Do you ever feel like you are drowning? Not in a literal ocean, but maybe an ocean of laundry, to-do lists, errands, obligations and just plain old life?? And if just one more requests is made of you, you might sink to to the bottom of the abyss to never return??
I do.
Just this morning I could feel the water starting to rush over my head and the tide getting stronger. On my to do list today: SAVE THE WORLD!!! That’s what it feels like anyway. I know it was only some things like: go to the gym, pray, read my bible, ask God to not let me drown, pick up groceries so we don’t starve to death, call and schedule an appointment for my tight neck, which is a result of my stress induced life, answer emails, and for the love of all that’s holy somehow manage to actually go to work at some point, start dinner in the crockpot before I leave, write a blog, throw up some inspirational quote in hopes of it actually landing on a poor, desperate soul that’s more overwhelmed than I am, prepare for my music students coming today, work on my goals to continue growing my business……..
YES….save the world! Isn’t that what I’m trying to do??? Maybe not the whole world but at least my little corner of it anyway. Are you trying to do it too? It sounds good, like the right thing to do. Then why do we feel so overwhelmed before we’re even out the gate???
Maybe it’s because we can’t save the world. I can’t even save a struggling houseplant. I always kill the poor things. Why do we put this pressure on ourselves to be perfect?? Did God really ask that of us??
As I exhaled a ragged breath in between tasks, I felt the Lord speak Isaiah 26:3,
You will keep in perfect peace those whose minds are steadfast, because they trust in you.
Yes, perfect peace….that’s what we need. It’s what we crave in this chaotic, crazy world we live in. We just need perfect peace, calm in the chaos, stillness in the storm. And we can have it. Here’s the catch though: we have to learn to fix our minds on God. His unshakability; His power; His immovability; His nearness. How do we do that- fix our minds??
We have to be intentional. Meaning, when we really want to just jump out of bed and start on our tasks, we forego that anxious feeling and choose to sit in God’s presence instead. We are waiting for Him, calmly, knowing He will come. He will come like the spring rains. He will come like that first light of dawn, breaking the blackness. If we show up and wait for Him, He will make an appearance.
We don’t have to save the world, we just need to meet with the one who can. It’s called prioritizing. Putting God first- seeking Him before everything else that clamors for our attention. It can be a real struggle for us task oriented folks that thrive with to-do lists and deadlines. Hello I’m Martha, nice to meet ya! My favorite things are colored pens, highlighters and little flowered journals where I write down all of the things that I need to do!
Is your name Martha too???
Don’t get me wrong, without Martha stuff wouldn’t get done. Or would it? Martha’s always think if they don’t do it, it won’t get done. That might be true, but in the grand scheme of things who really cares?? What’s more important, having a spotless house or having an encounter with God? Checking everything off of your to-do list or peace and joy??
Maybe, just maybe, if we put our time with God first, He would give us specific directions on what is most important that day and give us the strength to get it done.
Oh I’m preaching to the choir here, so I’m gonna go ahead and AMEN myself!! That’s right! Preach it girl! Yes! Hallelujah!!
I can hear the applause of countless scores of overwhelmed, disheveled moms of pre-schoolers, professional 8-5ers and gray haired grandmas taking care of precious grand babies for their working children. I’m just gonna pat you on the back and hand you an imaginary gourmet cupcake with sprinkles and cream cheese icing.
You aren’t bad…..God’s not disappointed in you. You are a great mom, great wife and an amazing friend. You just need to know that.
We are all going to be okay. We just need to stop trying to save the world and grab a hold of Jesus. Let Him save the world through our surrendered lives. Let Him call the shots. We don’t have to be in charge here! Thank God for that!
