Hello,
What does life look like for you when you are overwhelmed?
I have been finding it hard to get on here and write over the past couple of months with the start of a new school year rolling around. School is bustling, both my work and my seminary, and I find it hard enough to spend an hour with my wife at night, let alone write a blog post. So here I am, a month out from my last post, barely fitting the time in to get this written.
I think you can tell a lot about someone based on how they operate when they are overwhelmed. I know the ideal is to rhythm your life so that you are never overwhelmed, but sometimes life (or God) has different plans. The season the Lord has me in right now is brutal. I am overworked, exhausted, and searching for the light at the end of the tunnel. In the midst of this, though, I still have responsibilities mounting. At seminary, school, church, and home, I have responsibility. People look to me to come through. They look to me to be wise and understanding. Yet, in these seasons it is easier to feel like a fool.
God, I pray that my students don’t see the drain. I pray my professors don’t notice my distraction. I pray my family doesn’t see my exhaustion. I pray that I still have energy for church and community and volunteering and writing and reading and quiet time and healthy habits.
One of the hardest things I do in life is say no to good things. What happens when everything seems necessary, yet it is all too much? I know the answer is margin and pace and rhythms and prayer. But I don’t even find the time to breathe, let alone sort out what I could cut out and what I could keep.
I think you can tell a lot about a person when they are overwhelmed. Will they create margin or burn out? Will they lean on God or double down their efforts? Will they still be the sweet, interruptible, caring person they were, or will they turn irritable and mean?
Lord, give me wisdom in this season to know when to push and when to brake. When to focus and when to rest. When to say yes and when to say no. Because my own wisdom has led me, once again, to a burdensome yoke and an overwhelming pace.
-NR
