We can’t do it all
Our way of thinking in current culture is so far removed from God’s word that some days it seems impossible to live out life as a Jesus follower. Everyday it seems we are standing out more and more. We are being isolated by our beliefs and mocked and laughed at if we are willing to stand firm and not budge on our beliefs and lifestyle. We are being squeezed and it is needed and healthy to see what is coming out with the squeezing. But that does not make it easy.
As a mom currently raising 2 kids in America, about to be raising 3, my days can feel daunting. They are filled with prayer and concern over influences and trying to find the right words to explain the mass deception the earth is filled with. There are days I wonder why God planned my family for this specific time and I wish it was just easier. My heart longs for simplicity and righteousness. But as in Esther, the Lord reminds me often that He has made my family ‘for such a time as this’. And that simple sentence right there strengthens me more than anything else.
But with the way things are going in society these days, corruption, sin being flaunted everywhere, mass deception and an overflow of hate, the tendency (at least for me) is to want to crawl in a prayer closet and be with the Lord, and ignore the world. I want to protect my kids from influences and confusion and watch over them. I want to seclude us and have a thriving homestead so we don’t need to go out into the crowds, so I don’t have to answer the questions that come up about the advertisements everywhere that don’t make sense to my kids, so we don’t have to experience pure hate from others because of how we live.
But at the end of the day this is wrong, selfish, and not how God desires us to live. We are here ‘for such a time as this’ to be His light, which is needed on such a deep level right now. We are here to show the world that there is a way out of the hatred, fear and anxiety and His name is Jesus. We are here to show the world that you don’t have to buy into the corruption and lies, but you can thrive in your intimacy with Jesus and following Him. We are here to show the world that we can’t do it all on our own, but that we need God to heal us, save us, redeem us and restore us. And we need fellow believers to walk alongside life with!
We are at a crossroads in our culture. Women have been lied to for decades and the lies go so deep. We have been told we can do it all, and we should try to do it all. Because we can reach the ultimate happiness when we do. But us who have surrendered to Jesus know this is a great lie. We know the danger in this belief and we see it playing out in the lives of those around us. So, if not for yourself, for the sake of others, we need to speak up. We need to live a life fully dependent on Jesus. We need to openly profess we cannot do it all, and that is ok! We need to claim the name of Jesus and speak His truth, and help to break the deception of those running themselves ragged trying to save themselves from this broken world.
So, ladies, are you spending time in scripture, renewing your mind, and believing God over culture? Or are you running yourself ragged trying to do it all alone? Trying to meet the needs of all your family, bake everything from scratch, cloth diaper, make more money, have the cleanest house on the block and the sharpest looking kids in town? Are you showing yourself grace and accepting limitations, choosing to rest on the sabbath instead of getting things done? Are you allowing negative influences into your life that are confusing the word of God and sending you down a path towards exhaustion and dead ends, or are you believing God, pressing into His love and goodness and following His will and desires for your life? Are you obeying His commands and taking up your cross daily? Are you willing to stand out these days and raise your kids differently and speak the truth when needed?
Ladies, this is not a condemnation, but rather let this be the spark that ignites your passion again. Let this be the last straw that gets you back to the secret place with Jesus. Let this be the encouragement you need to get back to reading scripture everyday. And let this be the day you decide to give up trying to do it all, and grasp onto humility and community. God didn’t only plan my family for such a time as this. But if you are reading this, He planned your family for such a time as this! And He has filled you with distinct passions and abilities to help fulfill the needs of those around you. So if you are a knitter, then go knit. If you are a baker, then go bake. If you are a gardener, get in your garden. If you are a teacher, then go teach. And if we all can stop trying to do it all, and instead follow the convictions on our hearts, we will all find rest, fulfillment and an overflow of our needs being met!
