“I’m tired. It’s been a long day.” Do you ever find yourself feeling this way? Yes, I know, stupid question. Of course we have days where we feel worn out, drained, and just plain tired after a busy day. After a really long day, you just want to relax.

Apparently, if you live in Louisiana, you want to relax more often than most. According to a recent ranking by buisnessweek.com, Louisiana came in first place as the nation’s laziest state. This distinction was based on figures published by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

Before I go too far, I should mention a word in defense of my fellow citizens from the “lazy” state of Louisiana. This ranking doesn’t mean that people from Louisiana have a poor work ethic. The study simply compared the amount of time spent in different leisure activities.

Specifically, the study compared the time spent in leisure activities that are more inactive, like watching T.V., with leisure activities that require more physical exertion, like playing sports. According to the ranking, the highest percentage of people who would rather watch T.V. than shoot hoops resides in Louisiana. I would definitely feel at home in Louisiana.

All this got me thinking: do you ever feel like you’re getting lazy with your Christian faith?

Yes, I know, stupid question. Of course we have times where we feel worn out, drained, and just plain tired as we seek to give glory to God and serve others. This sinful world (and the sinful people in this world) drains us. It drains the energy out of us. And it drains us quick.

There are times when we are tired and we just don’t feel like fighting anymore. We get tired of trying to do the right thing. So we give in to temptation and get angry, or bitter, or spiteful, etc.

We strive to serve others, but helping wears us down to the point where we are just worn out. We grow tired of serving others without feeling like we get anything in return. We become weary of helping people who take our service for granted. We get tired of hearing complaints and criticism, instead of compliments and commendations.

So what should we do?

We need to relax. We need to take some time to recuperate. But I don’t mean spending more time in front of the T.V. We want to rest our cares and concerns on Jesus. Our Savior invites us, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).

Kinda reminds me of the Gatorade commercials. In every commercial, there’s one overall message: you need Gatorade to stay energized and perform at your best.

The Gospel is like Gatorade. We need to drink from the water of life,through daily meditation on the Word of God, to stay hydrated and ready to serve at our best.

I know that Bible study can seem like a chore. But we can be confident of Jesus’ promise to give us rest, because the promise comes from the Son of God. The Bible describes God as one who does not--in fact, cannot--lie (Hebrews 6:18). As we seek out our Savior in the Word, he will take our burdens, worries, stress, and frustration. Christ will re-center and redirect us. Then the hardship that wears us out becomes more manageable, and the stress that burdens us becomes bearable.

So if you feel tired, get some rest! Take some time to relax—read and take the words of Scripture to heart. You’ll find the energy you need to live for God’s glory.