dear vanessa ~ Running on 100%

Dear Vanessa,

On a day to day basis, there are instances when I let my thoughts go down a path that spins out of control.  I am a wife, a mom, a sister, a daughter, a friend, and a coworker.  Sometimes I feel like I am sinking, and I can’t breathe.  Running from A to B - And sometimes I wonder if there is enough left for me?

Trying to find a balance,

Exhausted

Dear Exhausted,

It is easy for this to happen in our lives, as women I truly believe we have this innate ability to see what others need.   We look to fulfill the need and sometimes, do so by overextending ourselves.  Sometimes the lines get blurred, and we give and give until our glass is overflowing.

The example of the overflowing glass of water:

A psychologist walked around a room while teaching stress management to an audience. As she raised a glass of water, everyone expected they’d be asked the “half empty or half full” question. Instead, with a smile on her face, she inquired: “How heavy is this glass of water?” Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. to 20 oz. She replied, “The absolute weight doesn’t matter. It depends on how long I hold it. If I hold it for a minute, it’s not a problem. If I hold it for an hour, I’ll have an ache in my arm. If I hold it for a day, my arm will feel numb and paralyzed. In each case, the weight of the glass doesn’t change, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.” She continued, “The stresses and worries in life are like that glass of water. Think about them for a while and nothing happens. Think about them a bit longer and they begin to hurt. And if you think about them all day long, you will feel paralyzed – incapable of doing anything.” It’s important to remember to let go of your stresses. As early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don’t carry them through the evening and into the night. Remember to put the glass down!

I loved this example, because it relates to how we take on more than we can handle.  How our boundaries in life can be blurred by holding on too long, looking to be the savior to our friends and family, and feeling heavy.  But God says,

 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11: 28-30 NIV)

Come to me, and I will give you rest…. Is it that simple?! YES!  Lift up your worries, trust in God to take care of others when you need to nurture or care for yourself.   He is our Savior; you need not take on that role.

Love yourself enough to let the burdens go.   Start with taking care of yourself first, then your core family unit.   If you feel like you have more to give after that, they take on small pieces.   You do not have to function at 100% in all areas of your life, only you set the bar that has become unreachable.  And remember, it is perfectly fine to say “no” or not commit to something right away, sleep on it or pray about it before you commit fully.  Ask God to help you prioritize.

Dear Lord God,

Too often we take on more than we can handle, help us to lift up our worries to you Lord God, you are in Control.   Help us to focus on the right things, help us to know when to say “no” and feel good about it.  We look to you God, help us relieve our burdens and let us feel light.  I pray for this in Jesus Name Amen.

May you be blessed beautiful lady.

Vanessa

If you have a question for Vanessa please email her at [email protected]

You can also read Vanessa’s personal blog and journey at www.nesschesters.wordpress.com

 

 

4 responses to “dear vanessa ~ Running on 100%

  1. Love the analogy of holding that glass half filled! Also, Matthew 11:28-30 is one of my favorite scriptures. “Come to ME,” He says. There is NO OTHER. I also feel that when we come to Him, He wants us to LEARN from Him how He does things. That’s where I am now…. learning to let go of my plan b (Barb’s plan) and go with His plan A (God’s plan).

    Like

Leave a Reply

Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in:

Gravatar
WordPress.com Logo

You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Log Out / Change )

Twitter picture

You are commenting using your Twitter account. Log Out / Change )

Facebook photo

You are commenting using your Facebook account. Log Out / Change )

Google+ photo

You are commenting using your Google+ account. Log Out / Change )

Connecting to %s