Simple Is Better – overcoming overload When the Circuit is Overloaded

Matthew 11:28-29 “Come to me, all 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.”

Gratitude 980

I grew up in a house built in the early 1900’s. It was a big, old house. A beautiful open staircase in the front room. A creaky old staircase up the back of the house. Multiple pocket doors. Tall ceilings on the mail level When my sisters and I were little, we could ride our bikes through two sets of those doors and make a big circle through three rooms. And yes, beautiful hard wood floors. The ones people are paying a lot of money to have installed into their newer homes today.

And yet, this house definitely also had some challenges. It depended upon register heat, which means there was no ductwork in the house. Simple translation: heating this big, old structure was awful. My birthday is in January. Often, I would have a sleepover as part of my celebration. My friends fought for the bed because sleeping on the floor – even with sleeping bags and blankets underneath, was COLD. At times, I could see my breath in my bedroom.

Another challenge? This house had an old circuit breaker box for electricity. These little glass bulbs were part of the breaker box and connected electricity to various parts of the house. If we tried to run too many things on one particular circuit, the bulb would break and electricity stopped following. We’d have to run down to the basement and put in a new glass bulb to get electricity back. And, yes, use fewer items on this particular circuit.

Over time, we knew not to run the toaster and the electric frying pan at the same time on one circuit. When the dishwasher ran, it was best not to have anything else using an outlet in the kitchen. One too many items on a circuit and phew! We’d blow the whole dang circuit. Normally, there was an extra stash of bulbs near the circuit box because this was not something you wanted to run out of.

Has anyone else felt like the little glass bulbs in their private breaker box are about to burst lately? Anyone else’s breaker box feeling over loaded?

If yours is not feeling that way, great! Good for you! Based on the conversations that I have been having lately, it feels like there are many Americans who are feeling overloaded. Our emotional circuit breaker boxes may not have been designed to carry all the things we are trying to manage these days. I just do not think our brains were ever intended to carry all the chaos and stuff that can feel like we are living with right now.

It’s just. Too. Much.

It saddens my heart to watch and hear all that is happening. Yes, it’s difficult to know what is real and what isn’t. Whether the context has been skewed. It feels to me that being right has become more important than how we treat others. What we say, how we speak, what our actions represent.

What ARE we to do about it? This is where it is difficult. Challenging. It’s impossible to know. Let’s be honest: are thoughts and prayers enough? Please – don’t stop praying. Yet even though I struggle with the seemingly silence these prayers seem to be yielding.

Yes, I do believe that we are intended to be God’s hands and feet. Most often, God works through human beings to show up and do something. When I think of all the possibilities of what I could do, my circuit breaker quickly feels seriously overloaded. I. Can’t. Do. It. All.

Nor should I. In fact, I do believe that God gifts each of us with specific gifts and talents and passions because we are the ones to advocate for the area we are passionate about. Since no one can do it all, maybe it is best to stay in our lane, focus on what makes sense to us and let the rest for someone else to tackle. Seriously.

Recently, I read about three discernment questions we can answer for ourselves daily:

1.     What’s MINE to do and what’ NOT mine to do?

2.     What’s MINE to say and what’s NOT mine to say?

3.     What’s MINE to care about and what’s NOT mine to care about.

Let me be clear. We can care deeply about something and still discover it’s not our responsibility to take it on. At the end of the day, we can’t try to carry everything. For when we do, we end up carrying nothing.

Each of us only has so much bandwidth to deal with the things of our lives. Only so much bandwidth before something will pop and the entire circuit will go quiet. Only so much bandwidth before the entire circuit shuts down and needs replenishment before it can start working again.

Maybe a helpful way to look at all that is going on around us these days is to embrace what ours is to do. Say what only we can say. Focus deeply on what we are to care about.

And let the rest go. It’s already enough.

Let me be clear. This isn’t a pat answer to turn our backs on what is going on around us and do nothing. If your circuit is overloaded, then take a step back. Get it fired again before going back out. You have a heart that cares for and loves other people. Who believes in serving as the hands and feet of Jesus. Carefully select the best ways you can serve God’s kingdom and do it. This will be enough.

Blessings –

Dianne

Almighty God – We can quickly become overloaded with all the stuff going on in our world this day. Help me have a heart full of empathy and compassion. And yet, challenge me to be clear about what is ours to do, say and care for. Amen.

Amen.

Looking for a bit of daily inspiration? Check out my daily affirmation posts on Facebook and Instagram (Dianne Deaton Vielhuber and Simple Words of Faith.)

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