Sometimes, you can fall into a season where you and your spouse are so busy you rarely have time to connect. How can you make sure you keep your marriage a priority?
Busyness seems to be a symptom of our society. And in many cases, it’s almost a badge of honor. “I’m so busy,” we say as we rush from activity to activity. We feel guilty if we don’t have something to do every moment. Or we look down on people who are just “at home” not doing something.
Perhaps it’s your job. Or maybe you’ve taken on too many responsibilities in volunteer organizations, at your kids’ school, or at church. Somewhere along the line you took on more than you can handle and now you’re regretting it. You’re feeling negative all the time. You’re pessimistic about everything. You’re more easily irritated than usual. You’re not sleeping. And you’re certainly not being thankful!
Stress. What can you do when you’re finding yourself overwhelmed with the busyness and demands of life?
Let’s take a look at God’s remedy for stress:
- Consider what God is doing (James 1:2-4). One of the best antidotes to stress is seeing God’s purposes in the trials of life. God uses every situation, even the petty, irritating situations of life, to teach you to become more like Jesus.
- Take time each day to be alone with God (Psalm 16:8-11). Planned times of solitude are a key to a balanced life. Through prayer, the Holy Spirit has a chance to change the way you see your difficulties so you can better cope.
- Guard your heart (Proverbs 4:23). Stress makes you focus on what’s going wrong. Guard your heart against pessimism. Rest in God’s faithfulness.
- Number your days and live intentionally (Psalm 90:12). Decide what is really important, choose your priorities, and live for them. (Reminder: Your marriage has a consistent need for time and energy, so it must always be a priority!)
- Cultivate a thankful heart (1 Thessalonians 5:18). When you work to see the good in life, you will feel more positive and the little things that go wrong will cease to look so important.
We hope that you both will be successful in all your noble and praiseworthy endeavors, but we trust that you will subject these pursuits to the lordship of Christ and to the nurturing of your spouse and children. You can handle your many pressures, including those between you and your spouse, without seeing all your plates crash to the floor. It takes planning and resolve, but it can be done.