Show Notes
Presented by Jenn Miller
The concept of achieving balance between work and personal life has captivated our culture because it seems like everyone is struggling to achieve it. Do you find yourself struggling to balance all life holds? I think it’s fair to say that most women in the Western world feel like there’s just not enough time in the day. Why is that? Part of the problem is that untrue beliefs have crept in and added unfair burdens. Let’s consider the mindsets that can trap us as women into feeling like we cannot manage the life God has called us to.
The most common trap is the belief that you can have it all. You know the lie—it expects you as a woman can have a successful full-time career, be a devoted wife and mom, keep an immaculate home, cook only the healthiest family meals, serve regularly in church, keep workout routines, always look fresh and put together, and have that calm and sweet demeanor like it’s all no big deal. I’m tired just thinking about that list, but many of us feel the weight of these expectations, and I’m here to tell you the truth.
Here it is: You cannot have it all, sister! You were never meant to. God created you and me as finite human beings with a limited time each day, with physical needs for rest and sleep and food, with a limited emotional, mental, and relational capacity. And you know what? Those limitations are not bad! They are God-ordained.
Hear this truth and let it be a balm to your heart—God does not call or expect you to do it all! Isn’t that good news? Instead, Scripture counsels you and me to continually be discerning, to continually come to the Lord and seek out his plan and his priorities.
Where is God calling you to invest your time and energy? As you wrestle with this question, Psalm 25 provides a wonderful posture in which to come in prayer. Verse 1 says: To you, oh Lord I lift up my soul. The Lord is the one we ultimately answer to. Would you lift up your soul to the Lord in order to discern where he is calling you to use your time and energy and where he is not? Verses 4-5 provide a wonderful prayer as a guide. It says: Show me your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths; guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long. In the midst of hectic days and crazy schedules, may you and I center our hearts on God our Savior, seek his plan, and hope in him alone.
More from Walking Worthy in the Workplace and Life
Are you in need of a rescue today? When we think of an ideal father, we think of one who is protective and who would do anything to help you when you are in trouble. Well, our Heavenly Father is all that and more. I suggested that if you need help from God, for whatever reason, begin with embracing your worst fear and your deepest hurt. Get out of self-denial, and then:
I know the way we relate to our earthly fathers has a great influence on how we see God, our Heavenly Father. And you may not have had the kind of earthly father you wanted, needed, or deserved.
Did you know you are precious to God? I remember some years ago a friend came to a Christmas concert at my church, and he had never been in a gospel-preaching church before. After the concert, his comment to me was: “I’ve never heard anyone use the word precious in a sermon.” That caught his attention.
The dictionary defines worry as “to feel uneasy or anxious; fret; torment oneself with or suffer from disturbing thoughts.” Did you ever realize when you worry, you are inflicting torment on yourself? Worry is self-inflicted suffering, and it never produces anything good.