Have you ever planned a birthday party or a holiday celebration at your house and gotten so stressed out that you made yourself miserable…and maybe some of your family and friends as well? Okay, so we all have.
You're probably familiar with the story of the sisters Mary and Martha (see Luke 10). Jesus was coming to their home, so they had been getting everything just perfect for Him. But after He arrived, as they were enjoying time with Jesus, Martha kept buzzing around with her to-do lists to the point where she told Jesus to tell Mary to get up and help her. Can you believe she would say that to her guest of honor? Jesus said to her, "Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her" (vv. 41–42 NKJV).
Jesus wasn't saying that there weren't legitimate things to be done. But think about it. Martha couldn't even enjoy the fact that Jesus was there. She was missing the whole beauty of the moment! She allowed the stress that was going on in her mind to strain her relationships with her loved ones. Jesus was saying, "There's one important thing you need to do, and that's to sit at My feet, linger in My presence, and receive My love and thoughts toward you."
The Bible says, "Let us lay aside every weight…which so easily ensnares us," so we can run with purpose the race God has set before us (Hebrews 12:1 NKJV). There's a technique I've used that helps me do that when I feel concerns and troubles building. I imagine myself putting all those troubles into a big red helium balloon, and then I release it to God and say, "God, thank You that You're bigger than all these troubles. I'm giving them to You, and I know You're going to take care of them."
Sometimes I have to let go of a whole bouquet of balloons. Do what works for you, but find a way to lay aside those cares because Jesus will sustain you when you release them to Him.