Ecclesiastes 3:1-19

Ecclesiastes 3:1-19 “There is a time for everything, a season for every activity under heaven. A time to be born and a time to die. A time to plant and a time to harvest. A time to kill and a time to heal. A time to tear down and a time to rebuild. A time to cry and a time to laugh. A time to grieve and a time to dance. A time to scatter stones and a time to gather stones. A time to embrace and a time to turn away. A time to search and a time to lose. A time to keep and a time to throw away. A time to tear and a time to mend. A time to be quiet and a time to speak up. A time to love and a time to hate. A time for war and a time for peace.”

Toward the end of last year, I was feeling overwhelmed. My weeknights were booked almost solid. Mondays I led a GriefShare support group. Tuesdays I co-led a Sexual Healing Bible study class. Wednesdays I usually worked late to make up any time I needed to on my projects. Thursdays I had Praise Team practice. And Fridays I met every other week with a couple friends over coffee for much needed “therapy", plus once a month I attended a Christian singles group meeting.

It started to catch up with me. I couldn’t manage to get to the grocery store except on an emergency basis on the way home from one of my activities. I was starting to be late paying my bills, and my house was growing chaos. It seemed as though I never got to talk to my daughter anymore.

By mid-December, I finally figured out what was wrong. I was burned out. I felt sucked dry with nothing left to give. I couldn’t handle the tiniest amount of stress without wanting to run away. At work, I even told my coworkers that I’d volunteer in a heartbeat if the department needed to do any more layoffs.

I prayed and cried and prayed some more and tried to imagine the unthinkable: giving something up. But what? Each one of my ministries has been God-directed, and I had felt His call to take it on. After more prayer, I finally allowed the unthinkable to become real. I gave up every one of my ministries except once-a-month nursery duty at church and writing The Bread.
The responses I’ve received have been humbling. My parents said it was an answer to their prayers. My friend, who helped me bring GriefShare to our church after her husband died while we were all on vacation together, said, “Good. You need it.” How could I not have seen what everyone else saw?

The stones of my life had been scattered, and now is the time to gather them back together. Time to rebuild, to mend, to heal. And most of all, it’s time to look to the Lord for strength and to listen for His direction.

Are you overwhelmed? Are you juggling more things than you can handle? Turn to the Lord and ask Him what “time” He wants this to be in your life. Maybe even check with godly family members or friends about what they see that you don’t. Act if it’s time to act. Rest if it’s time to rest. Let your heart seek out His will and not your own.

Brenda