Deliver Me (Part 1)
- Deliver Me from Overachieving
I am a hopeless overachiever.
I juggle more projects than I should.
I think I can do more than I can.
And then when everything hits at once, I get overwhelmed and have frustration dreams like the one I had last night.
I was competing in a golf tournament. The first day of the tournament was called for darkness so on day two, for some reason I hadn’t showered and was wearing the same clothes as the day before and needed to change. It was my turn to tee off, but I was in the women’s locker room, hurriedly putting on a new golf outfit. No matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t get back to the course on time.
Have you ever had a dream like that? It’s probably indicative of what’s going on in your life.
And as I look at the schedule over the next few weeks, there’s only one speaking engagement out of town that I pursued, instead of letting God bring it to me. I landed it, but I haven’t seen the favor of God on this one like I’ve seen on all of the others.
For example, at the end of this month I’m speaking at a women’s conference at a church in San Antonio. They asked me to speak. They Lord has provided all the messages. The PowerPoints are done, as are the notes pages. Meanwhile, God recently called me to plan a different conference in May, “Level-Up,” also in my home town of San Antonio. I am amazed at how easy it was to put together. We have a venue, worship band and speakers and a friend of mine who owns a local magazine is going to feature the conference on his back cover. It all happened in about a week. That is when you know God is in the center of it.
After many years of living, I am finally understanding the true meaning of the passage from Matthew 11:28–30:
Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”
What I am finding is that when God calls us to a task, he provides everything that is needed. There’s no struggle, there’s no angst and all the parts easily fall into place. When we don’t listen to His direction, and pride pursues a project, or in my case, a speaking engagement, then it’s a burden, there’s striving, and it prevents you from working on the activities that God gently placed in your lap.
So this year, I’m asking the LORD to deliver me from overachieving.
I want to be so centered in His perfect will that I know when and where I’m supposed to go, what speaking engagements I am supposed to accept and what projects I am to take on. I want to have a realistic perspective of my limitations.
What about you?
What does God need to deliver you from?
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5-7)