Is your battery drained?

Persistence, or the ability to “keep on keeping on,” is a good thing. But when it’s just willpower that is propelling our efforts, it can easily come up short. A September 2023 article I read on the Medium website talked about willpower in relation to a battery, calling it “a finite resource; one that could be spent only so much before it had to be recharged.” That’s a discouraging thought.

But Christian Science shows that we aren’t some kind of human battery that can power along only for a finite period of time. God is the source – and we are the effortless expression – of energy, strength, and stamina.

Recently I’ve been praying to better understand and put into practice what the Apostle Paul calls “patient continuance in well-doing” (Romans 2:7). While forced endurance and stress tolerance don’t cut it, “patient continuance” is the basis of real success, even in the face of obstacles. Getting a more accurate, more spiritual, understanding of our divine source is essential.

In my own life, I’ve drawn upon the idea of “patient continuance in well-doing” as a member of a student-run STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education program in my community. As part of my leadership position with the program, I not only design and teach STEM workshops, classes, and camps for local youth but also serve on a board, mentor junior members and volunteers, and model educational approaches for peers.

At the peak of my activity last fall, I felt like a drained battery. While I enjoyed the work, it felt unsustainable – and like a burden. This was when I realized I needed a more spiritual view. I didn’t want to give up this activity, but I did want to find peace.

One Sunday morning, as I was praying along these lines, the Christian Science Sunday School I attended opened with Hymn 320 from the “Christian Science Hymnal.” The hymn’s third verse immediately stood out to me:

Mere human energy shall faint,
          And youthful vigor cease;
But those who wait upon the Lord
          In strength shall still increase.
(Isaac Watts; arr. William Cameron, adapt.)

It occurred to me that my role was to “wait upon the Lord.” This involved listening for, and following, God’s guidance. This sounded a whole lot easier than trying to bear the false weight of personal responsibility and then trying to build up or find the energy to back it. Additionally, by waiting on God, we find that we have not only enough strength to carry out the tasks in front of us, but also the promise that our strength will continually increase.

This was a welcome reversal of the belief that our strength and energy must inevitably get depleted.

Mary Baker Eddy’s book “Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures,” the textbook of Christian Science, shares this related insight: “Let us feel the divine energy of Spirit, bringing us into newness of life and recognizing no mortal nor material power as able to destroy. Let us rejoice that we are subject to the divine ‘powers that be’” (p. 249).

One thing that I noted in the article I’d read online was that this battery concept was labeled as “Ego depletion theory.” But as children of God, we are all entirely spiritual and reflect God, who is the one Mind or Ego. So a human ego to be depleted isn’t even truly part of us. Our real source is God, who is infinite.

As I prayed with these ideas, I understood that I didn’t need an endless supply of willpower to carry out my activities. Instead, I could recognize that I reflect God. This was natural and effortless. Not long afterward, the feeling of burden lifted, and I was able to set a reasonable pace for my activity and find renewed stamina.

How freeing it is to realize that activity that involves waiting on God draws from the one perfect source, which never runs out and sustains us all.

Adapted from an article published in the July 29, 2024, issue of the Christian Science Sentinel.