Yeah. He really did.
We don’t always use the word “struggle” to describe Jesus. But maybe we should.
Because his life wasn’t just about sermons and miracles. It was also about pressures and pain. Grief. Exhaustion. Being pulled in every direction. Sound familiar?
Jesus didn’t live in a peaceful, easy world. He lived under a powerful empire that watched and controlled everything. A society that misunderstood him. Friends who didn’t always show up. Systems that didn’t bend for anyone, especially a working-class carpenter from the sticks (Nazareth wasn’t exactly a booming metropolis).
Jesus knew burnout. Anxiety. Loneliness. Seen as a threat for challenging the existing social and political order, Jesus experienced government oppression. He lived under Roman occupation—a regime that taxed the poor into deeper poverty, silenced protest with violence, and used public executions to keep people in line. It was a system that protected the powerful and punished those who called for justice. He faced betrayal from friends and suffered sleepless nights and the crushing burden of carrying other people’s pain as well as his own.
He got tired.
He got overwhelmed with emotion.
He wept.
He asked God hard questions.
Jesus knew the crushing weight of everyone’s expectations – and he knew what it was like to feel completely alone. He knew what it meant to care deeply in a world that didn’t always care back. But he didn’t numb out. He didn’t self-medicate. He didn’t shut down. He stayed present. Jesus kept pursuing and practicing compassion.
But, so what? Is any of this relevant thousands of years later? Well, consider this: So many of us today are dealing with similar issues. Inflation and an uncertain job market may have you feeling burned out. Perhaps you are one of many Americans working multiple jobs to keep your family afloat. The aftermath of social distancing, coupled with social media, has radically changed our interactions, leaving some to feel more disconnected and alone than ever.
Some of us feel that politics aren’t fair, while others still feel hurt about things that happened in the past. So, what’s the solution? We won’t pretend we have the answers, but Jesus left clues about how we might manage. If you could simplify his teachings and methods to a singular idea, it would be this: that everyone deserves to live good, full lives.
He didn’t want to see others struggle and barely scrape by; he wanted everyone to thrive. He desired a world that was just and equitable for all. He dedicated his life to this ideal. With that in mind, maybe his way of handling life’s hardships can help us deal with ours.
