(My brain is a little fuzzy this morning although I’m on my 3rd cup of coffee already so bear with me as I try to share what’s been on my heart today.)
So much of life seems to be about striving, pushing, trying to accomplish more, to get noticed, to succeed.
I’ve been guilty of this myself numerous times. I am an overachiever by nature. There’s something inside of me that drives me to want to be the best. Now that in and of itself is not bad, but when that desire gets out of balance and you deny yourself adequate rest and relaxation in order to meet self-imposed expectations then it’s time to re-evaluate.
I’ve been guilty of striving so often in my life. For example, when I coached a Bible Quiz team I put in countless hours in preparation and practices to insure we’d win the championship – and we did 7 years in a row. This is just one example and trust me there are many.
But what I’ve learned as I’m gotten older (45 years old now – yikes!) is that the more I push and press and exhaust myself, the less glory God receives when the goal is achieved.
I told you yesterday that speaking at women’s groups and selling and autographing books I’ve written at those speaking engagements has been a lifelong dream of mine. And it is. But what’s worth noting is that so far, every speaking opportunity I’ve had did not come to through any effort or ‘striving’ of my own. Instead, it came unexpectedly through sources that I had not even considered.
So the lesson for me in this is that if I will just relax and be faithful in what I know to do, God will do the rest. I think that’s what He’s been trying to tell me all along.
What about you my dear reader? What things do you strive for? Share your struggles with me and together we can grow towards more trust in God, and less striving on our own.
May you have a blessed and strengthened day. I do hope to hear from you. The give and take in sharing is how we sharpen one another towards good works!
“It is honorable for a man to stop striving, Since any fool can start a quarrel.” (Proverbs 20:3)