Finding peace and priority in the presence of Jesus

In a week filled with tasks and responsibilities, remembering where to look helped me find peace and priority in the midst of it all.

Cluttered mind

I had an overwhelming moment this week. So much to do and so many thoughts running through my head. All tasks that needed attending to, but at the moment they all cluttered my mind. And of course when the thoughts are running rampant they tend to be the negative ones. You know, the ones that say you’ll never be able to accomplish all this, you don’t have what it takes to get it done. The thoughts of defeat.

So not only did I have a ton of thoughts running through my head, but none of them were helpful. It’s not as if I had a voice of reason giving me pointers. No, it was the judgmental one speaking loud and clear.

Jesus waiting

Thankfully Jesus was waiting patiently on the sidelines for me to notice He was there too. Just remembering He was there made all the difference. Okay, this might sound silly, but it’s like when you open the fridge and find you do have that ingredient you need to make dinner. The realization that what you needed was already there, you just had to see it. That moment of relief.

Paused and remembered

So in that space when I paused for just a second and remembered that Jesus is with me, I felt less burdened. The sense of urgency dissipated just a bit, simmered down and my mind started to clear.

As I wrote down my list of all the tasks I needed to accomplish, I discovered deadlines weren’t as close as they had appeared. And homework seemed a bit more manageable, maybe because I now felt I had room in my head to process and figure it out. The projects I did need to focus on prominently stood out, ideas started to flow and inspiration came.

Gratitude

And then in a moment when I was away from my computer, a new thought formed. One of gratitude.

“Jesus, thank you for clearing my plate and cleansing my palate.”

I do like my food analogies, but this was a new one for me. I wrote it down, well, typed it out so I wouldn’t forget it, and then reflected on what I had heard.

My turn of events was evident in the gratitude.

Jesus, thank you

In that moment I recognized that Jesus was a part of the solution, that He was the solution. No surprise my journal page that morning had the Scripture, “I am the way the truth and the life.” John 14:6 NIV

By the way, did you notice how the verse applied itself in my life? I hadn’t memorized it. But I had internalized the idea enough for it to weave into the solution for my struggle. And focusing on this Scripture changed my posture from burdened to thankful.

Gratitude toward Jesus, the calming force in my life.

Clearing my plate

When I looked at my to-do list after first looking toward Jesus, I found a more manageable list. Deadlines were farther out than I had realized. I had more time than I originally thought when I glanced at the list from Jesus’ perspective. And He cleared away the stuff that didn’t matter – all the added stress and fret that had filled my timeline.

Cleansing my palate

This last piece was what brought the greatest peace. Cleansing my mind of all the unwanted, unnecessary clutter of judgement and negativity made way for clarity of what mattered. Jesus made a way through the stress, the clutter, the burdens, and the chaos.

Jesus, thank you for clearing my plate and cleansing my palate.

I found peace and priority in the presence of Jesus.

“Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you.” 2 Thessalonians 3:16 NIV

More thoughts on this:

Doing something differently – where my focus is