Honestly, the content of this post may be written entirely out of necessity for me personally but I hope it will prove to be helpful for some of you as well. My achilles heel is the feeling of being overwhelmed. If I get to a point where I have so much on my plate with my business, my family, and any number of my other responsibilities I can completely shut down and take a step back to the point of minimal progress or activity.
This goes against everything I stand for and believe. I am, what most people would consider, a doer. You better have a buffet planned if you think you are going to overfill my plate, both figuratively and literally, haha. But at the end of the day I can find my “just do it” attitude waning and my head hurting when I get to a place where I am overwhelmed.
So, you may ask yourself, what do I do when I find myself in this situation and need to get out of the proverbial “funk”. If I’m being honest I usually just tell myself to knock it off and put my big boy pants on and get to work, no excuses. But I am writing this because I know there is a better, much better, solution than that. I easily find myself in the “mind over matter” mindset and, although in the moment to moment it sometimes works, it’s not a sustainable approach and it doesn't bring me long term comfort and peace.
A well known scripture tells us, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. (Matthew 11:28-30)”
How often do we see verses like this that we have heard a million times and overlook the simple, practical advice Jesus is trying to give us. I know I do. How often do we truly say, “Lord please take this burden that is overwhelming me and bring me understanding and peace so I can accomplish the things you have put me in this position to do and fulfill the responsibilities I have in this specific season and moment in my life”? And not only pray it, but believe it and then listen and trust in him to guide us and direct us through it. I’ll be the first to say, I struggle with this.
Although Christ can lay out some simple, practical instructions, God knew we were still going to struggle finding comfort and peace during our times of feeling overwhelmed. So he did something pretty cool, he literally put himself in us through the Holy Spirit, 1 Corinthians 3:16 says, “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”
Now, if you have been in church for any amount of time, this isn’t new information for you. But I think we can lose sight of the very real and tangible access we have to God’s comfort and peace through the Holy Spirit on a continual basis. The Holy Spirit was sent to us to help us and advocate for us. Part of this also includes being a refuge for us to run to when we feel overwhelmed and need God’s peace and comfort. In scripture we find the Greek word Paraclete used to describe the Holy Spirit which, in some translations, is interpreted as comforter. And we all know that one of the fruits of the Spirit is peace (Galatians 5:22-23).
I think the important take home message is when you get overwhelmed, stop feeling like you need to face it yourself. Lean on the Holy Spirit and remember that God desires comfort and peace for you. We all face times of heavy responsibilities and large workloads from time to time, but God tells us that we don’t need to face those things alone. Now we need to trust in him and stop trying to rely on our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5-6).
I pray for peace and comfort for you who may be feeling overwhelmed. May God lighten your burdens, grant you wisdom, and direct your paths!
Written by: Brandon Kress
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