I am looking around at the situations of my loved ones and they are whelming and overwhelming. And, incidentally, they mean about the same thing — engulfed, buried, submerged.

The feeling of overwhelm is real. Even our circumstances can be so much it can sink us into inaction — a state of “I have no idea what to do” or reaction — a perpetual state of “Hurry! How can I fix this?”

Maybe you are in a good place at the moment. The sea of life is relatively calm and you are plugging away on your projects. That is certainly something to be thankful for!

Some days, if I consider the stresses of the ones I love and I look at the list I have set up for myself and I can get stuck in a place where I cannot do much. It is important for me to consider what is really necessary. Sometimes I can get myself moving with a “Can I just ___________________ ” (I fill in the blank with a small, easy project that gets me up and doing something).

But, my first course of action is to acknowledge my feelings and give them over to God. He sees and knows where I am emotionally, physically, and spiritually and He wants me to take a moment to see and know it, too. I am not meant to carry all these things that burden my heart. It is important to recognize them and do the thing I can do —

And then I look at what is on “the list” and I get started by going through it. There will always be more for tomorrow. The goal is not to beat myself up for what does not get done. I am such an over planner anyway. My lists are ambitious. I enjoy creating! But sometimes my heart is burden with the situations of the ones I love. Intercession is serious business, especially for someone who feels for others so strongly.

My overwhelm reminds me that I may have forgotten the first and most important task for the day — intercession for those who are on my heart.

Are you feeling overwhelmed today? You may find that sharing the burden with Jesus and interceding for the circumstance gives you some space and perspective. Acknowledging my feelings about difficult situations helps me relax a bit and, after a time, consider some helpful next steps. My next moves aren’t necessarily solutions, but they are ways I can extend care and love to others.