You should be able to do it all. Picture-perfect marriage that never slumps and to
which your friends aspire. Cover page-perfect home that’s always clean and fully
stocked with healthy snacks and fresh guest towels. Pinterest-perfect birthday
parties for the perfect children you’re raising and who will eventually attend an
ivy league university. You should have it all together so that your life lands in the
judgement-free, everyone-wants-to-be-me zone.
These are the lies our society tells us. Why do we believe them? Why do we
cave to the idea that others will judge our personal character by how
nutritionally balanced our kid’s lunch is, or whether or not they can recite the
Gettysburg Address by the time they enter kindergarten? I don’t know about
you, but my attempts to meet the expectations of this country-wide
conspiracy sometimes brings me to the end of my wits.
“At wits’ end” is a still-relevant idiom that dates back to the first King James
Version of the Bible - Psalms 107: 27: They reel to and fo, and stager like a
drunken man, and are at their wits’ end. The verse is speaking about people who
go back and forth in their devotion to God. In modern language, being at the
end of our wits means reaching the end of our emotional or mental
limitations. Can you relate?
This can happen to our children, too. The toddler who’s throwing a fit, the
kindergartener who refuses to listen, the big kid who gives up on their
homework, the junior high student who would rather sleep all day than go to
a friend’s house... Every human has their limits, and we all need the
unconditional love and practical skills that will help us navigate big scary
feelings.
The ultimate example of unconditional love is God’s grace, freely given
through Jesus. What are some practical Jesus skills for when we’re at our wits’
end?
Prayer. Fellowship with other believers. Building relationships. Serving
others. Resting. Giving it all to our Heavenly Father.
Where our wits end, God’s grace begins.
Wonderful Carissa, thank you! Patty F.