| |
| |
|
Faith411.com - Religion |
|
|
|
Vital information and articles related to Religion.Here's Help for the "I Can't Say 'No' Blues"
I hear it all the time. Cries from Christian women who want desperately to serve the Lord, but who feel overwhelmed. "I almost dread going to PTO meetings or church services anymore because I just know somebody else is going to ask me to help with something," they say. "Don't get me wrong. I want to help, but there are only so many hours in my day. I feel like I'm just going to explode if I don't get some relief." What usually follow these statements are apologies. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to complain. I've been blessed with so much that I have no choice but to give back. And I really am glad to do it. Anyway, as a Christian, I'm obligated to say 'yes' when called on to help. Plus, if I don't do it, it simply won't get done." Does any of that sound familiar to you? Have you found those same statements coming from your own mouth? Do you rush around all throughout your days doing for others whether you have time to do it or not? Do you cringe whenever the phone rings and the voice on the other end starts with, "Let me ask you something"? Do you have too much stress, not enough time, and a boatload of guilt for feeling the way you do? Then you most likely suffer from "I Can't Say 'No'" Syndrome. The Bible Says It's OK To Say No While your intentions are probably good, the effects of your actions often turn out to be horrendous. Your husband fusses that you're running yourself ragged. Your children complain that you have no time for them. You gripe under your breath about everything because you're so sensitive. Are you aware that it's all right to say "no"? In fact, the Bible says it is OK to say "no." Jesus, himself, clearly took time to rest as can be seen in Mark 4:38 among other passages. Even the son of God (in human form) knew His human body, mind, spirit, and soul needed a break from time-to-time. You, too, are expected to rest and take care of yourself. How else can you make your body a living sacrifice? a temple? as the Bible instructs? Feeling Guilty Is Biblically WRONG! This is a real shocker to most people. In cases like these, Satan, not God, uses guilt to sway our actions. Psalm 69:5, Isaiah 6:7, Isaiah 27:9, and countless other passages of scriptures refer to the sin of guilt. Jesus died for our sins. That means, when we repent of our sin, it is wiped clean. There is no guilt. Satan often uses the ploy of false guilt to overwhelm us. Don't let him work his tricks on you. This is nothing more than an attempt to keep you trapped and feeling depressed about not spending every minute of every day doing something for someone else. God doesn't want you run down and tired all the time. How can you effectively serve Him if you barely have enough energy to get out of bed? Why would He want someone "praising" Him who is disgusted and cranky? Walking the tightrope of "I Can't Say 'No'" is not God's idea of a fruitful life. There Is A Better Way Take time for yourself. Have you ever been on an airplane? Do you remember the spiel the flight attendant gave before take off? It went something like this: "In the event of a decrease in pressure, an oxygen mask will fall from the panel above your head. If you're traveling with an older person or child, please secure YOUR OWN mask first so that you may better assist your travel partner." Even the airlines know you have to take care of yourself before you can effectively take care of anyone else. Pray about the things people ask you to do. Actually wait for an answer from God before you give an answer to the committee chairman, the scout troop leader, or whoever else is asking for your help. Others will respect you when you tell them you'll pray about their request? especially if you really do it! You are not trapped. There is a way to overcome "I Can't Say 'No'" Syndrome. The first step is admitting you need help. Once you do that, you're open to living a freeing and more peaceful life than you ever thought possible. 2004 Kimberly Chastain
MORE RESOURCES:
Religion - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Thought Produces Desire, Produces Results (Channelled)Roy? this week you learned something about yourself. You learned that if you don't take responsibility and action for doing things, things will happen anyways. Terror; The Lost War Zephaniah 1:14-1:18{Terror; Intense, overpowering fear.An emotion experienced in anticipation of some specific pain or danger (usually accompanied by a desire to flee or fight). Like a Flood: What The Church does with Killers like Katrina Isaiah 59:19 declares: ".. Restoration of the Jewish People and The Rebuilding of the Jewish Temple This is the event that has already occurred. In 70 AD, after Jesus' death on the cross, the Jewish people were dispersed throughout the entire world. In Divers Places Isaiah 65:17-65:25In Divers Places. A Look at prophecy and today's headlines. The Purpose of Creation: the Kabbalah of Transformation "I want to know how God created this world. I am not interested in this or that phenomenon, in the spectrum of this or that element. Church Building and Church Buildings Church building is a term used to designate both the physical building of a church facility, and the spiritual building of a group of people into a unified body of believers. The physical church buildings are made of wood, stone, mortar, and brick, but the act of spiritual church building comes at the cost of evangelism, preaching, and teaching. A Call to Action Over the last week I have received dozens of heart-rending and thought-provoking responses to my latest article, and I am thankful for each of them. Personally, I believe the tsunami and its aftermath is the most serious issue now facing humankind. Praying Church or Playing Church? The western church is seen by the world as anything BUT Christian. We are making no one jealous for what we claim we've found in Christ. Religion and Social Engineering - Part of an Introduction Thomas Carlyle is just one of the interesting characters who had much to do with Calvinism and the Knox family he married into. Friedrich Nietzsche never really completed a book and yet before he went crazy his Wagnerian or Illuminized 'radical aristocratic' handlers used him well. In The Beginning Christ! As I was doing my studies, the Lord put something on my heart that really took me by surprise. He dropped a little bit of revelation knowledge into my mind, and it took me on a great ride. End-Times and the Other Bible Can you imagine Biblical "End-Times" prophecies happening in your lifetime? Does thinking about disasters like the three days of darkness and the Wormwood predictions trouble you when you're alone in the still of the night? If so, the "End-times" knowledge in a Bible-era wisdom text called The Kolbrin offers hope through new insights. Parts of it were written in the very days when Jesus walked the Earth, and it echoes the warnings of the Bible, that we could be in the "End-Times!"Unlike the rare and arcane texts used by Bible researchers, The Kolbrin offers a familiar way to understand Bible prophecy. How to Handle Negative Feelings When Wronged by Someone Else How does a Christian really handle negative feelings and emotions when they start to set in as a result of being wronged by others - especially if the wrong has been vicious and nasty?The Bible tells us that God is asking all of His people to live on a higher level than the nonbeliever. The Bible tells us to forgive those who trespass against us, to turn the other cheek when warranted, to love our enemies and to do good to those who deliberately hurt us. Heretical Chinese House Churches One of the more insightful warnings Christians can receive bears on relationships with other Christians. It goes something like this: Do you want to ignore what other Christians say and do? That's like giving your charitable donations to donkeys and reindeer. Knowledge Of The Power For it is written in Proverbs 1:7 it says The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. Some may ask, what is knowledge? Well let's see what the Bible says. The Green Cross "We desperately need to recognize that we are the guests not the masters of nature and adopt a new paradigm for development, based on the costs and benefits to all people, and bound by the limits of nature herself rather than the limits of technology and consumerism." Mikhail Gorbachev, Chairman of the Board, Green Cross International"No sane person seeks a world divided between billions of excluded people living in absolute deprivation and a tiny elite guarding their wealth and luxury behind fortress walls. Spring Into Gods Love Spring is springing here in the Pacific Northwest the plants and trees are blooming. We are fast approaching the Christian celebration of Easter Sunday and if my Catholic is correct we should be in Lent right now. 7 Seal Judgements Continued These 7 judgments will more than likely occur during the first three and half years of the Tribulation. Here is a description of each of these judgments and the Scripture verses to back it all up. Dante and Hell DANTE: - Dante Alighieri is the tour guide of Hell. In fact you could say he is the creator of Hell if you did not understand he was directed and encouraged as others were being forced to write and create all manner of graven images and religious icons or treatises to support Hell, Satan and the whole dogma of 'sins and demons'. Ministry Idea: How to Stop Pre-Marital Sex
|
|
Religion Articles Home Page | Religion Articles Site Map | News | Faith411.com Home Page Buddhism | Christianity | Hinduism | Islam - Muslim | Judaism | Shintoism | Sikhism | Taoism EZmatic.com | IgoJo | UpBee | Blue Ryder | Health | ZippyGo | Ken J Wagner Faith411.com - all Vital information and articles related to Religion. |
| © 2006 |
Comment by Douglas L. Koopman
