Most people I know wake up exhausted.

The alarm goes off and they feel no more rested than when they turned off the light.

A friend with three young kids says she carries a constant weight on her chest.

Another wakes up at 4:30 a.m. to exercise before his phone blows up at 6 a.m.

A pastor told me he sometimes just sits in his car, dreading going into the office to face another day of pressure, conflict, and expectations.

All of them say the same thing:

“I’m barely holding it together.”

It seems whoever I talk to, wherever they live, whatever stage of life they’re in, it’s the same story.

Everyone’s overwhelmed.

Everyone’s stressed.

Everyone I meet echoes Wendell Berry:

“I lack the peace of simple things. I am never wholly in place.”

Honestly, this wouldn’t concern me—if it were just the world being the world. I could chalk it up to cultural norms we have to endure.

But the people I’m talking about are Christians.

They’re committed members of a church.

They love Jesus. They lead small groups. They serve. They give.

They’re the kind of people you want discipling you.

I’ve shared their stories because they’re the best Christians I know.

And they’re still exhausted.

That’s a serious problem.

Jesus Isn’t Rushed—So Why Are We?

When Dallas Willard was asked to describe Jesus in one word, he said, relaxed.

Jesus carried the weight of the world. He lived under constant threat. He was surrounded by suffering.

But He was never in a hurry.

Never rushed.

Fully present.

Right here.

Right now.

That’s confusing because the kingdom Jesus brought into this world is one where people enter into it and become like Him.

If you join the Marines, you learn to fight.

If you join the golf team, you learn to hit a driver.

If you become a disciple of Jesus, you learn how to live from him.

So why are we always in a hurry?

It’s a confusing disconnect.

Remember Jesus’ first words?

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” - Matthew 4:17

Repentance means making a choice to leave behind old patterns to become like Jesus.

Not hope to become some day.

Not gradually resemble when I have time to sort things out and plan better.

Repentance means immediate and decisive change—now.

We know God isn’t the one driving us to exhaustion.

As Henry Blackaby once wrote:

“Unlike people, God never piles on more than someone can handle… God never burns people out.”

So, if God isn’t pushing us past the brink…

If Jesus offers freedom from burnout…

What’s to blame?

How can even the very best Christians and pastors I know feel numb with hurry?

The Enemy Doesn’t Have to Destroy—Just Distract

In the Parable of the Sower in Mark 4, Jesus compares many believers to seeds that are planted in soil, sprouting with life and promise.

But then something happens.

“…the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful.” — Mark 4:19

Thorny vines can “choke” the life of Jesus out of a person, he says.

It’s an alarming word.

The Greek verb for “choke”—sympnigō (pronounced: soom-PNEE-go) συμπνίγω—is used nowhere else in the New Testament except in this parable.

But outside the Bible, the overtones of the word are unsettling.

Polybius, the 2nd century BC historian, described how a narrow mountain pass “choked” an army—compressing thousands of men into tight lines, stripping them of movement, making it easier to be killed by an opposing army.

Galen, the 2nd century AD physician, used the same word to describe a crushed windpipe—a suffocating force that closes off the airway.

It’s not a gentle image.

Jesus said many people who begin following him end up getting choked out.

But by what?

Jesus lays out four causes:

“The worries of this life…”

Not rebellion. Not unbelief. Just mental clutter. Survival-mode thinking that drowns out God’s voice.

“The deceitfulness of wealth…”

Not greed. Just slow lifestyle creep. More stuff → more responsibility → more pressure → less joy.

“The pleasures of life…” (from Luke’s version)

Not evil things. Just overused things. Food. Streaming. Scrolling. Even rest can become numbing.

“The desires for other things…”

Dreams. Promotions. Approval. None of it evil. But once it becomes ultimate, it becomes a choking vine.

Sound familiar?

Of course they do.

Here’s the part we don’t like to admit.

Jesus isn’t describing non-believers.

He’s describing us.

Faithful.

Churchgoing.

Bible-reading.

Ministry-leading.

Us.

We’re the ones being choked.

Not because we’ve rejected God.

Not because we’ve stopped believing.

Not because we don’t love Jesus.

Not because we don’t read our Bibles or pray.

But because we refuse to repent.

Overcommitment.

High cortisol levels.

Lack of boundaries.

Inability to say no—to our kids, our spouses, and ourselves.

These aren’t lifestyle issues.

They are discipleship issues.

In the parable in Mark 4, Jesus said there will be some believers who decisively repent and change.

These people will produce a crop…

“…thirty, some sixty, some a hundred times what was sown.” – Mark 4:20

Don’t you want to be that disciple?

One who becomes significantly more effective by doing less?

Who actually enjoys life?

Impacts people deeply?

Is a genuinely joyful person to be around?

Who hears the words, “Well done, good and faithful servant?”

Man, I know I do.

That’s why I’m writing a book on the joy of genuinely following Jesus in a world that’s too much, too fast, too shallow, and too connected.

I’d love to invite you into the process.

Through this newsletter, I’ll be sharing raw, unedited thoughts as they come—ideas I’m praying will shape something honest, practical, and rooted in Jesus.

Since I’m called to help people not just learn the Bible, but follow Jesus more earnestly, here’s how you can help me:

First, share your perspective. I’d love to hear your thoughts and questions—on Instagram, Facebook, or in the comments of the articles themselves.

Second, please pray for me.

The enemy is using exhaustion, mental health struggles, and relational pain to squeeze the life out of Christians. I want to point people to a solution that actually works.

Thanks for walking with me.

—Brian

Quick Update:

Tomorrow Lisa and I will celebrate our 37th anniversary so I thought I’d share a few pictures…

First, here we are on our honeymoon on a fishing excursion:

Lisa pulls in a huge fish while I’m rocking the very short shorts

Next, here we are 20 minutes after catching the fish when I learned that Lisa gets motion sickness easily and does not like fishing excursions:

We have not been on another fishing boat in 37 years

Finally, it’s been 37 delightful, fun, difficult, magical years of choosing each other.

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