Isaiah 57:10
“Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way; yet saidst thou not, There is no hope: thou hast found the life of thine hand; therefore thou wast not grieved.”
Several years ago when I was still in high school, I worked at a paper factory after school and during the summer. On Friday afternoon before we clocked out, a few of the men would talk about what they were going to do during the weekend. They would often say, “We are going to get smashed this weekend.” They would then ask me what I was going to do, as if my Christian lifestyle was inferior to theirs. I responded that I would spend my weekend nights with my family and the daytime trying to reach people for Jesus Christ.
Monday morning would come and they would talk about their “great” weekend. They then turned to me and asked me about mine. I told them what I did on Friday night and how I woke on up Saturday morning knowing everything I had done the previous night. I then asked them, “How about you?” I then told them how I served the LORD all day Saturday and woke up on Sunday morning and didn’t have to hug one toilet or experience a hangover from a night of drunkenness. I asked them again, “How about you?” I knew that my lifestyle was not inferior to theirs, and that their lifestyle would eventually become wearisome.
God made an observation about Isreal’s sinful lifestyle when He says, “Thou art wearied in the greatness of thy way…” Israel initially thought their sinful ways were great, but they eventually became weary with those ways. They had served their idols, lived their wicked lifestyles and forsaken the God Who delivered them from Egypt, and yet they were not happy. Their sinful ways had become wearisome. They found out that their sinful lifestyle was not that great.
Sin always leaves a person wearied with life. Sin promises the world, but it takes life from you. Sin promises a great future, but it only delivers a future of toil and heartache. If sin is so great, then why don’t they advertise skid row? The only thing that sin does is add sorrow and to weary one’s life.
It’s amazing how serving God has never put someone on skid row. There is no regret in the good of serving God. There is no baggage that one must carry for the rest of their life because of serving God. No, serving God does not weary one’s life, but if anything it gives energy to one’s life.
Christian, don’t let the world intimidate you with their lifestyle. Teenager, stop letting the world’s enticement lure you away from serving God. The world can only show you the beginning of sin, but it can never advertise its end result. They can show you the party life and the smiling faces while committing sin, but they never show you the turmoil and heartache that comes from that night or life of sin.
Don’t let the good of your life become wearisome because of the world’s advertising of sin. Always remember that there is more to life than the present. There is a tomorrow, and you will live with the regrets or blessings from the decisions you make today. Keep serving the LORD, and keep in mind that sin eventually becomes wearisome.