Overwhlemed

By: Cathy Garrott

So many important and urgent things are staring me in the face right now, and I feel totally overwhelmed by the pressure of it all. Each item has a time limit/due date on it and screams for my immediate attention. This makes it hard for me to take the time to go to rehab or relax while I am there. I feel so much demand on my time that I seek ways to cut back on what is not a time bomb about to go off if not dealt with immediately.

A few days ago I was expressing to my husband that I planned to skip rehab and take care of some of the urgent things instead. He responded, “Nothing is more urgent than your health!” So off to rehab I went … asking the Lord to help me be thankful for my husband’s wisdom and not resent the time it would take from my busy schedule.

I was reminded of the 4 people in our church who will be leaving Japan soon to return to the US after a term of teaching English here. Three of them are making the most of the time they have left, and are consciously choosing “to be here” until they actually leave. One of them has already left mentally, and resents each moment she has to be here until she can physically leave. The way they face each day is entirely different, and it affects the peace and joy they receive from the day. I decided to “be here” while I’m at rehab, choosing to allow it to be a time to relax and receive physical and mental refreshment that I would otherwise not enjoy. It’s amazing how wonderful I felt at the end of the rehab time! I found that I felt less overwhelmed by what I faced once I got home and was able to deal with it faster than I’d imagined could be done … simply by changing my attitude and allowing the peace to take over.