And let us not grow weary of doing good….Galatians 6:9
I often grow weary in doing good, especially in seasons of life such as this. There are so many “good things” going on. Another year of homeschooling is upon me, teaching my children, watching them learn and grow and become more independent of me and more dependent on God. Planting a church – an endeavor my husband has been dreaming about for 10 years and been specifically thinking and working on diligently this past year. This work will come to fruition within two weeks. There has been a lot of good I have been doing towards this endeavor. I have also been taking baby steps towards opening my own photography business. Doing shoots for friends, to gain experience, working on the paperwork that will make it legal for me to work in Canada – photography is a passion for me and I love capturing these moments in life that come and go – photography is very good. And then there’s my book club – the other passion, and this new endeavor, A Martha Heart – all very, very good.
So with all of these good things, I should be energized and excited and full of life, right? But instead, I find myself tired, and stressed, and overwhelmed and these good things, these very good things, don’t seem so good to me – they seem burdensome, stressful, and life-sucking. And I just want to go to bed and be left alone…all alone.
And I know that this is not the way it is supposed to be.
The whole of the Galatians verse says, “And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Galatians 6:9-10 ESV
If I am honest, and I want to be honest – that is after all, part of the vision of A Martha Heart – women coming together in the reality of life and encouraging one another to keep pressing on – I get to this place of growing weary of doing good more than once a year, more than once a season. And this place, while it may seem like a bad place, a difficult place, it’s a place that bears much fruit – a good place, a resting place. And this is why…
When I get to this place of life becoming just too much for me I am forced to take stock of where I am in relation to God, my family, my other relationships, what I am doing, what I am not doing, what I want to be doing and why. It makes me ask myself all the hard questions to make sure my priorities are correct – that I am not sacrificing those things that matter most (my relationship with God, my family) for the sake of other things…good things…that may only be fleeting, or may not be fleeting, but are not the most important thing right now. It makes me do a heart check on myself. There are many good reasons to do good things (love of God and others) and there are bad reasons to do good things (pride, self-interest). Why am I doing what I am doing? This place makes me ask, am I the one to be doing these things right now? What is going on in my life, in my family at this time? Do I need to be putting all of my energy there right now, or can I move into these other arenas without my family suffering as a result of it? Should someone else be doing this instead? Am I taking on a work of service out of guilt and God meant it for someone else? Is God calling me to stretch my faith as I look to him to energize me to do this? Am I afraid to do it? Why? It is in these times before God, as I wrestle with these and other questions like these, that He shows me more of myself, more of himself and draws me deeper in to His ways and makes clear the path that he has me on at this season in life.
So as we Marthas seek to serve one another and others for Christ, let us not grow weary of doing good. And if we do feel ourselves growing weary, lets us stop and go before the throne of grace and let the God of all Grace do his good work in us so we may be energized with the energy of Christ to do these things that He is calling us to do in this season, so that we may reap in due time and not grow weary in the process, but instead gain greater joy as we do good to others.
