Have you ever been under pressure? I mean really under pressure? Frustrated, overloaded, too much to do?
Sometimes there is just too much to do and too little time.
Sometimes there is so much that is urgent, we freeze and do nothing because we feel “too overwhelmed.”
Does this sound familiar?
Work demands are already maxing you out, and you get a new project with a short deadline.
At the same time, your kid brings home an F in science, and if he can’t bring it up by next week, he will have to take it during summer school, wrecking the family vacation plans. What’s more, you are the only one that can help him out.
And that funny noise your car is making? Louder. Can’t ignore it anymore.
Your spouse let you know that you are not spending enough time with the kids, leaving your stuff all over the house, the lawn is overgrown, gutter is dripping, garage is a cluttered mess, you need to wash more laundry….. the list goes on and the pile gets bigger, and heavier.
Overwhelmed and under pressure are a lousy mental state to be in for making good decisions.
Travel back in time with me, then we will get back to that pile of “stuff.”
I live in Western Montana where one of the biggest industries for years has been logging and timber.
I seem to see more logging trucks than any other kind on the roads around here, bringing the big pine logs to the lumber mills.
Back in the 1800’s and early 1900’s, there were no big log trucks or even highways, so the very best way to get the logs to the mill was to float them downstream. But sometimes, the big logs would snag and back up at a bend in the river. Loggers would get out on them to try to pry them loose and get things moving. One big problem with this was that the logs were much bigger and heavier than the loggers, and many times, if they got things moving, they could be crushed to death by the logs they were trying to dislodge. (Sort of sounds like your problems when you are overwhelmed…)
So when things were really stuck, the loggers would get to the side of the river, light a stick of dynamite and throw it in the mix. They would literally “blow up” the problem. This would damage or destroy some of the lumber, but would also get the rest of it flowing again.
(Better to lose a little and gain a lot than to lose everything / gain nothing)
Back to our stack of “stuff.”
I want to show you how to “blow up” the log jam in your life, without losing a bunch of it.
It is really simple, and almost universally overlooked. I once heard a very wise man say:
When the pressure is on, GIVE!
That’s it! That is the key to blowing up your log jam.
And I can hear you now, “What! I am already over worked, over loaded, short on time…. and you think I should give?”
Whatever. Here is what happens when you are under all this pressure: you only think of you.
Here is what happens when you give: You think of someone else.
You get your head out of your, uh … own problems, and help someone else with theirs (could be giving money, time, expertise, love and attention, a caring ear or shoulder). And your perspective starts to change.
You may realize your problems are not such a big deal after all. Ever hear this:
“I complained because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet.”
Put into a “bigger than you” perspective, your problems are probably not that bad.
Get your head out.
When you change your perspective, you get a different view or angle on the issues.
Our town is surrounded by mountains. Mount Sentinel is right on the edge of the University of Montana, and has a very popular hiking trail that takes you up about 1000 feet above the city. I love this hike, because as I go up, I see more and more of the city. To the point I see for miles beyond the city limits. The irritation of the heavy daytime traffic seems so insignificant when looking down on it from a thousand feet.
Much the same when you give. It takes you to a higher plane, where you can view your pressures and problems from a perspective that shows how small most of our problems really are. And when you can get your head out of the fray and into some clear view, you are in a MUCH better place to make decisions.
But most important about giving, whether under mountains of pressure or not, is the promise from the scripture:
Give and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down and shaken together, and
running over, shall men give unto your bosom. For with the same measure that you mete
withal it shall be measured to you again.
Now we could get into this one for a long time, and really break it down. But for now, just understand that when you give, there is a guarantee (from God himself) that you shall (absolutely) receive. Period. It doesn’t say this is limited to money. Money isn’t even mentioned in this verse.
It does say that “men shall give unto your bosom.”
What can you give? Time, money, knowledge, experience, love, help, a back rub, a kind word, advice…
What can “men give unto” you? Time, money, help, advice, a great idea, a better way, encouragement, love, attention, a kind word…
I think you get the picture.
So let’s throw some dynamite into the log jams of our life to get things really flowing again.
Get our heads out. Gain a better perspective, and get moving.
“When the pressure is on, GIVE.”