An Open Letter to the Overworked and Underappreciated

Dear Friend:

I've been thinking about you today,
And I’ve realized something:
You are overworked and under-appreciated.

No wonder you’re considering jumping ship.

While I cannot presume to know where God is leading your life,
I can tell you this:
You are making a difference where you are.

You probably cannot see it.
But you are doing a lot of things right.
If nothing else, you are
showing up and
giving your best, and
setting an example of
steady courage and grace.

You are
intelligent and wise,
passionate and hardworking,
detailed and flexible.

You are a leader.

We need strong leaders.

Yet leadership takes time.

And leaders often must work through
silent strength
determination
gritted teeth and
prayer.

You work through those things.

Yet you are exhausted.
Overworked.
Under-appreciated.
And in those conditions, it's difficult to see anything clearly.

I pray you give yourself time.

I pray you do something life-giving for you.

I pray you feed your soul so that
Light and truth can filter in and
Darkness and lies can fade away
And God’s presence and peace can be
abundantly clear.

Yes. You are overworked.
Yes. You are under-appreciated.
But I appreciate you.
And I hope that, somehow, today
That is enough.

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What makes you feel appreciated?
At work?
At home?
At church?
At your volunteer post?
What do you need to feel appreciated right now?
Realistic or not?
Please answer.
I genuinely want to know.
Not because I’m going to try to fix everything.
I’m not.
(At least not right now.)
I’m just curious to know what needs to happen to change the tide.