Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!
Two days ago, we flipped a page on the calendar. The ancients celebrated May first, or May Day, as the first day of summer. Today, May Day, signals the start of graduation and wedding season. School will soon be out. We plan vacations and other ways to keep children occupied. Yard work is in full swing. The spring we longed for now slips through our grasp. Soon, the summer heat will beat down, and there is so much left to do. It’s a busy time of year. Sometimes too busy.
When a springtime celebration sinks into overwhelming responsibilities how do we get everything done? Like a sea captain whose boat is taking on water, it’s time to issue a distress call, “Mayday! Mayday! Mayday!”
“In my distress I called upon the Lord, And cried out to my God; He heard my voice,” Psalm 18:6a
As a young woman, the fatigue of pregnancy took me by surprise. I’d sleep ten hours and still feel the need for a two-hour nap. Suddenly my regular commitments swamped me. I couldn’t keep up with everything. “Help, Lord,” I cried, and He did.
He counseled me from Titus 2:4-5 “that they (older women) admonish the young women to love their husbands, to love their children, to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.” God’s priorities for young women became a filter for my activities. If I was not taking care of these things, nothing else I did was His will for me. God showed me what He wanted me to be doing in that phase of my life. But seasons change so it’s important to keep asking.
Question #1: What does God want me to do?
Now well beyond my childbearing years, I’ve walked through many busy seasons. I’ve discovered sometimes God does put more on our plates than we can handle. He’s waiting for us to ask for His help. The Apostle Paul shares a brilliant insight in the book of Ephesians. “For we are His (God’s) workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).
God planned our perfect to-do lists, and He’s glad to direct our steps. Are we taking the time to ask Him each day what work He wants us to do? As the director of women’s ministries in my church, I often recruit women for various tasks. Whenever I approach someone about a ministry opportunity, I ask them to pray before committing. I may think they’re a perfect fit for a job, but I’m not the Holy Spirit. I want God to direct His daughters to do His will, not mine. If you’re sinking under too many to-dos, ask God what He wants to cross off your list. If His answer is nothing, then the next question becomes vital.
Question #2: How does He want me to do it all?
When poor Martha felt overwhelmed, Jesus taught her the secret of simplicity. “And Jesus answered and said to her, ‘Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her’” (Luke 10:41-42). First, do not, I repeat, do not worry. Anxiety robs us of the peace and rest God intends for us. We need to learn the gentle rhythms of grace. God wants us to depend on His grace and embrace His peace (2 Corinthians 12:9, Philippians 4:7-8).
Next, we need the power of Mary’s one thing—time spent with Jesus. Nothing simplifies my workload more than bringing my to-do list before God each day. As more tasks come to mind and distract me from the Word, I jot them down. When my time with Jesus comes to a close, I lift my list in prayer and ask, “What do You want me to do today, Lord?” Sometimes He adds things. Sometimes He crosses them off. When I start my day with His input, things go much smoother. I know this sounds like I’m repeating question one, but we discover the how in this repetition. How does He want me to work? With Him, in His power, under His leadership. His lordship simplifies life.
Question 3: Who gets the credit for the completed work?
Accomplishment feels great. I love crossing things off my list and changing the “To-Do” to “Ta-da!” When we serve well and accolades come our way, it’s easy to forget Who accomplished what. Jesus reminds us in no uncertain terms, “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Failing to give God credit for how He chooses to use us robs Him of glory. It’s a violation of the eighth commandment, “You shall not steal.” Let’s give God credit when He turns our impossible tasks into beautiful realities.
