A "more abundant life" is a promise from the Lord and a goal worthy of a lifetime of pursuit, but we often go the wrong direction! We use religious rituals, interpersonal interactions, and social activities to fill our life of faith, but we neglect to elevate and renew it. We love to practice hymns and perform in front of people more than simply singing our praise and thanksgiving to God from the heart; we love to stand on the stage as others’ teachers and teach them how to pursue their faith more than sitting alone at our desks, receiving God's Word and meditating on His wisdom; and we love lively events, various social gatherings, and ball games more than kneeling before the Lord and pouring our hearts out in prayer. If this is indeed how we feel, how can we expect to receive God's promise of a "more abundant life"?
Faith must not be reduced to just "going to service" and "doing holy work"! The greatest change in having faith is not joining a different community or learning a different vocabulary. Instead, it is belonging to the Lord and having new values and a new meaning in life! If we do not clearly distinguish these concepts and think that "going to service" plus "doing holy work" equal faith, we are bound to suffer from what is called "faith burnout syndrome"!
Therefore, if you rediscover the meaning of life and pursuit of values that faith has brought you, seek to understand God's preparation and plan for your life, and re-establish the content of your own faith, then you will find that faith brings true freedom, will no longer a burden, no longer just a one-day-a-week social activity, and is instead the content of your life. As such, to avoid the so-called "faith burnout syndrome", you must first re-establish the meaning of your faith and the goal you wish to pursue in your faith because "going to service and doing holy work" makes up only one part of your faith. Subsequently, you must also learn how to practice your faith.
Faith burnout is like a chronic disease: it may not kill us right away, yet it is the main cause of stagnation in our life of faith! We may already have a deep-seated sense of burnout in our faith yet still be able to go to service and serve as usual. Maybe no one can see that you already have faith burnout; others may still see you as a good Christian who loves the Lord passionately, but you know very well what has happened. You can choose to continue in faith with minimal effort and not face or address the burnout and let it slowly devour your spiritual life, or you can instead choose to firmly grab on to the promise that Jesus has given us - a “more abundant life" (John 10:10).
If we truly purpose ourselves to obtain a spiritual life that is true and living, truly free and abundant; if we truly re-establish the meaning of faith for ourselves and understand that faith is a matter of striving to understand the Lord's gospel and put it into practice rather than just receiving teachings, going to service and doing holy work; if we re-examine the meaning of doing holy work, learn to regain strength by serving, and avoid having our faith in God waver due to the surrounding believers’ various reasons; then our faith shall definitely be renewed day by day, just like an eagle mounting up on wings with renewed strength and never becoming weary!
“Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord, the living God, who created the ends of the earth, is not weary, nor is he weary; his wisdom is unsearchable. He gives power to the weary, and strength to the weak. Even the young shall be weary and drowsy; and the strong shall fall down altogether. But they that wait on the LORD shall renew their strength. They shall mount up on wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary, they shall walk and not be weary.” (Isaiah 40:28-31)
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