When you feel overwhelmed, your emotions can get the best of you, can’t they? And you feel out of control and all alone. The inner noise is deafening!
You need peace and quiet in your soul, don’t you?
When overwhelmed, you may self-sabotage and cut or snarf donuts or call yourself names like “loser” even though God says you blessed and beautiful in Christ. Years ago, I felt like a loser when my first job out of college stressed me to the max, and when I couldn’t get pregnant, and when my mood nose-dived into black after my mom died.
But God doesn’t call us to walk by feelings, right? He calls us to walk by faith! Click & Tweet!
For we live by faith, not by sight. 2 Corinthians 5:7, NIV
Through personal experience and my training as a Christian biblical counselor, I discovered at least 3 solutions to peace and quiet when you’re overwhelmed by life.
Solution #1: Tune In
Tune in to your emotions. They may signal something’s wrong.
a ding-dong hacks your Facebook account. . .ANGER,
your husband is home late, again. . .FRUSTRATION,
the basement floods. . .MORE FRUSTRATION,
your close friend moves away. . .SADNESS,
and the neighbor lady gets a shiny, new Lexis while your car pushes 100,000 miles. . .JEALOUSY.
Recognizing your emotions helps you decide your next constructive action and buoys your hope. In the examples above, you may have thought something like:
“Err! Did the ding-dong steal my personal information too? Stupid, stupid, stupid.”
“Doesn’t my husband care about me? Even worse … is he cheating on me?”
“Is that stupid sump pump busted? Replacing the carpet will cost so much. I am so mad.”
“Now I don’t have any friends.”
“Show off! I hope a tree falls on your pretty car.”
ACTION: Write down one of today’s hard emotions and ask yourself, “What was I thinking at or just before my emotions hijacked my peace”? What you think influences how your feel. Here’s a thought journal that may help.
Solution #2: Remember
Friend, you can’t choose your circumstances but you can remember to whom you belong: Jesus Christ. (If you’re not sure you are a Christian — a person to believes in the person and work of Jesus Christ — please contact me.) Remember:
You are the daughter of God. You have EVERY spiritual blessing now. And you are completely forgiven, now and forever.
Also, you have a home in heaven Jesus is preparing for you now.
ACTION: Read Ephesians 1:3-14 every day. Replace the pronoun us and we with your name.
Solution #3: Go to the One
When your emotions signal that you’re overwhelmed, go to Jesus. Talk with him. Stop trying to figure things out. Turn off the bad tapes that play likes over and over to ad nauseam.
Rather, tell Jesus your burdens. Trust him to work in you so he can shine through you. Your friends, family, neighbors and coworker will notice your bright eyes and smile.
This is what you want, isn’t it? Peace and quiet is the noise of life.
Now What?
I invite you to counsel with me to find hope, peace, and godly contentment. Simply contact me. Reaching out is the first step to healing. By the way, I also meet with counselees ALL OVER THE WORLD by Skype, FaceTime, and WhatsApp. So don’t let proximity get in the way of getting well, okay?.
Counseling Hearts to Hope,
