How Do I Do More When I Already Feel Overwhelmed?

Our Wednesday night Bible Study last week landed on the question, "Does Hell really exist?" in the ABCs of Christian Growth.

Toward the end of the session, Pastor stepped down from the platform to our level and leaned up against the altar table. Speaking to us like he would a group of friends he exhorted us to grasp the concept of Hell. It is a real place. Real people are going there. Eternity is not a game or an ideology or a dream.

I left that night saying to the Lord, "You know I know Hell exists. You know I don't want people to go there, but how do I do more when I already feel overwhelmed?"

"And Samuel said unto the people, Fear not: . . . yet turn not aside from following the LORD, but serve the LORD with all your heart; and turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain. For the LORD will not forsake His people for His great name's sake: because it hath pleased the LORD to make you His people. Moreover as for me, God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you: but I will teach you the good and right way: Only fear the LORD, and serve Him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things He hath done for you." I Samuel 12:20-25

1. "Fear not." This past several months, I've had opportunity to fear the loss of friends, the loss of prestige, the loss of favor, the loss of position in the eyes of man. Each day I found the Lord met my need. Even when He seemed silent, He remained faithful. I knew what needed to be done, and I did it. I had no cause to fear.
   


2. "Turn not aside from following the LORD." Fearing man's opinion of you or what people might say or do can keep you from following the Lord. Fearing retaliation can inhibit your ability. I knew what I needed to write. I knew what I needed to say, not because I'm so wise, but because I had God's Word, the Bible, to help me know what God expected of me. God seemed silent during July and August, but that didn't mean He wasn't there. That didn't mean I should stop following His Word. I needed to press on, do what is right, and follow the LORD. Feelings are unreliable.


3. "Serve the Lord with all your heart. And turn ye not aside: for then should ye go after vain things, which cannot profit nor deliver; for they are vain." My heart can so easily be swayed. Serving the Lord with all my heart means setting aside anything or anyone that hinders me.


• There are many things I enjoy in life which are not evil or wrong, but if those things keep me from serving the Lord, then they are not good.
  
• There are many people whose company I enjoy, but if they hinder me from serving God with all my heart, I must guard myself from them. No, that doesn't mean I'm dropping friends and family, but some people tear me down. Their constant focus on negative things, complaining, whining, even under the facade of 'prayer' or 'caring exhortation,' hinder my service.
  
• God gave me children and a husband to serve. When I serve them, I serve Him.
  
• God gave me a church family to minister to, when I serve God with all my heart, my interactions with that church family will be directed toward pleasing God, not toward tearing down others.
• God gave me a church with ministry opportunities. I serve Him when I give my best to these ministries at every opportunity.
  
• God gave me the desire and aptitude to write. When I write things that please Him, I am serving Him. Such an urgency beats in me, telling me time is short. No longer can I take pleasure in writing silly little pieces for fun. There's nothing wrong with those silly, little pieces, but now, with this understanding of the spiritual crisis our world faces, I don't have time to write these things.
  


4. "For the LORD will not forsake His people for His great name's sake." I know this to be true. I walked this summer in faith. I could not see Him; I could not feel Him; but He was there. He had not forsaken me. And when my trial was over (well, it isn't quite over but close enough), He showed me how He carried me through the desert and how He'd prepared me for each test of faith. He had not forsaken me.


5. "God forbid that I should sin against the LORD in ceasing to pray for you." Wow, prayer, a difficult instrument of war: powerful in the right hands; useless when not accompanied by faith. How can the enemy most easily cause us to fall? By keeping us from praying. Samuel saw the necessity of praying for Israel. I see the necessity of praying for those I contended with this summer and fall, and for my family and my church. Many battles have been won on the knees of praying, faithful believers.


6. "I will teach you the good and the right way." God has given us the Bible so that we can know His good will and the right way to live. I must used Scripture as my compass.
   


7. "Only fear the LORD, and serve Him in truth with all your heart: for consider how great things He hath done for you." Calling to remembrance all of God's goodness, His plan of salvation, His provision, His Holy Spirit, (the list could go on forever) empowers us. During these months of battle, I drew comfort from the times when I saw God's hand in my life, in my work. And amazingly, when I felt close to giving up, God reminded me that He was at work.
   

How do I do more when I'm overwhelmed? I don't. But God does. God knows my heart. I have His Word. I must cast aside that which is not necessary, and pick up my cross and follow Him.

No, I can't save people from Hell. That's God's job. I can serve Him in whatever capacity He enables me to and not go after vain things that cannot profit or deliver. That's my job.

I do believe this summer God cleaned house. Things that were hindering me, stealing my time from what was most important, got removed. Were those things bad? No. I struggled with them. I wanted them to work. But they were not God's plan for me. By the end of the summer I was ready to cast them out with a vengeance.

Do I still have things or people that hinder me? Oh yeah. In fact, I have one that has knotted my stomach for weeks. I've been praying. I've been battling. This will not be easy. It will require a different course than some other issues, but God will not forsake. God will enable, because God loves me and wants me to serve Him. All praise and glory belong to Him.