Running on Empty: Finding Strength in the In-Between

May is exhausting. There's no other way to say it.

Between graduations and field trips, concerts and recitals, ball games and practices, Mother's Day celebrations and vacation planning, this single month manages to pack an entire season's worth of activity into thirty-one days. It's almost ironic that May is also Mental Health Awareness Month—as if the calendar itself is acknowledging the chaos it creates.

For many of us, especially mothers, life exists in three distinct categories: moments of pure joy when our hearts could burst with pride, seasons of heartbreak and disappointment when we're let down, and then that vast middle ground—the in-between. It's in this in-between space where most of life actually happens, where the holy work of parenting, serving, and simply living unfolds day after day.

The Exhaustion of Being Everything

We live in a culture that tells us we should have it all together. Social media bombards us with conflicting messages—should we be homesteaders making our own butter, or girl bosses with side hustles? The pressure to be everything to everyone is relentless and unforgiving.

As parents, we develop remarkable skills. We can unload the dishwasher, cook dinner, help with homework, and break up a fight all simultaneously. We respond to "Mom" approximately 437 times a day. We've mastered finding things that are literally right in front of everyone else. We've said things we never imagined we'd say: "Stop licking that," "We don't throw the cheese," or the timeless classic, "Because I said so."

Somehow, everyone assumes we know it, we have it, we'll handle it. And if we're not careful, we start believing we actually need to be their everything. That belief sounds noble, even sacrificial. But it's a trap.

The Dangerous Fuel of Stress

Here's an uncomfortable truth: many of us are fueled by stress, and we don't even realize it.

God designed our bodies to handle stress for short periods. Our sympathetic nervous system activates fight, flight, freeze, or fawn responses when we sense danger. It's a beautiful survival mechanism. But we also have a parasympathetic nervous system—our rest and digest state—that activates when we feel safe, helping us relax, heal, and connect.

Which sounds better? Yet somehow, we've become addicted to operating in that heightened state of stress. It's how we get things done, how we check off our to-do lists, how we manage the chaos. We put our heads down and push through, forgetting that we're fueling ourselves with something that was never meant to sustain us long-term.

Stress can propel us for a while, but it cannot sustain us. Chronic stress is damaging. Only His strength is truly sustaining.

The Dead Phone Battery Syndrome

Consider your phone charger. Some mornings you wake up to a full charge; other mornings, you discover your phone is at 8% because the cord wasn't properly connected to power. It's frustrating. You might try to stretch that 8% throughout your day—adjusting settings, staying off apps, conserving energy—but eventually, it dies.

Spiritually, many of us live exactly like this. We try to be our own source of strength, peace, wisdom, and provision. We think if we just do more, go more, be more, commit to more, we can make it work. But if you wake up on a spiritual 7% to 8% charge, you're probably not going to last past breakfast before there's a blowup.

John 15:5 reminds us: "I am the vine, ye are the branches. He that abideth in me and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit. For without me, you can do nothing."

The issue isn't the phone. It's not even the outlet. It's the connection. Unless we restore our connection to the power source, we simply won't charge.

Four Gentle Reminders

First, remember that God is your source. Philippians 4:19 promises, "And my God will supply all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus." Why don't we ask for His help more often? What do you need? Pray for it. Pray specifically, in detail. God is deeply concerned about your needs and where you are.

Notice what Isaiah 40:29 doesn't say. It doesn't say God rewards the strong. It says "He gives strength to the weary." This is revolutionary for those of us who are doers and achievers, constantly trying to prove ourselves worthy through our accomplishments.

Second, when we try to be our own source, we burn out. A dead phone battery isn't valueless—it still holds all its resources and information. It just can't be accessed. Burnout is the same. God doesn't write you off when you're depleted. The value is still there; you just need to be reconnected to the source.

Jeremiah 2:13 speaks powerfully to this: "For my people have committed two evils. They have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and have hewn themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that can hold no water." We abandon Him as our source, then try to sustain ourselves with broken containers that leak everything out.

Third, others don't need us to be a perfect source—they need us to be a connected one. Your children don't need a parent who has it all together. They need a parent who knows where to go when they don't. What they learn from you—where you turn when overwhelmed, how you handle conflict, what dependence on God looks like—is often more important than whether you handled every moment perfectly.

Honesty and humility go a long way. It's better to be an honest mess before God than a dishonest saint.

Fourth, God's strength shows up where you feel weak. Second Corinthians 12:9 declares, "My grace is sufficient for you. My strength is made perfect in weakness." Culture says be self-sufficient, but the Word says be God-dependent. The very places where you feel like you're failing—your patience, your energy, your emotional capacity—may be exactly where God wants to meet you.

Practical Connection

How do we make this shift? It's simple: recognition and prayer. Recognize where you are, then pray. Let silent tears become prayers for help instead of tears of frustration. Breathe the name of Jesus. Turn your mind back to God's faithfulness. Count your blessings when you feel overwhelmed.

Ask before acting or reacting: "God, what do you want me to do here?"

Check your source routinely. Are you running on stress or His strength?

Psalm 121:1-2 offers this beautiful reminder: "I will lift up mine eyes into the hills from whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the Lord, which made heaven and earth."

You have to lift up your eyes, because help comes from the Lord. Sometimes it just takes a moment where you stop and say, "Okay, God, I'm sorry. Quiet my mind. I need you."

And His gentle response? "I've got you. Your help comes from me. It's what I do. Stop running on 8%. Plug back in."