Yesterday morning I was driving in to work and I could feel a tightness in my chest.  I thought to myself, here it comes–The Big Chest Grabber.  You know the one where you find yourself laying on your back in an emergency room… Yeah, that one.

I was feeling it.

STRESS…

It all began that morning when I placed my sock covered foot in a puddle my refrigerator was making.  Great.  Two days ago roofers tore my whole roof off and put it back on.  Now there is a 40 yard dumpster sitting in my driveway.  And I was waiting for the roofing contractor to come fix the hole in my ceiling that his crew made over my desk.  He was late.  Now I was late.  I had an appointment at 9am which I had to punt.  I had a 10am appointment which I couldn’t punt.  I was leaving the house for a few days so that I can be over in Jersey for the outreach this weekend. Which left me thinking, “do I have all of the clothes I need?”

I was driving away from this whole situation and driving towards a whole different situation.  Each situation is asking me to contribute/give to them.  The problem is that I can’t contribute/give to both equally at the same time.

Have you ever felt that?  Have you ever felt like there just isn’t enough of you to go around?  Yeah, I’m guessing you have.

I found this video over at YouTube.  As I was watching it I couldn’t help but think about how much work it takes to set this all up!  This is a time-lapse video of the Staples Center in LA.  It is shot over the span of 4 days, from May 17th-20th.  6 playoff games were played in this time span.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4rZjGNYxuo&hd=1]

People pleasing feels a bit like that video, doesn’t it?

There is one space available.  And there are three teams that vie for time in that same space.  The place is always in a state of construction.  It is always moving and being shaped and formed.  It is always giving.  I got tired just by watching it!  That is what people pleasing can feel like at times-an arena that is shared between three teams and two different sports.

Proverbs 29:25 says, “Fearing people is a dangerous trap, but trusting the Lord means safety.”

I’ll admit it.  There are times when I want to please people so badly that it causes me to walk right into the trap.  The awesome part is that Jesus can help us walk right out of the trap.  Proverbs tells us that all we need to do is to trust God.  Trust God and we will walk into safety.

So, back to the story.  Yesterday when I realized why I was so tense, I literally had to shut off the radio and ask God to forgive me for not trusting Him with my schedule, with my life, and with anything else that I was holding onto.  When I gave up the right to own my day, and when I let God speak into it and work through it, I was able to let go of my chest.  The tightness began to disappear.

How are you doing today?  Are you so busy trying to please people that you are walking right into the trap?  You can leave a comment by clicking here. 

~Peter