We were never made to be everything – everything that others might be or having to be everything to those around us. For none of us were ever designed to be everything, but to understand that we possess our own unique God given gifts, abilities and purpose, which we are responsible for using and walking in to the best of our knowledge and ability.
There are however also things that we need to let God handle and to trust in what He promises He will do for us. He never expected that we would try to be everything to our friends, spouse, children, church, workplace or extended family, and it’s when we try to be this “everything” that we end up feeling depleted, exhausted, a failure and at the risk of “burning out”. We can in attempting to be everything end up doing nothing well and often even moving further and further away from the God given dreams and purpose that we were made for.
One of the keys to avoiding this sort of disappointment and “burn out”, is to ask God for wisdom as to what is important for our lives in the season we are in.
The bible teaches us that, “If you don’t know what you’re doing, pray to the Father. He loves to help. You’ll get his help, and won’t be condescended to when you ask for it. Ask boldly, believingly, without a second thought.” (James 1:5)
We can all be a lot of things and work very hard at being successful at them, but perhaps it would be wiser and more fulfilling to ask, “God what is important for me today”, because often what we think is important actually isn’t. In the big scheme of things it may not matter very much at all and even when it looks good, it can also not be of any real importance to God either.
There is an account in the bible about two sisters who Jesus instructed in what was truly important. Mary and Martha were friends of Jesus and He and the disciples had come to visit their home. Whilst Mary sat at Jesus’ feet listening to what He was teaching Martha was rushing about with domestic duties. These looked necessary, relevant and even could be termed as to be doing the “right” thing, but when she got annoyed at Mary for not helping Jesus corrected her by saying that Mary had chosen to do what was really important – to sit and learn from Him.
The Lord answered her, “Martha, my beloved Martha. Why are you upset and troubled, pulled away by all these many distractions? Are they really that important? Mary has discovered the one thing most important by choosing to sit at my feet. She is undistracted, and I won’t take this privilege from her.” (Luke 10:41-43 TPT)
Today take some time to enquire of Jesus, “What’s important”, and then seek His wisdom and guidance to help you focus your energy and time in to doing that.
Because when we look back at our relationships, our kids, our work, our friends, family and the community around us wouldn’t it be great to be able to say with no regrets, “I chose the important over the urgent”. “I chose the important over the glamorous”. “I chose the important over looking successful, over money, over being popular in the world’s eyes”. “I chose what’s truly important and I didn’t try to do or be everything”. I simply walked in the gifts, abilities and assignments God gave me in each season of my life and chose to hand over to Him everything and everyone else and allow Him to handle it. I discovered that I don’t have to be everything to everyone because that’s God’s job; all I need do you know what’s important for today; what’s on Gods heart today, what good thing has he planned for me to walk in today, and then get busy doing only that. (Ephesians 2:10)
Prayer: Lord please help me to not try and be everything to everyone but instead for me to take the time to discover what is truly important in this season of my life. That I would only focus upon what you say is important and purposeful and to turn everything else over to you to take care of. In Jesus name Amen.