Caregiver exhaustion is like being thirsty in a dry land. Everything is harder to do, energy is lower, joys if they come are fleeting, little bursts of energy and light that quickly subside back to the gathering gloom. In such a state, remembered times when things were good make us yearn for reconnection. For a follower of Jesus, that means desiring reconnection with God, with the joy, peace and love that flow so naturally from the awareness of being held, guided and protected. For others this might be a yearning for what once was in their family, career or whatever spirituality nourished them, perhaps too hoping for future happiness and freedom. Hear the yearning for this reconnection in Psalm 63.
You, God, are my God,
earnestly I seek you;
I thirst for you,
my whole being longs for you,
in a dry and parched land
where there is no water.
I have seen you in the sanctuary
and beheld your power and your glory.
Because your love is better than life,
my lips will glorify you.
I will praise you as long as I live,
and in your name I will lift up my hands.
I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods;
or with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
On my bed I remember you;
I think of you through the watches of the night.
Because you are my help,
I sing in the shadow of your wings.
I cling to you;
your right hand upholds me.
So even in this dry land, the psalmist remembers how good it has been and trusts that feelings of well-being will be restored. Fortunate indeed are those of us who walk in trust, even when in a dry and thirsty land. Pray for those whose trust is weak or failing.