As I’m fiddling with my words in trying to come up with the perfect introduction to my article in a way that it would impress you, (to grab your attention to read it top to bottom) I’m at a conference. Over 200 women, from over 25-30 nations meeting near Amsterdam united in Christ, and being fed by God through Jill Briscoe as the speaker (inspirational speaker).
Jill started the first session challenging today’s Christians to include Scripture more than we are in our Bible studies, in our life, and in our memory as well. So, what a better way than to start my article with Scripture, the needed medicine to our Drained Teabag Syndrome.
At different seasons in life, I find myself choosing different verses to cling on to. This is the verse God had for me when I was drained during my husband’s heart attack, our daughter’s physical and emotional crisis, all packed for us beautifully last year.
“But I will sing of your strength,
in the morning I will sing of your love;
for you are my fortress, my refuge in times of trouble.”
Psalm 59:16
How could we have a song in our heart? How can we live our life to the fullest, yet manage relationships, demands, tasks, errands, hopes and dreams better? And all of it, done in godliness.
Complete dependence on Christ.
This is the base for success. We need to rely solely on God for help when we feel weak, grace when we feel unequipped, and forgiveness when we mess up. “Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain.” Psalm 127:1
Prioritize all your responsibilities.
First, write down all your chores, errands, tasks, projects short and long term. ‘A short pencil is better than a long memory’ and a clear mind is more efficient than a cluttered one.
Second, prayerfully prioritize everything you wrote down. Maybe some things, we’ve come to accept as too important, yet we could easily push down on the list, or put it temporarily on hold.
Declutter your home and your life.
Physically start going through forgotten drawers, unworn clothes, untouched boxes, never used pots, stacked papers.
Then go through your calendar. Just as thorns and thistles choke the wheat, too many activities can choke our schedule. Right now I’m learning to say ‘NO’. A week ago at our home group Bible Study I bumped into a verse where Paul had to decline a great ministry opportunity in Ephesus. “The Jews asked him to stay longer, but he refused.” Acts 18:20
Sometimes, even GREAT things can choke our schedule. Be discerning.
Ask for accountability.
Ask a friend, a spouse, a mentor to keep you accountable, to check on how you are doing.
In the next article we’ll continue with more practical steps we need to take, but I’ll conclude with this story.
In Conclusion
I remember vividly, a year ago driving our youngest to go see her sister in the hospital freshly diagnosed with Diabetes type I, insulin dependent.
Bella asked me to sing a song for her while I was navigating Bucharest traffic, can’t even remember what. All I remember is that it was a silly toddler’s song like “The wheels on the bus… ” But, good mom as I was, I started singing it to her. A few lines down the road I started choking, drained in tears, not because I was touched by its powerful words of ‘All through town…’ but at the pain I was going through.
I wasn’t sure if I even had a song in my heart, but I surely know I didn’t even have the strength to sing one. When life’s too much for me, I’ve learned to let God be my strength. To let Him be my song of love each morning.
I learned at the conference I had just attended in Amsterdam that, we may not have it ALL; all the knowledge to say the right words, all the strength to press through a struggle, all the courage to be bold in sharing our faith… but God gives us just ENOUGH to meet our need. We have to go in OBEDIENCE, and God will supply what we lack. So, in obedience to Christ, make the changes necessary for a more fruitful and not drained life.
Things I need to work on:
- May God be my song each morning, even if I don’t have the strength to sing it.
- Prioritize my responsibilities
- Declutter my home and my life.
- Ask for accountability
- God gives me ENOUGH to meet my needs. Just live in OBEDIENCE. He will be ALL I’m not.