When I sit down to talk with people I find that serious conversations share something in common. Sooner or later people will say the words, “I am so tired”. More often than not they are talking about being mentally and spiritually tired not physical. It would appear that most of us know intuitively what to do when our bodies express exhaustion however the same is not true for our minds and imagination. I would even go so far to say that we are on the very edge of a collective collapse. We may not realize our precarious predicament but that doesn’t change the risk that we carry deep within us.
I do not have a complex formula or solution to offer to you for this problem. Far too often others come to me and give me a simple solutions which, on the occasions that I try them, simply fail to help and ends up feeding my cynicism! The answer lies within our reach. It is so simple and straight forward that it is easy to dismiss. John gave us a clue as he describes God’s new city, built explicitly for those people who choose to live in Divinity’s hope.
“The Tree of Life was planted on each side of the River, producing twelve kinds of fruit, a ripe fruit each month. The leaves of the Tree are for healing the nations.” (Revelation 22.2)
If the leaves will be for our healing, what is the equivalent for us now? First, the source of healing is God; God’s Tree of Life, nourished by the River from God’s seat of power. Second, it isn’t the result of our work; that would be the fruit. It is part of the process of being connected to the tree and bringing the fruit into reality; the leaves in this case.
Want to be energized? Stay close to God. Work with God to create the fruits of the Spirit, in other words compassion, mercy, and love. Journey with hope; know that steps one and two provide an unlimited source of power and nurture.
