Self-Care - The Drains of Our Lives
This past Sunday we concluded our Self-Care series where we're going to look at some of the Scriptural teachings about how you can be a better you and experience a better self-care as it relates to your mind, body, soul, spirit, and rest in general. If you were not able to make it to our Gathering this past Sunday, know that we missed you and hope to be able to see you this upcoming Sunday! This week we addressed the subject of different things in our lives distracting us and causing distress when what Christ modeled for us is a life of peace.
When we take a look at our lives in the modern world, we see a lot of innovations that have completely changed the way that our lives operate, especially when compared to the days of Jesus’ ministry. Instead of having to walk everywhere (for the most part), most of us have access to some form of transportation that those during Jesus’ day would have never thought possible! There are many examples of positive changes and innovations, but there are also many negative ones, that when misused or mishandled, can cause a lot of distress in our lives. Consider this for a moment, the last time you were at a concert, or maybe traveling somewhere - how much time were you spending on your phone instead of taking in the experience and being ‘in the moment’ per se? Our phones, for example, are something with incredible power and accessibility to so many things in our lives today, but they can take away from life as much as they give.
Pastor Robbie started off with a pretty powerful statement, and it really sets the tone for what we are about to get into, saying, “In fact, just like it’s possible for a battery in your phone to get drained, many of us walked into the room this morning, and there are things, in addition to the phone and our constant distractions that come from it, that is draining the life out of you. They're draining the joy out of you, the peace out of you, and it is not the way God wants you to live.” Much of the sermon surrounded Luke 10:38-42 which describes an encounter Mary, Martha, and company had with Jesus’ in Martha’s home. Martha is working tirelessly with managing the affair, while Mary is captivated by what Jesus is saying and takes the time to sit and learn from Him. Martha did not take kindly to this, as she was busy doing all of the necessary tasks to make everything go smoothly; Mary, however, is praised for her devotion to what Jesus is speaking about. Mary and Martha, their roles depicted in this story are what we will be addressing here.
The first ‘Drain’ in our lives, and something that each and every one of us is prone to dealing with - Distractions. If you were not able to join us this past Gathering, we hate that you missed such an incredible little prop-heavy example of Pastor Jordan. While Ps. Jordan was doing a little physical activity, Ps. Robbie continually kept stacking different objects on top of him that are priorities such as a coffee cup (working at Starbucks); a guitar (worship); a bible (personal faith); a Datebox (healthy marriage) and 3-4 other things. To say the least, this is one example of a slew of priorities being managed up until there was simply too much and everything came tumbling down! At the end of the day, you have a million things that are going to fight for your attention, and the question before you and me is, "Jesus, what do you want from me right now?" The way you and I can have focus from distraction is by focusing not on all that needs to be done, not on everything around me, but "What does Jesus want from me today?" Many of the distractions that we experience are good things, but at the end of the day they are still distractions; being conscious of managing our priorities in life will save us from dropping the ball on our many important tasks in life.
The second ‘Drain’ in our lives is likely a product of what we have addressed already - Distress from anxious and overwhelming thoughts and experiences. Calling back to Luke 10:38-42 we look at something that Jesus said to Martha in verse 41 saying, ‘Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things…’ There are three things that Ps. Robbie talked about that cause these kinds of situations: Comparison, Sin, and Circumstances. It can be through comparison about what others have, about what I don't, about how much he's making and where I should be in life right now, about how they have children and I should have those or they're married already and I wish I was or they're in a dating relationship and I wish I was… By comparison, all of a sudden, you can experience stress. A lot of the most stressful situations that are weighing many of us down inside this room are related to sin. That is a stressful thing, and it kind of gnaws at you. You're carrying a burden you were never meant to carry. That's just a fact of living in a broken world. Somebody is going to get cancer. Marriages don't go the way we hoped they would. The company has a layoff and you lose your job, and you can feel burdened from carrying on these circumstances and the stress that comes from living in a broken world. But can I give you some good news today? Whatever burdens you are carrying, they all have the same solution. Surrender those burdens to Jesus, to God. 1 Peter 5:7 says, "Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you."
We will leave with a positive affirmation that cannot be lost in all of this; above all of the distractions and distress that is in our lives, our Devotion to Christ, Brings Life! The point of this story is not Jesus is against go-getters. That's not what he says at all. The point is: he wants a relationship with you above everything else. He wants you to know him and him to know you beyond you just serving him and doing things for him. He wants a relationship, a constant connection with him. In other words, every second that it's not connected, plugged into the wall to a phone charger, it's going to continue to drain. This is how the Christian life is lived.
SOME KEY TAKE-AWAYS
Self-Care - The Drains of Our Lives: There are many different things that contribute towards us being drained in life, and Scripture speaks to this specifically!
Main Scripture Passages: Luke 10:38-42; Ps. 127:2; 1 Peter 5:7
Drain #1 - Distractions: Sometimes our responsibilities and desires in modern life hinder us more than they help us, having discernment as to which ones are necessary or desired helps us manage our priorities.
Drain #2 - Distress: With mismanaged priorities in our lives, we can cause ourselves a lot of unnecessary stress and anxiety that we never intended.
Positive Affirmation - Devotion to Christ, Brings Life: When we are looking at and addressing our list of priorities in life, our devotion to Christ must be among the highest on that list; intentional rest and peaceful life is what Jesus models for us.
If this topic piques your interest or if you would enjoy listening to this sermon in more depth, check out Legacy City’s Podcast, available here, or on Spotify and Itunes.
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Join us next Sunday as Pastor Robbie begins our Holiday(s) Series!
We’re saving you a seat, and know that You Are Loved!