Resting in the Lord when we are overwhelmed, frustrated, grieving or hurt is hard, but it is an important skill to cultivate.

Author Note:

Written with Bianca Williams. This post originally appeared several years ago when I had several guest writers so that I could take a break when I was expecting my 4th baby. Back in July of 2018

I am going through and updating things around the blog to align with what I have learned in the last several years as well as make them more accessible.

Resting In the Lord When You Feel Overwhelmed or Frustrated

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A Morning Reflection on Resting in The Lord

This morning as I was doing my devotion I was reading the daily My Utmost for His Highest and what Oswald Chambers had written really penetrated my heart.

I mean, I still find myself drowning in amazement at how what he wrote can so perfectly fit into our everyday lives. 

He used Job as an example in his writing this morning and to be honest, it made me want to read the book of Job from beginning to end. (I don’t even know if I have done that before.)

I can easily become overwhelmed when the minor inconveniences start to stack up. The wifi not working, the dishwasher not working (with a family of 9 that cooks 90% of our meals from scratch it can be overwhelming after one meal), playdough going through the washer, children misplacing a hundred items, my belt loop catching on door handles or drawer pulls when I am frustrated, not being able to find my keys or children’s shoes when we have to leave..

Have you ever been there before?

When not only the day or week but the whole month, maybe half the year seems to not be going our way!

When we feel like everything is falling apart, often my beautiful friend, our lives are simply falling into place.

Resting In The Lord

Though He slay me, I will hope in Him. Nevertheless I will argue my ways before Him.NASB 1995

Even if he kills me, I will hope in him. I will still defend my ways before him. Christian Standard Bible

When I was updating this post, I found out that the second half of this verse is so powerful to the subject.

This verse is a great blueprint for use in times of trial. A model for emotional wellness and processing with the Lord.

I love a word study, and this verse is deep.

The word used here for slay means to kill or cut off. There are times we may feel cut off from the Lord, beaten down by all of the little things going wrong. Forsaken even.

Then Job says he will argue or defend his ways. The word translated as argue or defend can mean a reciprocal reasoning together. 

Job’s ‘way’ means his journey. His day, his experience, he brings it to the Lord to reason or talk together with the Lord.

How amazing is that? A blueprint for healthy emotional processing is right there, in Scripture many would just gloss over. 

God wants us to bring our emotions to Him. He can handle our big feelings and is the ultimate safe space for our emotions.

How Can We Apply This to Our Daily Walk?

It is important to recognize when we are feeling things, that we should be bringing these emotions to and resting in the Lord.

Though it may feel like the Lord has allowed a chisel on our lives and constant pounding at that chisel, will you choose to trust Him still?

Take those feelings of overwhelm and frustration, and bring them to Him?

Resting in the Lord is a Recurring Theme in the Bible

Psalm 46:10

There are a lot of verses about resting in the Lord and the inner tranquility that we can have when we are in communion with Him. 

“Cease striving and know that I am God” Psalm 46:10

Ceasing to strive on our own, restinging in His sovereignty and presence. Pausing in the midst of chaos to take our emotions to Him. 

To recognize that whatever may be going on in our world at the moment, God is still on His throne. I have written more on that in my post, Still, that you can read here.

Isaiah 26:3

The steadfast of mind You will keep in perfect peace, Because he trusts in You. Isaiah 26:3

Steadfast here means to lean, lay, rest, or support 

The mind is how our thinking is framed. When our thinking is framed with dependence on God, we are kept (meaning guarded from danger, preserved) in shalom, shalom. Perfect peace. 

In Hebrew, repetition is conveying thoroughness, intensity, or completeness. Shalom Shalom. Perfect Peace.

And trust here means to throw one down upon his face, lie extended on the ground. This isn’t something that you do if you do not completely trust the person who you are laying down in front of. It’s an incredibly vulnerable position.

We are talking about trusting the Lord so completely that we are laying ourselves down to rest in such a vulnerable position. 

The Christian Standard Bible says it like this:

You will keep the mind that is dependent on you in perfect peace, for it is trusting in you. Isaiah 26:3

Matthew 11:28

Jesus bids us to come to Him for rest in Matthew 11:

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. “ Matthew 11:28 CSB

Weary here means tired or exhausted (with toil, burden, or grief). When we are burdened with big feelings, we can bring those to Him.

Rest here is speaking of refreshing your soul. Have you ever talked to someone about something heavy and felt better afterwards? That is exactly what Jesus is inviting us to do here.

You have to acknowledge a burden to share it. 

I will be the first to admit that this is something I struggle with every single day.

Pausing to name and process emotions is not something that I was taught as a child. I am having to teach myself as I am trying to teach my 7 children.

Growth in Resting in the Lord

Trust in the stretching and uncomfortable straining you might feel right now because soon, He is going to release you just like an arrow in an archers’ bow.

God sees the ultimate target and He is doing what is necessary to get us there.

So please, whoever you are, wherever you may be, whatever you may be feeling:

DO NOT GIVE UP. DO NOT WAVER. PERSEVERE.

Trust in the God who is bigger than the universe. He’s got you. He’s got me. He even has those who you may be praying for.

No Spiritual Bypassing

It is very important to not skip over acknowledging and processing our emotions with the Lord. Tremendous growth happens in naming and allowing yourself to experience the uncomfortable emotions while resting in the Lord’s embrace.

After a long day, I make it a practice to reflect on the happenings, the emotions, and the things to be grateful for. This is a good balance of acknowledging the hard and the emotions, as well as looking for the good. For more on Spiritual bypassing, you can check out this post. 

Resting in the Lord does take practice. It is a skill to build. 

If you want some songs to help reframe your day, you can check out my Songs for a Tough Day post.

Have you ever had to remind yourself to rest in the Lord?

Bianca Williams

Bianca Williams is a mother of 2 handsome boys and wife to an amazing husband, Chance.

“If you were to describe to me the life I have now when I was in high school I would have literally died from laughing so hard. But that is what makes this life worth living. The fact that God can take who we were and turn us into who He has created us to be. I started writing as a form of venting and it was not until recently that I began to Blog and share what God was placing on my heart with others. I am nowhere near where I believe God can take me but that is what my Blog is about. Simply being Beautifully Unfinished. I hope that you remember that when you feel like throwing in the towel or when you just don’t think you can take one more ounce of pain. Christ is right beside you ready to endure all that you go through. Step by Step. Love you all and hope you have a blessed day.”