Faith and Burnout: What Happens When Hustle Isn’t Holy

Faith & Burnout

I don’t run for fitness.

I don’t run for fun.

But give me a deadline or a mission I believe in?

I’m sprinting, and spoiler alert, that sprinting has sent me straight to burnout.

I don’t know why I’m wired this way.

Why I equate success with hustle.

Why I feel most alive when I’m contributing, moving, fixing, and leading.

I have a hard time sitting still. I like results. I like action. And yes, I’ve been called a control freak more times than I can count.

Back in my business days, I worked hard. Long hours. All-in. It was peak hustle culture, and I was living up to the hype. Do more. Be more. Achieve more. Go, go, go.

Funny thing is, working harder didn’t always get me further—but that’s a story for another day.

Now I’ve started to wonder:

Can your greatest strength also be your downfall?

Because when I’m in, I’m all in. And when excellence becomes your bare minimum, something’s going to give.

Last week, I wrote about how 2024 broke me a bit. But let’s be real, this isn’t just about one hard year. This is the accumulation of years of saying yes.

Of carrying weight. Of chasing purpose and trying not to disappoint. Years of running without rest.

I remember taking one true vacation in five years of running Paperclutch. ONE. And only because I had no service in Mexico.

After Paperclutch, I stepped into my next role with Women in Motion, and four years in, I’ve realized I’m doing it again.

I’ve placed anxiety around taking a real vacation, around setting boundaries, around not living up to “who I want people to think I am.”

And that doesn’t even include my community work.

Different season. Same pattern.

I’ve Always Been an Achiever

If someone tells me I can’t do something or that I am not living up to their expectation, I’ll double down just to prove them wrong with a smile on my face.

Like the time in high school when I signed up for a speech contest. The “honors” teacher who was coaching students took one look at my speech and said, “It’s decent, but you won’t win.”

Let’s pause here: I wasn’t your “honors” kid. I had to work hard, really hard, for every grade I got.

So I went home, practiced even harder, and came back with a first-place ribbon.

And yes, I marched it straight into her classroom and said,

“BOOM—first place!”

Right in front of her, honors students.

Just kidding, I smiled at her door with my ribbon, thanked her for her help, and kept moving. Classic people pleaser move right there.

But maybe that was the moment I realized hard work and intention could shift a thought about me.

But now, years later, I’m learning that achievement and control issues can come at a cost if you never pause. If you never breathe. You just keep moving!

Why It’s Never Been About the Money (But Still Cost Me Something)

I bring intensity to everything I do. Whether it’s work, a nonprofit I care about, or my own side projects, I want to do it right. I want to give more than I take. I want to leave things better than I found them.

That’s who I am.

But the problem, the one I’m slowly learning I have, is that I found my purpose in the work. And when things didn’t go the way I’d hoped, I blamed myself and, rather than seeking guidance from the Lord himself, I tried to fix it by working harder.

No rest for the weary.

I equated my worth with work. With being busy. With hustle. With being the one people trusted and depended on.

And if I’m honest… maybe it’s ego too. Maybe there’s a part of me that needs to prove I belong.

Full Disclosure: Knowing When to Sprint, and When to Rest

Hard work is necessary. There are seasons when you have to sprint, when you need to run hard to get where you’re going.

But what I was missing were the seasons of rest. Of pause. Of reflection. Of seeking God’s goodness and mercy instead of chasing my worth in the next thing.

So here I am: walking through the burnout.

And the first phase?

Awareness.

Where Faith and Burnout Meet Self-Reflection

There’s a powerful book called Dangerous Prayers by Craig Groeschel that’s all about shifting the way we pray to let God truly change us. One of the first chapters is titled Search Me. It’s based on this verse:

“Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”—Psalm 139:23 -24

Groeschel writes, “At its core, our heart is all about self—not Christ. It’s about what’s temporary—not eternal. It’s about what’s easy—not what’s right. It’s obsessed with what we want—not what God wants.” (p. 33)

We say we’re “giving it to God,” but are we really? Or are we handing it to ourselves and hoping God signs off on it? Are we thinking we have faith but just asking Him to bless our burnout?

Until we start searching our hearts, truly examining how our past patterns and choices have led us to burnout, we’re just fooling ourselves. No self-help book can fix what only faith and self-awareness can heal.

What Now?

I’m praying the way Groeschel suggests: “Instead of asking God to do something for me, I asked Him to reveal something in me.”

It’s about learning from the past without getting stuck there. It’s about moving forward with wisdom, not just willpower and grit.

I’ve got a long way to go.

But I’m starting with this:

Honesty.

Reflection.

And the courage to ask God to search my heart.

And it may hurt a little.