Jeremiah 2:13 “For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water.”
I recently entered a season in life where God has allowed me to be a mom. He has called me to raise two precious twin baby girls and dedicate my time entirely to them. This is by far my most favorite season I have ever encountered.
However, like many seasons of old, this one has graduated me to new challenges.
Many mornings ago, on a very normal Thursday, I woke up after having slept a solid 2 hours all night. Groggily, I removed my eye mask, and made my way to the kitchen. I prepared my coffee and stood at my kitchen window. On the monitor screen I could see the babies sleeping, but I knew I didn’t have much time. If you’re familiar with sleep regression, then you know. I told God I needed His help with more than what my coffee could do. There was a weariness that was eating away at me, and it extended past the all-nighter I had just pulled.
This new mom was struggling to find the balance.
In times past, when I felt weary, I could manage time better in my favor and allow myself all the time I needed to talk to God.
New challenges though, remember?
Despite what I felt, I wrapped up my thoughts and summarized my needs to God with a simple statement: “Help me manage Lord.” When I said that, I only meant help with managing the day full of tasks on zero sleep. I couldn’t really see beyond the zero-sleep part in that moment. An hour later, a perfect rainstorm came through. It came without warning and hung around for a good portion of the day. Strange, since the weather app had not predicted any rain for that day.
And the babies slept.
They slept long hours that day, and even longer hours that night. Even after the rain had left! One thing to note about our babies is that they looove rain. Especially when it’s the real deal and not their sound machine.
I remember realizing the next day after I had slept some and my brain was less foggy how God cared enough to do that for me. And thanking Him for caring and seeing me through. For reminding me that my weary heart, beyond the flesh, can turn to a strong and faithful God.
I may not know who needs to read this today. But if you are reading, and you feel weary – this reminder is for you. Whatever you may be going through, or enduring, God sees and aims to restore your soul.
In Jeremiah 2:13, God calls out His people for building broken cisterns - or, in more modern terms, wells that cannot hold water. He also calls them out for abandoning Him, the only fountain of living water.
Challenges sometimes cause us to miss out on time with Him, and things fill our schedule to such a degree we forsake the true fountain of living waters. Sometimes it happens organically by means beyond our control, and sometimes we very intentionally fill them. We ultimately find ourselves building wells that cannot hold waters that restore our soul.
In John 4, He speaks to a woman of Samaria, who was familiar with wells that didn’t satisfy her soul, and He does not condemn her but instead gives her what would finally satisfy her. “Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: but whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:13).
Jesus is the only one who will satisfy a weary soul’s deepest needs and I hope that if you’ve come across this weary, you go straight to the source.
“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul.”
(Psalm 23:1-3)
