Yes and No

This week I had to say no to something. It was something that would be good for me, would be fun, and would encourage someone else. And I still said no. With teaching school, doing all of the orphanage finances, cooking from scratch for my family each day, and teaching 2 Bible studies in another language each week (no pity party intended here – I know we are all busy, I’m just sharing what exactly is on my plate each day), I knew that if I added ONE MORE THING in, I might lose it. So I said no….and then followed the guilt. Surely I could squeeze one more thing in, right? I didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings. If I say no, it might even make me seem somehow “less” of a Christian.

UNTIL I talked to my mom. She sent me a devotion she had read from Lysa Terkeurst. This devotion talked about saying no. Lysa says, “I found myself rushing my husband in conversation. Rushing my kids out the door. Rushing to the next thing and then the next. Rushing to make dinner and then rushing my people through dinner. I had set my life to the rhythm of rush... I’m starting to realize the two most powerful words are yes and no. How I use them determines how I set my schedule. How I set my schedule determines how I live my life. How I live my life determines how I spent my soul... When a woman lives with the stress of an overwhelmed schedule, she’ll ache with the sadness of an underwhelmed soul. If I really want an unrushed life, I must underwhelm my schedule so God has room to overwhelm my soul.”

I encourage you to think carefully about the words Yes and No. Use them wisely, so that you live with an overwhelmed soul, not an overwhelmed schedule.