• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Building Faith

Building Faith

  • HOME
  • ABOUT
    • Who We Are
    • Our Writers
    • Author Guidelines
    • FAQs
    • Subscribe
    • Contact Us
  • ARTICLES
    • Articles by Topic
    • Most Recent Articles
  • EN ESPAÑOL
  • RESOURCES
    • Curriculum Center
    • Intergenerational Resources
    • Vacation Bible School
    • Webinars
    • Episcopal Teacher
  • SUPPORT US
  • Show Search
Hide Search
Home/Ministry Leadership/If You Are Exhausted, Of Course You Are.
Typewriter with piece of paper sticking out with numbers 2021 typed on it.

If You Are Exhausted, Of Course You Are.

2020 felt like a never ending year. It was such a relief when it came to an end. But then, I woke up on January 1, 2021 and nothing had really changed. The excitement of Christmas baking and stocking stuffers was over (not that it had been that great to celebrate on Zoom anyway). There were a few days of vacation left during which I slept a lot and barely left my house. And months of waiting for the vaccine rollout to (hopefully) get us to herd immunity lay ahead.

2021 Has Been A Second Marathon

Those nine months of pandemic in 2020 were so challenging; I thought for sure that 2021 would be better. But as Elizabeth Felicetti wrote beautifully in her recent article for The Atlantic, “Last year was hard, but at least the answers were straightforward.”

2021 has been an absolute roller coaster. The spring brought vaccination excitement, low COVID-19 numbers, and wide-spread hope. The weather in many places allowed for low-risk outdoor gatherings. Then, by late summer, we were headed into a “wave” as serious as the one that kept many of us from traveling for Christmas 2020. And, the way forward became less clear.

Some folks were vaccinated. Children were not yet eligible. Variants and breakthrough cases made the risk analysis even trickier. Many regional church leaders gave individual congregations the freedom to discern what COVID-19 precautions were appropriate for their context. As Jenny Smith eloquently described in this article, 2021 became a second marathon. And most of us never even had time to rehydrate after the first.

If you are exhausted, of course you are.

Recently, I sat across the screen with a young clergy person discussing Christmas Eve 2021. Some parents were longing for the traditional 4pm Christmas Pageant complete with carols, costumes, and hundreds of attendees. Some parents were tired of the same old script and looking to shake things up. Some were worried about having all the children so close together around the manger. And no one was responding to email requests for volunteers. Together, we came up with a reasonable approach to Christmas Eve 2021 in this person’s specific context. But the conversation left me with a deep heaviness in my soul.

All I can say is…
If you are exhausted, of course you are.
If you are depressed, of course you are.
If you are grieving, of course you are.
If you are angry, of course you are.
If you have decision fatigue, of course you do.
If you feel out of your depth, of course you do.
If you never want to hear the word “pivot” again, of course you don’t.
And, if you have thought about quitting, of course you have.

It’s not you, this is an impossible situation.

So, What Do You Need?

I often find myself asking “What should I do?” But in this unprecedented season, I’ve been finding the question, “What do I need?” much more helpful. Lately, I’ve felt the need to lament, to cry out to God: “Do you not care that we are perishing?” (Mark 4:38). I’ve needed the hope of Advent, the reminder that Jesus was and is and is to come.

In this season, I’m finding a beautiful mix of hope and lament in music.

“O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” has taken on new meaning for me. It is a plea. It is lament. It is hope. In this time of waiting and darkness, of uncertainty and light, I am singing. I am singing in the shower and in the car. I’m humming while making a cup of tea and grocery shopping. I’m sending forth my lament and my hope and my petitions in an off-key version of every song that feels right: O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, Wake Up Jesus, and Come, Lord Jesus, Come.

So, what do you need? And where are you finding it?

The Reverend Pauli Murray famously wrote, “Hope is a song in a weary throat” (Dark Testament: Verse 8). If you’re looking for a practice, I invite you to join your weary voice to mine in lament and in hope. In whatever words feel right, let us together cry out, “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.”


Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash.

About the Author

  • Sarah Bentley Allred (she/her/hers)

    Sarah Bentley Allred serves as Project Director for Roots & Wings: Intergenerational Formation Collaborative through Lifelong Learning at Virginia Seminary. Before joining Lifelong Learning, Sarah served as Director of Children and Youth Ministries for four years and then completed the M.Div. program at VTS with a focus on Christian formation. She is passionate about children’s spirituality, intergenerational worship, and small church formation. She loves local coffee shops, board games, the beach, and exploring new places with her husband, Richard, their daughter, Eleanor, and their dog, Grace. Find out more at sarahbentleyallred.com.

    View all posts
Print PDF

December 1, 2021 By Sarah Bentley Allred (she/her/hers)

Filed Under: Ministry Leadership Tagged With: 2020, 2021, 2022, Advent, COVID-19, emmanuel, exausted, hope, lament, leader, leadership, marathon, ministry, pandemic, song, weary

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. kate

    December 2, 2021 at 10:55 pm

    Of course you are! Thank you for granting permission to be tired, burnt out, angry, frustrated, for coming up short. Great piece.

  2. Mary Ellen Powers

    January 4, 2022 at 7:09 pm

    All so true. I can relate

  3. Mary Ellen Powers

    January 4, 2022 at 7:10 pm

    Loved this article le

Primary Sidebar

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • RSS

Subscribe to Building Faith

You’ll get new articles, plus free weekly updates in your inbox.

We respect your privacy. View our privacy policy here.

Search Our Site

New Articles

"Visually Safe Disability Pride Flag" with red, yellow, white, light blue, and green diagonal stripes from upper left to lower right on a dark gray background

New and Recent Resources for Disability Pride Month

July is Disability Pride Month in the U.S. As Lizzie Cox explains in her article "Disability Pride …

Continue Reading about New and Recent Resources for Disability Pride Month

Two hands of a person with dark skin tone shaping bronze-colored clay on a pottery wheel in front of a blurred blue background with brown spots

“Nobody’s Perfect”: A Resource for Talking to Youth about Sin

Content warning: This article mentions sexual assault and racial violence. In November of 2018, …

Continue Reading about “Nobody’s Perfect”: A Resource for Talking to Youth about Sin

Circular dots of various colors aligned in rows and columns on a gold surface

Intergenerational Insights: What Is Intergenerational Ministry?

This article is part of a series on Intergenerational Formation Insights written after a literature …

Continue Reading about Intergenerational Insights: What Is Intergenerational Ministry?

Footer

Keep in Touch

  • Email
  • Facebook

Building Faith

Lifelong Learning, Virginia Theological Seminary
3737 Seminary Rd.
Alexandria, VA 22304

Copyright © 2025 · Building Faith · A Ministry of Virginia Theological Seminary

Design by Blue+Pine Creative, Inc.

Subscribe to Building Faith

Get articles and resources by email

Privacy Policy

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website.
If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.