Lately my thoughts have been consumed with several things I’ve got going on. A couple of days ago I started to feel overwhelmed. In my past, I would ignore this overwhelmed feeling and keep pushing myself while adding more to my plate. But this time, I stopped. I grabbed a notebook and made a list of everything I’ve committed to doing and/or have in the works.

Less than 5 minutes, I had a list of 11 different projects I am currently working on – not including my daily jobs. Upon realizing this number, I quickly became aware that I needed to stop, prioritize, and focus.

That’s a pretty new thing to me. Like I mentioned earlier, I’ve been guilty of overloading myself. And that’s one of the contributing factors to my present-day struggle with anxiety. Noticing the need to check in with myself is a pretty big accomplishment. The small step of making the list helped me to see what I want and need to prioritize. It also helped me to observe what most needs my focus.

Learning to stop and evaluate is key to keeping my balance and helping to prevent anxiety from overtaking me. While I am proud that I was able to accomplish this, I know that I was only able to achieve this because of the strength God’s given me.

Accomplishing the ability to stop and evaluate does not ensure that I won’t fall back into the old habits of overdoing it. Actually, for me it’s essential that I continue to look to God, make my life pleasing to Him, and give Him all my struggles. I cannot achieve this when I am neglecting to spend time with Him daily.

In my daily life, I’ve made a priority to spend time meditating on God’s word and ‘setting my mind on things above’ (Colossians 3:2). Through this new practice, I’ve learned to be completely dependent on God to maintain peace in my life. If I don’t take time in my mornings to do my bible study, I find that my day never goes as smooth, my mind worries more, and I experience more struggles throughout the day. So I’ve learned it is necessary to start my day with God.

I am thankful for the awareness to slow down and reflect on my activities. With God’s help, I have taken a big step in learning even better how to balance myself and my life. I am thankful that God has provided me with the outlet of this blog to be more accountable and focused on continuing to monitor and improve my health. I hope and pray that you are blessed from it like I am.

But seek ye first his kingdom, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

Matthew 6:33

In all thy ways acknowledge him,
And he will direct thy paths.

Proverbs 3:6

Until next time

Lots of love to you and yours.