When Life Feels Overwhelming
I wrote a note on my Facebook page about how overwhelming life can seem. When I look at the big picture I often feel unequipped to handle everything. I look at the calendar and that sick feeling creeps up in my stomach. Eventually, butterfly flutters turn into an all out hurricane, and I spend the day physically tired and emotionally frazzled.
Based on the response, I’m thinking some of you may know a little something about this storm, too.
The solution, I’ve found, is to stay focused on today. This minute. The assignment right in front of me, not a week out or even an hour out. It’s tomorrow that taunts me, but when I live moment by moment I find freedom and confidence.
But how do we keep our minds from drifting down the river of the future? How do we give this moment our full attention? How do we let tomorrow worry about itself?
Eliminate and designate.
1. Eliminate distractions.
This one’s a doozy. Because distractions swirl around our eyes just about all the time. Anybody have a cell phone? Thought so. Anybody get emails, Facebook updates, texts and calls in the palm of your hand? Yep. All great things, and how wonderful it is to stay in touch and up to date, but friends, we have to do it on our terms. Turn off your notifications. The constant ringing and chiming drags our attention away from right now and yanks it towards problems and concerns not meant for this moment.
When our eyes shift our nerves fray and spirits fret. We’re robbed of the joy of this moment, because we’ve already run ahead to the next. What distractions can you turn off or turn down to allow you to stay focused on individual moments?
2. Designate demands.
Amidst our homeschool day I’ve struggled to keep a calm, focused school room while also working on laundry, dishes, cleaning, meals and other family responsibilities. Recently, we came up with a plan to take 5-10 minute breaks throughout the school day. During these little breaks I start a load of laundry or tackle dirty dishes. I designate specific demands into these windows of time, so I can be fully present during our school hours. We all benefit from it. I’m a lot nicer when I don’t drag all my extra stuff into every assignment.
We can’t escape demands, but we can designate them to a time and a place that keeps them from drowning us. How can you organize your life’s demands to free up your whole heart and mind to be present in every moment?
Whoever believes in me, as Scripture has said, rivers of living water will flow from within them.” John 7:38 (NIV)
If we follow Jesus, streams of living water should be seeping through our pours. Let’s not let distractions and demands clog up that river!
