- Moms are tired, I should help out with their kids…
- My boss would really like that extra project done…
- I haven’t done anything for myself lately…
- My friend seemed lonely I should take her out…
Do you ask yourself questions like these? Does it feel like there are a lot of things pulling on you?
Do your thoughts feel like small children pulling on your pant leg to get your attention and get something they want?
Consternation
In the last post, we talked about our brains and bodies on overload. We recognized we are trying to do one thing and experiencing another. In this case, you are trying to do the right thing but feel spread too thin? Consternation, dismay, disquieted…
So what do we do?
Hmmm – notice the last word in that question… “do.”
Often, there are so many thoughts and emotions vying for our attention, it is easier to just do something rather than slow down, connect with God and ask Him to show us what is happening internally.
Why the resistance?
There are a number of reasons we resist slowing down. Here are a few that came to mind:
- We don’t know how to connect with God when we are overwhelmed.
- We haven’t seen it modeled very often.
- It isn’t part of our culture.
- It seems unproductive…
Simply put – it’s not a habit………yet
A question that can change that.
I lay awake last night … again… feeling like a failure because I couldn’t sleep. I told God my consternation. I told Him all things I felt pulling on me and that I was sorry that I didn’t trust Him more. I told Him I was falling short and that I want to connect with Him and listen but I am soooo tired! I am going to be too tired tomorrow to be productive.
I can’t take care of all the things pulling on me!
All of a sudden, what felt like a gentle breeze came to rest on me. I stopped my tirade of words and picked up my little dog and gave her a hug. I sensed a new train of thought.
- What if the question changed from how can I do all the things pulling on me — to — who’s pulling on me?
Oh Lord, I want to do the right things for the people I care about. They are not pulling on me, it’s me, my expectations of myself.
- Who put those expectations there?
Not You Lord. I have just been thinking this way for so long. I thought all these things were what I was supposed to do.
“Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.” Luke 10:41
Your Turn
Are you stuck on a fast track in your mind? Do you feel many things pulling on you?
Tell God what you feel is pulling on you. Then ask Him, who is behind this anxious pulling?
What does the lover of your soul have to say to you?
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