Overwhelmed
Psalm 142:3 (NLT)
3 When I am overwhelmed, you alone know the way I should turn.
Wherever I go, my enemies have set traps for me.
Psalm 61:1-2 (NLT)
1 O God, listen to my cry! Hear my prayer!
2 From the ends of the earth, I cry to you for help
when my heart is overwhelmed.
Lead me to the towering rock of safety,
Matthew 11:28-30 (NLT)
28 Then Jesus said, “Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”
Psalm 28:7 (NLT)
7 The Lord is my strength and shield. I trust him with all my heart.
He helps me, and my heart is filled with joy.
I burst out in songs of thanksgiving.
Have you ever felt overwhelmed by all of the things that you needed to do? Maybe you are like me and from time to time you take on way too many things, and then become frustrated when there is no spare time to just breathe.
The more that I talk to people, the more I realize that we are living in a world where people are simply over overcommitted and stressed to the max. As most of you know by now, my motivation to write usually comes from some of my real life experiences. Whether past or present situations, they tend to fuel my desire to share what God is teaching me or has taught me from these experiences. The motivation for today’s lesson comes from the realization that I personally have placed way too much on my plate. I have overwhelmed myself with too many commitments, and thus the stress begins.
What God has revealed to me through this time of awakening, is that when I overcommit, it is easy for the things that God has asked me to do to get swept to the bottom of my to-do list.
In other words, what I feel I need to do, unintentionally becomes the priority, instead of what God has asked me to do.
When this happens, more times than not I am no longer at peace within. I become restless inside, stressed and then overwhelmed. He has also revealed to me that busyness does not necessarily equal
effectiveness.
I must admit that these feelings, are usually what I experience when I commit to doing something before I have prayed and consulted with God for His wisdom in the matter.
A wise woman once told me, when I was feeling a bit overextended, that just because something is good to do, doesn’t mean that it’s good for me to do if it’s not what God has called me to do.
Many times there are wonderful service opportunities at church, or in our communities that would actually be considered great things to do. Although great, if what we are doing becomes a substitute or
hindrance to what God has already called us to do, there will be very little if any peace that will come with the journey.
To be within God’s perfect will is to experience great peace and contentment even during difficult times. Anything outside of His perfect will through good, may cause us to become frustrated and overwhelmed.
We become overwhelmed when we willingly add way more to our plates than God has required or purposed for us. When we do great at what God has called us to do, we are much more effective than when we are trying to accomplish five or six things at the same time, which usually ends up not so great. Doing it God’s way could very easily mean that less, truly is more.
This is not to say that you will only be called to do one thing while you are here on earth. God may guide you to accomplish several things, but they may be required at different seasons of your life and not all at once.
I am convinced that one of Satan’s many tricks is to keep us so distracted with busyness, that we don’t slow down long enough to listen and hear God’s voice for guidance and directions.
Today I would like to encourage you to do what I plan to do the next time I am asked to do something or to be a part of something that requires a significant amount of my time, and that is to pray about it first. I may even tell the person asking, that I would like to have a day or two to think it over if not longer.
Sometimes with prayer, and a good night’s rest, and time to contemplate, you arrive at God’s will for the situation with complete clarity. There may be other times when it takes days, even years to hear from God, depending on what you are seeking His guidance on.
Regardless of the length of time, it takes for you to get confirmation as to what you should do, just remember that life is so much sweeter when we are at peace, and peace is only found in the center of God’s will.
Keeping these thoughts in mind, what has God asked you to do that you may be avoiding, or what commitments has He prompted you to take off your plate, that you have not been willing to relinquish yet? Why settle for a life of stress and overcommitment which leads to being overwhelmed, when you could have a life of joy, peace, and contentment. My hope is that we will all desire to live lives that bring God honor and as a result experience only what He is capable of giving us and that is peace.
John 16:33 (NIV)
33 “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world, you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
Psalm 94:19 (NIV)
19 When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy.
Philippians 4:6-7 (NLT)
6 Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done. 7 Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.
