Lately I’ve been made very aware of my limits: my need for them & my lack of them.

I’m a natural-born pleaser, with a heart to help others anyway and anytime I can.  While that’s typically viewed as a good thing, I’ve struggled my whole life with setting limits for myself in this area.  I typically end up over-committing & hitting a wall of exhaustion, burn-out, and then feeling like a failure when either I have to “quit” something, or press through it & end up making myself ill in the process.

God’s really been dealing with me in this area for the past few years, but more so this past month. I’d like to share with you a few of the things God’s been teaching me through His Word and through a few trusted people He’s placed in my life.

• I’m not superwoman; I need God & I need others

  • Laugh if you must, but friend, this is a big struggle of mine! Maybe it’s my pride, or maybe it’s my need to feel accomplished, but I struggle asking for help!
  • Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 says that two are better than one because when one falls down, the other is there to pick them up! I’m slowly learning to relinquish control & ask for help from a trusted source. Whether it’s a physical task, or just listening, we all need help sometimes. It’s okay to ask for help. It’s okay to need someone!

• The harder I work, the more tired I am & the more mistakes I make

  • I consistently set a goal, then work towards it until it’s completed.  While this is another great quality, I don’t always do it in a balanced manner. I tend to push myself to the point of exhaustion, feeling like I have to fully complete the task before I can stop.
  • Isaiah 30:15 says that our strength comes from settling down & completely depending on God. Instead of pushing myself beyond my limit, God’s asking me to stop, lay everything aside & sit with Him in order to receive needed rest.

• The more self-limitations I accept, the more limitless God becomes

  • I’ve said it in previous posts, when I’m weakest, He is strongest, yet I struggle to embrace it! When I hit my limits, I often cry out in frustration & yet forge ahead instead of letting go & realizing “He’s got this!”
  • 2 Corinthians 12:9 says that God’s power is made perfect in weakness!! Only when I feel I have nothing left, can He fill me up again-with all of Him & none of me.  It’s in my emptiness that I find completeness in Him!

I may have limits, but God does not.

The challenge is whether we will relinquish control in order to embrace the unknown; the very mystery of God. {Colossians 2:2}