In 1978 Jackson Browne wrote the rock song, “Running on Empty” and it became a number one hit.  People could relate to going through life and not feeling like they had the energy to keep up with what was going on around them.  Reading through the lyrics brings about an understanding of the emotions Browne is trying to relate to his listeners.  The chorus is as follows:

Running on, running on empty…Running on, running blind

            Running on, running into the sun…But I’m running behind.

We have all been there. Maybe you’re there right now.  Life seems to overtake us with its twists, turns and road blocks.  We don’t know which way to turn; making us feel like we’re running with no purpose.  It can also make us feel like all we’re doing is running and we can’t catch up with life.  There’s always something more we have to accomplish or should be accomplishing.  So, how do we approach this as a Follower of Christ?

It may sound simple but we must believe the truth about God, others and ourselves.  Let’s look at four areas we can apply the truth to as we seek to keep going even if we feel like we’re running on empty.

1. Looking back – We have a tendency to look back on our lives in a couple of ways. We’re either looking back saying “would’ve, could’ve, should’ve” or we’re reliving hurts from the past.  These two ways of looking at our past are not helpful to us.  When we do this we are not filling ourselves up in order to run but quite the opposite.  To dwell on past hurts or bad choices we’ve made will only drain energy from us to live for today.  We have to believe the truth about the past.  It may be acceptance of the choices we’ve made and the realization that God has brought us to where we are regardless of those choices.  If our past has hurts in it, we have to evaluate them in truth.  It did happen but it’s not happening now and God has rescued.  We may need to exercise forgiveness even if only from our heart.  The truth is the past doesn’t determine our identity.  “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away; behold the new has come.”              2 Corinthians 5:17
2. Survival – There are times in our lives when we feel like if we could only survive another day. We are running but those trials and road blocks keep throwing us off our race as we face things we don’t want to face.  Just another day to be up and going can be a chore as we run and run but can’t seem to accomplish anything.  The dreams we had when we were younger are not happening and we are simply surviving.  What is the truth?  As a Follower of Christ my life is about Him, even the hard parts.  Am I surviving the day to day while focusing on Him?  “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” Philippians 1:21  On the days when we are running on empty, trying to survive, we need to remember God’s goodness to us even when we’re hurting.  He never changes.  On this truth we need to press on even when we feel empty.
3. Community – People need people. We need each other to help us as we run this race of life.  The community of believers is necessary for us to survive.  The encouragement we receive from one another is vital to our race.  We are all people who are running on empty.  We don’t know what tomorrow will bring or maybe even what the next hour will bring.  It is helpful to hear from others how the Lord has helped them and then run on their encouragement.  Maybe we just need to know that someone will hold our hand or hug us in our time of empty.  The truth is we are needy people.  We need the Lord and His community to help us daily.  “Therefore encourage one another and build one another up,…” 1 Thessalonians 5:11
4. Eternal View – The trials and the troubles of this life can blind us to the truth of our future as a Follower of Christ. We can be running blind to our eternity on a daily basis.  Our eyes need to be opened to what is ahead.  We know that this world is not the end.  As we are going through this life running empty, we must fix our eyes on the future prepared for us.  This is the greatest thing of all.  “…there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” 2 Peter 1:11  Oh that will be the day when our song will not be “Running on Empty” but will be “Running Eternally Full”.

Are there going to be days when we feel like we’re empty, blind and behind?  Of course there are, but we can focus on the truth about our past, our survival, our community, and our eternity.  Jackson Browne has a line in the song that states, “People need some reason to believe…”  and as Followers of Christ we know our reason to believe is Jesus.  He ran this race before us and for us; so let’s follow close behind Him.