by Shannon Caughey

As much as you enjoy coaching, it can also be very tiring. If you’re like most coaches, you’re always on the move. You’re continually thinking about and planning for the next practice, the next competition, or the next season. Even during the offseason, you still have plenty to do. As a result, you can struggle with fatigue—and this fatigue goes beyond physical tiredness.

What do you do when you’re feeling spent? As a coach, you encourage your athletes to fight through fatigue. Is that what you should do as well? Or is there a better path to experiencing rest—even during times when coaching responsibilities and pressures are at their most intense?

In Psalm 62, the psalmist, David, is facing relentless pressure from enemies. His circumstances are certainly not conducive to moving toward refreshment and rejuvenation. Instead, David is feeling beat up and weary (v. 3). So David does some self-coaching in vv. 5-6: “Find rest, O my soul, in God alone; my hope comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will not be shaken.”

When we’re struggling with fatigue that goes deeper than physical tiredness, we need to follow David’s lead and do some self-coaching. We need to remind ourselves that God alone gives true rest. We find this rest as we refocus on who God is. God is sovereign over all and his purposes will not be thwarted. Our hope comes from him. God is unchanging in his character amid an ever-changing world. He is our rock. God has already demonstrated his perfect, sacrificial love for us through his Son Jesus. He is our salvation from what threatens us most. God is all-powerful and always faithful. He is our fortress.

To find rest “in God” goes beyond mere intellectual knowledge of these truths about him. It’s about leaning into our confidence in the Lord and our dependence upon him. This is how the psalmist puts it in v.8: “Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your hearts to him, for God is our refuge.” Trusting in him includes reminding ourselves that he alone is God. When we acknowledge that we are not God, we cease the striving to control things that is often at the root of our need to be always on the go. As important as it is to work hard and give our best effort as we coach, it is just as important to recognize our limitations and our complete dependence upon God. We can rest in the fact that God is in control—and he is loving, good, and perfectly wise.

Coach, if you’re struggling with fatigue, look to God to find rest. Make it a priority to slow down and spend time with the Lord. Allow him to give you rest at the core of your being. As you do so, you can trust him to bring soul-level refreshment even during times when coaching responsibilities and pressures are at their most intense.

For reflection: Make Psalm 62:5-6 a prayer of commitment—“God, I will find rest in you alone. Thank you that my hope comes from you. You alone are my rock and my salvation. You are my fortress, so I will not be shaken.”