As last year recently came to a close, I’ve been thinking a lot about some things God has been teaching me. One of the biggest lessons he taught me this past year was this: You don’t have to allow someone else’s emergency to become your own. 

A Lesson God Has Been Teaching Me:

You don’t have to allow someone else’s emergency to become your own.

This has been a huge lesson for me, especially at work. Have I mentioned on here that I went back to work full time outside of the home a few years ago? I don’t think I have, but if you’ve been wondering why my blog has gone quieter, that’s why 🙂

I work with technology at a local elementary school.  When technology fails (which it always does at some point or another), people tend to stress. And I totally get this! I’m like this too when my computer fails and I’m in the middle of working on something important. I want it fixed…and I want it fixed quickly! It feels like an emergency for sure.

The problem, though, is that multiple people often have technology issues at the same time. If I let every single one of my building’s emergencies become my own personal emergencies, I would be so wound tight and stressed out that I couldn’t function.

Add to that the fact that I’m a people-pleaser, and it can be a bad combination. I want to make people happy. I want to help. So my tendency is to drop whatever I’m working on to help someone else.

This past year, though, God has been teaching me that I don’t have to let other people dictate how I feel or what I do.

Their emergencies don’t have to become mine. 

Earlier last year, I was feeling especially stressed one day and a colleague and friend said in passing, “I think you’re only as stressed as you want to be.” Ouch!

My first thought was, “That’s not true. I don’t want to be stressed. I can’t control this!”

But the more I thought about it, the more I realized she was right.

I was only stressed because I allowed myself to be.

Were my circumstances contributing? Sure. I had a lot going on, both at work and at home with my kids’ activities. But ultimately, I had a choice.

I could either do my best and let that be good enough…or I could stress. 

Stress was my choice, and it was a choice I didn’t want to make anymore.

My new motto this past year became: Your emergency does not have to be mine.

It was true at work, but I realized it was also true at home. 

When my kids are struggling… when my son is melting down because he’s frustrated or because he didn’t get his way….I don’t have to allow him to dictate my attitude.

I am in control of me. No one can make me stressed. 

I know for many of you reading, this might seem like no big deal. You might even be thinking, You’re just not realizing this? But for me, who has struggled for years with wanting to do everything perfectly and wanting to keep everyone happy, this lesson has been very freeing.

So there you have it…the first lesson God taught me this past year. If time allows, I hope to share more in the weeks to come.

P.S. To my coworkers….if I seemed less than eager to drop what I was working on to help you recently, it’s not because I don’t want to help. I still do. And I still will. I’m just learning to balance. I’m learning to say no to stress. I’m learning to keep things in perspective. Thank you for loving me as I learn 🙂