Am I Too Tired to Love Others Well?

In Psalm 119:73 it says, “You made my body, Lord; now give me sense to heed your laws.” (TLB)

It’s hard to love when I’m tired. My physical condition has a strong impact on my relationships. Having energy makes a big difference!

What happens to relationships when I’m run down? Things that are usually small issues become big problems. I tend to be crankier, more defensive, or more critical when I’m low on energy.

If I’m committed to becoming better at loving others, then I need to develop habits that refresh me physically. The Bible teaches many principles for health, but the three most basic are proper rest, a balanced diet, and regular exercise.

Rest. Psalm 127:2 says, “It is senseless for you to work so hard from early morning until late at night . . . for God wants his loved ones to get their proper rest” (TLB). If I’m too tired to love my kids, spouse, or a friend, then my problem is first physical, not spiritual. It’s amazing how much better things look after a good night’s sleep.

Balanced diet. The Bible says, “You made my body, Lord; now give me sense to heed your laws” (Psalm 119:73 TLB). God provides wonderful delights for me to enjoy and savor. We are meant to enjoy food! But he has also given me wisdom to know what and how much is good to put in my body—and what is not. I just need to do it.

Regular exercise. “God has bought you with a great price. So use every part of your body to give glory back to God” (1 Corinthians 6:20 TLB). To overcome fatigue, I must commit to regular exercise. Study after study shows that exercise doesn’t deplete your energy. It actually increases it.

God never meant for me to go through life exhausted. When I’m too tired to love others well, take a good look at how much I’m resting, what I’m eating, and how often I exercise. Then make better—and often more difficult—choices to take care of myself.

Myself and those I love will only benefit in the long run.

Often I let my work life take precedence over getting enough rest. Because I have gone back to work in the office several days a week, it takes additional time in the morning and evening for travel. This often squeezes out other things or makes my day longer as I need to get up much earlier each day. Regarding my diet, God had been speaking to me well over a year ago, and Jeanne and I made the decision to lose weight. We signed up and committed to Nutrisystems, and I’m happy that by following their plan and watching our calorie intake, we have both lost a significant amount of weight in the past year. We both feel much better and can see a difference in energy. Regarding exercise, I strive to walk 40 minutes each weekday. I’m not always perfect but attempt to prioritize it within my schedule.

In summary, God you made me, please give me the understanding and sense now to heed your laws. It's hard to love when I'm tired. My physical condition has a strong impact on my relationships. Having energy and being energetic makes a big difference. When I let myself run-down, small issues become larger ones, crankiness and defensiveness occur. I need to develop habits that will refresh me physically. The three basics are proper rest, balanced diet and regular exercise. If I'm too tired to love, it's a physical issue. I've been given wisdom to know what and how much is good to eat. I just need to do it. To overcome fatigue, I must commit to regular exercise. God never meant for me to go through life exhausted. When I'm tired it will be hard to love. I need to make better choices to take care of myself. This will benefit me and others in the long run.