O - Overwhelmed

I was going over my to-do list, which has seemed extra lengthy lately, trying to figure out the best way to handle everything and create a plan of attack.

Paperwork needs to be finished, emails need to be sent, phone calls need to be made, Christmas shopping (for many people) needs to be done, cleaning the apartment needs to happen (before stuff starts growing), malfunctioning microwaves need to be fixed, bills need to be paid, Advent devotionals need to be read, blog posts need to be written…the list goes on.

I sighed as I read the task “Blog Post (O)”. The thought that entered my head next was “I don’t have time to write a blog post, I don’t even know what to write about…ugh, I’m so overwhelmed.”…I stopped short, repeated the line in my head again, and laughed up a storm at the irony. I have been feeling very overwhelmed lately, and the answer to one of the things that was causing me stress was right under my nose! A little wave of relief washed over me as I knew exactly what I was going to blog about.

I’m sure I’m not the only one who is feeling a little overwhelmed during this time of year; we all have ever growing to-do lists, tasks that need to be accomplished, problems to solve, things to take care of, Christmas activities to attend to…just to name a few. There just doesn’t seem to be enough time in the day to get everything done, especially when you work 8+ hours a day. I come home from work at night and all I want to do is stare off into space like a zombie, inhale my dinner (and anything that isn’t nailed down lately), and go to bed. I was letting the stress of work and the Holiday’s get to me, and because of that, I became a bit of a Scrooge (just ask Michael).

I hit my low point during a trip to Target a couple weekends ago. My first mistake was going to Target on the weekend during the Christmas season (that was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad idea). I nearly took Michael’s head off in the extremely crowded Christmas section, and I couldn’t even crack a smile or mutter “excuse me” when squeezing by the other Christmas shoppers. I was in full on Grinch mode, and all I wanted was to get out of that store. Once we finally broke free, we checked out and made our way back to the car. I felt so ashamed of the way I had acted and the way I was feeling; I knew I needed a major attitude adjustment, and FAST.

The next day, I dove into my Christmas devotionals (that I was originally behind on, got caught up on, and then realized I was a week off and was behind on again) and desperately tried to re-connect with God. The fact that it’s the most wonderful time of year because of God, and I don’t even feel connected to Him just added another layer of unnecessary frustration to my plate. I was enjoying my devotionals, but they were also making me feel inadequate, which wasn’t exactly the outcome I was hoping for. After a bit of trial and error, I found that what actually helped the most was simply taking a step back, looking at the bigger picture, and reminding myself how incredibly blessed I am.

All of the things I’ve been worrying about or feeling overwhelmed about decreased significantly by simply acknowledging my many blessings, and I immediately felt closer to God, because I know that God is the reason behind every single one of my blessings. I have a well-paying job that I enjoy which gives me the means to provide for myself, a wonderful family, boyfriend, and friends, a body that works as it should, a fully functioning luxury apartment (minus the malfunctioning microwave), a reliable car, and the list goes on.

I am easily brought to tears when I think of how blessed I am, and I feel ashamed for acting so selfishly and making mountains out of mole hills because I let my stress get the better of me. Instead of feeling overwhelmed by the troubles of this world, work responsibilities, and the pressures of expectations (realistic or otherwise), I want to feel overwhelmed by God’s peace and love, gratitude, thankfulness, and joy.

So take a step back, focus on the good, remember what truly matters, and count your blessings. If you do this, you are sure to experience more joy than ever before!

“Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance.” –James 1:2-3

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” –John 16:33