This is the time of year that many of us can become overwhelmed, worn-out and just plain weary. Jesus said, in Matt. 11:28-30:
"Come to me, all of you who are tired and have heavy loads, and I will give you rest. Accept my teachings, and learn from Me, because I am gentle and humble in spirit, and you will find rest for your lives. The teaching that I ask you to accept is easy; the load I give you is light."
This passage is full of insight for walking in greater levels of peace and stress-reduction. If you are feeling pressured and weighed down with the cares and duties in your day to day life, what did Jesus say to do? v. 28--Come to Him, and rest. In Him, is where you will find rest for your life. He said HIS load is light. If what you are carrying feels heavy, then you want to consider what it is you are carrying, why you are carrying it, and who it came from. Anytime something feels too heavy, then something has been added to the load that God never intended.
God gave us emotions. They are part of our soul. We feel many things, but we aren't to be led or make decisions based on the emotions. They actually should be followers and not leaders. However, they can serve as indicators that some things are amiss. When pressure or stress begins to build, we can choose to take time and assess what is going on.
The following is a simple acronym using the word: W E A R Y. When you are feeling weary, tired, and worn out, then you can use this acronym to ask yourself some questions and consider what you can do differently to feel less pressured and stressed, as you move forward in life.
W---Ask yourself WHO has been in charge of your activity(s).Ask yourself WHY you are doing what you are doing. WHAT is your motivation? WHAT is it that's pressuring you?
E---Energize. What perks you up? Do you need to physically stop your activity and make time to physically rest as in sleep? Have you veered away from some healthy eating habits? How is your water intake? Perhaps you need to incorporate some healthy type of purposeful exercise into your daily or weekly schedule, other than just being busy. These can contribute to those feelings of weariness. Give yourself some time, and space to regroup, relax, and gain some refreshment, and a fresh perspective.
A---Attend to the Words of the Lord. "Attend" means to understand, discern; to pay attention; to prick up the ears. It’s paying attention with the attitude of having the intent of doing according to what you heard.
God has the instructions for what is BEST for you, and that will work according to how He's wired you to function best. Be willing to subtract some things from your list(s) of things to do, if that is what HE says, or add some things. Whatever He says, He will have the way for you to move forward without being weighed down, or overloaded by them.
By the way, at this time of year, in particular, your list(s) can be filled with "should do's", "ought-to's", "obligations" you feel you have to fulfill. I would like to encourage you to start with these, when trimming your list. You can be busy about a lot of "good" things, and completely miss or be too exhausted to really enjoy the things that matter the most to you, your family, and close friends.
R---Rest in HIS ability to do the work in and through you. Now that you've taken time to stop what you were doing for a bit, checked your motivations, energized yourself, and paid attention to the Words and directives of God, you can move forward in the peace and confidence of knowing that what is left on your list is from God. Whatever He directs, His power will enable you to accomplish those things. Deadlines are God's business, though we can assign our deadlines to things. If you listen to God, He will lead you in the way that will enable you to meet deadlines.
An attitude that can really help you to walk more stress-free, is to let go of the need to protect your reputation. That can add a lot of stress that you may be carrying around needlessly. Meeting deadlines and/or any other expectation adds lots of stress because it opens the door to the fear of not meeting those expectations. God wants to free you of that. As I said earlier, He will meet what He knows is the best thing for you. Only He can see the future, and knows what’s in all of your tomorrows, anyway. He will tell you, today, what you need for your tomorrow. He is the one who causes people to have favor toward you.
Y---You and your choices. What you experience will be as a result of the choices you make. This is not meant as condemnation. If you are happy with how you feel and like your results, then, that's wonderful! If you're not, then you are the one that can seize the opportunity to seek the Lord for insight into how to proceed in a way that promotes peace, and harmony for you and those closest to you.
All of us are on our own journeys of discovering how to live more Spirit-led, and experience the abundant life Jesus provides. We enjoy blessing people and doing nice things for others. May this be a simple, handy reference tool to help you not become weary or discouraged in accomplishing what you believe is important.
