Overwhelmed? This word is now more widely used than the phrase “stressed out”. When we simply can’t pay all the bills (choose one in ten!), can’t do all the assignments, can’t assist with other things, or make one person happy (let alone everyone in our world), etc….. This pressure often leads us to breakdown or shutdown! Breakdown others easily recognize as our emotions and health are obviously affected. People who really care about us will step up to the plate to assist however they can. Shutdown is much lonelier. You simply don’t pay anyone, don’t do anything and all the while the problem grows worse. I don’t care if you are a pastor, worship leader, teacher, business owner, parent, student or even a young child you will encounter the challenge of life being too hard. When we find ourselves in that place we are often surprised! After all we are a Christian, a good person, have integrity, love others, and life wasn’t hard before now!  So we are unprepared. As a result many things come out of our mouths that are very unpleasant to hear! Doubt creeps in like a morning fog and threatens our faith. What we have stood on for years is shaken and attempts to crumble underneath us. The formerly confident trusting soul finds themselves in fear about the future.

I have not shared details in my blogs as we tend to compare with each other’s struggles. This comparison of difficulties results in either blowing off my struggle as petty- or worse sending suffocating showers of sympathy that may drown me! Neither of these is helpful. What we need is empathy: imaginative identification with another’s thoughts and feelings. You cannot understand the pain of something you haven’t experienced, but you can imagine what it might feel like and let that allow you to identify with them. Erase all thoughts of judgment and simply ask how you can help. If it is obvious you can’t help (they need money and you are broke) offer to stand with them in faith and encourage their attempts to face the problem.

If you are overwhelmed today it is a fact. The reason whether seemingly petty (dishes haven’t been done in a week or 10 loads of laundry backed up) or serious (chronic illness in the family or repossession or foreclosure threats) the feeling is the same. So is the answer:

“Praise be to God the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” 2 Corinthians 1:3-4

“My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you!” John 15:12 NIV