Know that exhaustion is normal. And to carry on, you must resist turning exhaustion into shame.
This post was originally shared in an email by the Reconciling Ministries Network (see HERE)
After an acute experience of stress, most of our bodies respond by feeling tired. But after prolonged periods of stress, we may experience “adrenal fatigue” – deep exhaustion and lethargy. We borrow against our future energy, and that depletes our future capacity.
Avoiding a fatigued spirit is a group project, not a solo endeavor. Shame will tell you that fatigue is abnormal and a sign that you don’t belong to the community of justice seekers. The Spirit of God will tell you, in contrast, that you were born a beacon of their love.
We can teach our spirits to regulate, and we can co-regulate in community. What a gift – that we retain the child-like ability to come back to ourselves in the presence of others who can bring us there.
Regulating our spirits doesn’t mean accepting increasing dehumanization or cruelty. It means shoring up our relationships and tools so that further cruelty doesn’t blow us off target.
The regime is testing our boundaries now to see who we think is disposable. All our disparate strands of suffering are bound up in one corded whip. So, when they call “red rover, red rover”: hold fast to your neighbor and get low to the earth. We will send no one over!