rely on God to help us in his strength, not our own.
Verse 9 of our passage above reminds us that our heavy burdens lead us to “rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.” What an encouragement we find in these last five words. The same power that raised Christ from the dark grave is alive and well in you. The same power that raised Christ is available to deliver you today, if only you will call upon the name of Jesus and ask.
2. Your weariness is an opportunity for God to show you his deliverance.
Verse 10 offers a simple, yet poignant truth: “He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us.” We can trust that God is ready and willing to deliver us from our burdens when we look to the past and see how he carried us through difficult times. Remembering how he delivered in the past gives us hope that he will show up again.
If you are struggling as you stare into a new season, pause to list the times God carried you through past seasons. Draw strength from your own testimony. Click To Tweet Let the Lord encourage you through the undeniable truth of your own story.
3. This burden is an opportunity for your testimony to strengthen.
When we remember the ways he has delivered us in the past, we build ourselves up to trust in him to carry us through our current struggles as well. Ultimately, we are building a testimony that speaks of his faithfulness throughout the different struggles in our lives. We find hope by trusting that just as he delivered us in the past, he will deliver us again: “On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again” (verse 10).
4. Your weary and burdened seasons are opportunities to join with others in prayer.
The beginning of verse 11 reads, “You also must help us by prayer.”
I have been deeply blessed by a group of women with whom I weekly pray, mostly via text message from afar. We carry each other’s burdens and rejoice as we watch God answer prayer. We pray together, and there is a synergistic movement. Our heaviest burdens are lifted powerfully to God through our combined strength.
It has been a difficult season for this group. We have faced hard losses. We are weekly reminded of the brokenness of the world in which we live. However, even in the lowest valleys, we see God show up. Doctors tell us they don’t know how to account for miraculous healing. Hearts are restored. Rain falls down on wildfires.
5. This burden is an opportunity for God to receive praise and glory.
Verse 11 concludes: “many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many.” My mind drifts to the miraculous healings we have seen over the past winters. I think of the way God answered our prayers.
Had we not prayed, we might not have given glory to God for the works of his hand. However, when we do pray, God receives praise and glory!
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This winter I hope the burdens will be lighter than the past few winters. However, even if they are just as heavy, we know the One who can use any burden for good.
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