“Thank you, God, that you are not overwhelmed.”
It was my friend’s turn to pray during our weekly staff prayer meeting. The prayer requests were many – from comfort to a friend’s son’s tragic death to healing to family members and colleagues sick with COVID-19.
My heart was breaking too. My mom was at the hospital, and living 6,000 miles away added an extra stress level to the situation. I felt overwhelmed, helpless and sad. But as Mike started his prayers with those simple words, the beautiful truth behind them rang loud in my spirit.
God was not overwhelmed. What a thought! He was not surprised or overcome by any of the requests we brought before him. Nothing fazed him. He never said: “Oh-uh, I didn’t see this coming.”
Indeed, it almost sounds silly to think that the one who spoke the stars into existence would be tired, overwhelmed, or distraught by the affairs of men. And yet, our response to life’s circumstances often demonstrates that we may declare with our tongue that God is in control, but our hearts are not always anchored in the assurance that he indeed is.
But we are not alone. Even the mightiest men and women of faith have found themselves overwhelmed by life’s troubles throughout the centuries. That does not surprise God either.
King David, the only person referred to in scriptures as “a man after God’s own heart,” flooded the pages in the book of psalms with tears. Truly, many of David’s famous, encouraging words about God’s love and salvation in the book of psalms are preceded by distraught cries from a king surrounded by enemies or betrayed by loved ones.
He often started his psalms stating his case to God, offering a raw account of his situation. He would call on God to strike his enemies and deliver his soul. But as he invoked the times when God saved and guided him in the past, the shepherd king would repeatedly break his mourning with shouts of praise. Undeniably, David’s songs and prayers provide the perfect roadmap for believers who find themselves overwhelmed by life’s circumstances. A good example is Psalm 55.
“Cast your burden upon the Lord and He will sustain you; he will never allow the righteous to be shaken.”
This famous verse concludes his song as an invitation for every believer during times of uncertainty and fear. But it is important to note that this song does not start with such affirmation of trust in God’s unwavering power and faithfulness. The psalm actually begins with many complaints and supplications for help and vengeance.
David was terrified of king Saul and devastated by his son Absolom’s betrayal. He prayed for relief and vindication. The psalm is mingled with confidence in divine favor, invocations of God’s judgment on his enemies, fear, exhaustion and distress. But David knew it – he was not complaining to a friend or neighbor, a flawed man who could not offer him more than a listening ear. David knew his cries reached the only one who could de facto help him.
Indeed, God is never overwhelmed. Maybe you need to let this truth sink deep into your soul as much as I needed it that morning when my friend started his prayer with this blessed declaration.
As long as you hold onto the burden before you, you will be responsible for carrying it. But if like David, after stating your case and crying before God, you declare your total dependence and trust in him, you will feel his hands reaching out, lovingly picking up the burden from your hands. When he does, let it go. The father’s shoulders are wide enough to carry it, and he is never, ever, overwhelmed.
Patricia Holbrook is a columnist, author, blogger, podcaster and international speaker. Visit her website www.soaringwithHim.com. Subscribe to her podcast God-Sized stories. For speaking engagements and comments, email pholbrook@soaringwithHim.com
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