Say When

Do you ever feel overwhelmed with "stuff"? Personal problems? Relationship issues? Is work causing you to lose sleep? What can a person do when all of life's entanglements come rushing at you like a flood?

I went to get some  coffee for my wife Monday morning. It was our anniversary, so I asked her what she'd like and I'd drive into town and get it for her. Her face lit up. "Really? I'll have 2/3 house blend and 1/3 French Vanilla cappuccino."

So I drove into town to our favorite gas station / convenience store and started to make her made-to-order coffee. The 2/3 coffee part was easy. I did that. But the 1/3 cappuccino part almost ended in disaster. When I let go of the fill button the liquid continued coming out, nearly overflowing and making a hot mess.

I knew when to say when but I got a little bit more than I could handle. Life is like that cappuccino machine I think. It tends to give us a little bit more than we can handle.

That experience taught me a few things. First, if I ever get coffee for my wife again, I will know to let go of the "go" button sooner! And that's the key in life as well. When we are getting overloaded with things in life we need to know when to "let go". We need to know when to say when or our "cup", our life, emotions, and sanity, will overflow.

So how do we do that? When do we say when?

First, we need to remember to actually "say when". We need to know our limitations, our capacity. Second, we need to learn how to say "no'. That's harder to do than you might think. But if we remember that overflowing is a bad thing, it does get a little easier.

There are other options that seems less apparent to many. One is to simply get a bigger cup. Another is to quit drinking coffee altogether. So what do we do with real-life overflow problems? We can't simply stop stuff from happening to us. The option is "the bigger cup".

That's where God comes in.

"Father, there are so many things happening in my life right now. I can't handle them all. Would you please help me?"

That's a good way to start but what if things keep piling up? Is God trying to tell us something? We need to begin to prioritize. What is the most important thing to you? No. That's wrong. What is the most important thing . . . in God's eyes?

Maybe the most important thing to you is a relationship with a spouse or someone else in your life. Maximize your attention there then. Other things are less important. That sounds logical. But it's wrong.

We need to maximize our devotion to God. If we can do that everything else will fall into place.

"But I already am doing that. I pray and pray but nothing seems to be happening."

Could it be because we are not letting go of something? Is God trying to tell us in His silence that He wants us to learn how to "say when" on our own? And trust God with the rest?

We need to come to the realization that we can't do it all. We are human and have a limited capacity for whatever struggles we are having. When things get too busy or the pain gets to much we either need increased capacity or we have to start eliminating problems.

God is our increased capacity, our bigger cup. He can handle anything. But we also need to learn how to take our finger off the fill button. That comes with experience. And if we can't learn that the first time, God will make us take the class again until we DO learn it.

"4Even though I walk
through the darkest valley,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.
5You prepare a table before me
in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
6Surely your goodness and love will follow me
all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
forever." - Psalm 23:4-6

Just Say When - Nothing More