When you feel desperation, do you take a time-out?
Sometimes you need to sit yourself in a corner–give yourself time to think about things, and remember what you have to be grateful for.
The panic attack began when I wrote out a list of goals. Yep, you’ve been there. You throw everything on that sheet of paper. The must-do’s, the wanna-do’s, the other-people-think-I oughta do’s, the–you get the picture. Before you know it, the list is running onto a second sheet and you’re having a hard time breathing.
I’m a pastor’s wife, the VP of two non-profits, in charge of publicity for one, and have a host of responsibilities for the other, the mother of two sixteen year olds (ok, just for today, one turns seventeen tomorrow) and–that’s me in the garden hat in the picture–in charge of The Giving Garden.
About this time last year I was having a similar panic attack. We were telling everyone we were going to have a garden. I knew raised beds were the way to go, but knowledge and a sketch were all I had. That and the use of a small piece of ground beside a church building. If you’ve gardened, you know that dreaming won’t grow vegetables.
We made some phone calls, filled out some forms, and the next thing you knew, we had a team of Home Depot managers who donated, built and filled five raised beds and rototilled another two, and then gave us the shovels! (You can read about the first donated bed on our website.) By the end of summer we had a beautiful gate installed, flowers growing in the front bed, and so much produce that we had to get creative in ways to give it away. Considering we have a food pantry, that’s saying something, especially since no Zucchini were involved.
We had some wonderful people who volunteered, and some unbearably hot weather, which turned out to be a blessing, because, honestly, it kept us from working ourselves to death. The soil was so good that a little neglect didn’t make much difference. I think I fretted through much of the summer, and yet that garden was one of the best I’ve ever seen. I’m giving God the credit for every bit of it, because on my own it would have been like my own sorry attempts in my back yard.
I don’t know about you, but I’m tempted to be overwhelmed on a regular basis. Every time, the cure is to remember those special moments when God has provided in the past, and the joys of sharing the good with friends, old and new.
Once you’ve thanked God for his provision, you’re in a better place to choose peace over desperation. He will provide not only the wherewithall, but the whowithall. Find a friend or two to help you get your priorities in place. Then start pruning. What’s going to matter in a thousand years? What’s important now? What’s a wanna, or a wish? How will it impact your family? See, you’re feeling more hopeful already!