Being Over Being Overwhelmed

#37

Friend,

The comedian Jim Gaffigan has one of my favorite lines when someone asked him, “What is it like having 5 kids?”

He said, “Imagine you’re drowning, and someone hands you a baby.”

Maybe it’s not a baby, but maybe you already feel like you are drowning, and someone hands you a:

• a devastating diagnosis.

• an impossible project.

• a teenager with unimaginable difficulties.

• 284 things to do before Christmas.

And you find yourself completely overwhelmed. Being overwhelmed doesn’t allow you to sit for a while and reflect. Drowning demands action.

Most of us think the appropriate response in times of being overwhelmed is to do more, but actually, the answer is to surrender.

One time, I was talking with a friend about surrender. She was going through an overwhelming personal situation, and I told her that she had to surrender it to God. She asked me, "How do I surrender?”

I sat there overwhelmed.

I should know the answer.

I took a deep breath.

And then I heard the whisper of the Spirit, and so I said, “Surrender is not giving in. Surrender is giving over.”

We think surrender is throwing in the white towel, giving up, calling it quits, but it’s choosing trust, perspective, and the power of God in the moments we feel powerless.

Love,

Aaron