If you are like me, there are days that feel so overwhelming you may be tempted to think, “why try?” Days can lead into weeks and months, and seasons of life that we are faced with burdens that feel like they are too much to handle.
Something that has been helpful during these seasons for me, is learning to live one day, one hour, and one breath at a time. Knowing I don’t need to “control” or fix everything now or for the future reminds me that God is in control and I am invited to seek Him as I explore how to take that next breath.
The wheelbarrow has also been important in this journey. See, we all have our own wheelbarrow to push. There’s some good we carry in that wheelbarrow, but also heavy crap. Each of us is charged with finding a way to push our own wheelbarrow up the hill.
In my journey there have been times when I see others struggling and I want to pick them up and put them in my wheelbarrow. I also see so many things I could do… so I am tempted to put these things in my wheelbarrow as well. What happens however, is often my good intentions overwhelm me and I get too weighed down by the people and the tasks I’ve decided to put in my wheelbarrow. I then end up toppled at the bottom of my hill trying to track down all of those things that have escaped my wheelbarrow in the fall. While we will always have these moments of discovering how to dust ourselves off and begin again, how do we be mindful of what goes back in the wheelbarrow? I need to be really thoughtful about what I can really push in my wheelbarrow.
I have learned that when I put people in my wheelbarrow, it doesn’t take away the reality that they too have a wheelbarrow they must push. In time I’m continuing to refine how to walk alongside them and let them find their way. I may encourage or just listen at times, but I don’t get to pick them up and do their journey for them. They truly have to find their way to push their wheelbarrow-just as I have to push mine.
There is freedom in finding ways to let go of what isn’t my crap. There is often a tension in letting go of trying to fix or maintain other people’s wheelbarrows, though. As inviting as it is to think of it in this way, we get stuck back into a rut of old patterns and feel if we can say or do the right thing, then we can fix this situation for someone. While it’s powerful to be in community and encourage one another, we also have to recognize when we are taking on more than what is ours. It empowers the other person on their journey if I can listen and also recognize how hard they are working. In time I have also seen that when they do find their way (or I have found my way) to take the next step (breath) they learn in a new way that they really CAN find a way forward from challenging places. They are empowered, and so am I. I don’t have to be responsible for continuing to get them to take those steps-they’ve tapped into a powerful strength and sense of agency that will continue to impact how they move forward on their journey.
If you are feeling weighed down by the burdens of daily life and longing for a space to renew your relationship with God, we invite you to join Jackie Shives, Megan Miller, and Haley Juhnke at the Women’s Retreat April 6th and 7th in Chamberlain, SD.
This 2-day retreat will help you explore how to lighten your load through mindfulness, reflection, quiet time, and community with other women.
For more information and to sign up go to: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lightening-the-load-womens-retreat-registration-42218030265
~MM