{The eleventh installment in the In ____We Trust Series}
Glad to have Becky here today- she believes in embracing grace in the messy real of life. At My Ink Dance, she captures hard, uncomfortable, often unspoken feelings and brings light, honesty and God’s truth to them in a relatable way. Becky is a wife and mother of three in Connecticut writing imperfect and finding faith along the way.
One glance at my calendar and you’ll see more handwriting than white space. Sports, doctors, meetings, parties, holidays, and there always seems to be more. Even in all this “more” I feel like less.
My days keep filling up and I am being drained out.
Empty is not a way to live.
It’s easy to fall in line and run from thing to thing waving a flag to show just how important we are. Our calendars scream of our significance, of how needed we are. We have so much to do, we must be important. We must matter. Right?
Busy gives us a false sense of worthiness. True worth only comes from God.
I hate how I feel like I’m running and running, yet I find myself mentioning how busy things are and how the running was so hard like I was name dropping a celebrity. Maybe if people see just how much I do, they’ll see how valuable I am.
We trust this idea that busy is an indicator of how important we are in this chaotic world. There isn’t time for slow. There isn’t time to enjoy. We snap every picture and post and share to prove our lives are full.
No millisecond shutter will capture just how full your life really is, and no amount of likes will fill your heart.
We give so much of ourselves for the sake of fitting in. The kids do the sports, we serve on the committees, off to church on Sundays, we work a job or maybe two, we make all our meals and have date nights and the list never ends. These are all good things, sometimes even Godly things. But when we seek these things to fill us up, no matter how good they may be, we find ourselves worn out, lonely, and empty.
You were made for so much more than worn out, lonely and empty.
God longs for us to live lives to the fullest. To live trusting fully in who He created us to be without feeling the need to chase meaning and value in full calendars and a life of running. He wants you to know who you are.
But the best part?
He sees us feverishly filling those calendar squares and chasing what we think our value comes from, and He doesn’t go anywhere. He stays. Even when we’re chasing busy and trusting in our status instead of Him, He stays and waits whispering only one thing:
Friend, I know we can’t throw our calendars away. We have responsibilities and bills to pay and kids to grow. But none of those things will give us what our heart desires. Maybe it’s time to let go of our trust in busy and find even the smallest moment to trust in His stillness.
For the next few weeks, guests will be writing each Monday on something (or someone) we tend to trust in besides God.
What about you? How do you fill in the blank: In ______ I Trust?
This post will also be shared on: #TestimonyTuesday, #RaRaLinkup, #Intentionally Pursuing, #WomenWithIntention, #TellHiStory, #Thought-Provoking Thursday, #DanceWithJesus, #LLMLinkup, Faith-Filled Friday, Sitting Among Friends, and #SoulSurvivalLinkup.
Thanks for sharing, Becky. It is easy to fall into the trap of seeking importance in the tasks we do rather than finding our worth in God, but so freeing when we can step away from the busyness and rest in him.
You’re so right Carly! It is freeing to rest in Him. Blessing today!
Thank you for sharing this edifying post.
I never thought about busyness as a way of feeling my own worth, but as I reflected upon that, I realized your insight is correct.
The funny thing is, as I was reading this post, and trying to schedule time with someone dear to me, their calendar is always so full with “other” things that they never have time for our family.
Not only do we busy ourselves to the point of not spending time with God, our first priority relationship, but there are those that we could be ministering to in a meaningful way that are also missing the blessing because our calendars are so full.
It’s a hidden little truth, tucked deep in between carpool and work schedules and picnics. It’s so good to find these hidden things so we can change those parts of our lives (no matter how little the change).
It can be really hard when we realize these things about people we care about, too. They don’t usually respond too well to me pointing out the error of their ways. I think the best thing we can do is love and make time for them. Honor them and show them they are important because of who they are!
So much insight! Thanks for expounding on this and sharing!
Oh yes… this message of busy and bossy vs rested and refreshed just keeps coming up! Resting in Him is such a big deal! So glad that we are neighbors today over at Kelly’s place!
Gosh, this is so true! How did we ever get to the place where we fell guilty when we can’t list off a gazillion things we’ve accomplished today? Being still is a lost art in our society. Thanks for the reminder to trust in His beautiful stillness… Your neighbour at #SittingAmongFriends 🙂