“God, I already have too much on my plate. Can’t you ask someone else?”
The complaint felt justified, as I had been struggling for weeks to stick to my plan of resting on the weekends and not being so busy that I become stressed. After all, a day of rest is God’s design.
The need kept pressing on me, and despite my flesh yelling at me to say, “I’m just too busy,” or “My hands are full enough, thanks,” I hurriedly said, “Yes.”
Oh boy, have my yeses caused me so many personal sacrifices over the years! Yet I have learned that in the moments when I am being poured out and spent for things of eternal importance, though tiring, it is there that the most satisfaction can be found.
Motherhood and Ministry
Motherhood and ministry have something in common. Both are often a 24/7 commitment. With no holidays, no off days, and no substitutes when you “just need a moment”. Needs don’t just stop coming. Problems don’t wait for office hours to require solving.
In 2020 I knew that starting our own mission was going to cost me. I knew it would mean being called by the desperate at all hours of the day. I knew it would be the uncomfortable task of asking for help and fundraising needs beyond my own financial ability. I knew it would be tiring and stressful, but also rewarding. Honestly, founding a ministry was never my plan, yet when it fell in my lap, I never thought about saying no.
Then in 2024 when my daughter was born everything changed. I took on a whole host of new full time jobs with no time off. Nurse, babysitter, laundry woman, cook, taxi service, sleepless overnight caregiver, and much more. Motherhood is hard. It’s beautiful. And it is the most rewarding work of all.
Rest Is Important
After several recent posts sharing how I am trying to rest more, rest better, and take advantage of the gracious gift of the Sabbath given by God to man, I am not about to tell you that rest is unimportant. I truly believe it is of the utmost importance! But I am still learning how to balance doing and being.
I think one of the main points Jesus wants us to gather from His frequent challenges to the way the Sabbath was being observed is that we should choose mercy over rules.
Jesus Himself taught that the Sabbath was made to help people, and was never meant to block acts of kindness and relief from the suffering. There will be times in our walk with Christ when we will be called to do what is most tiresome and taxing. Even in those times and seasons, sometimes very long seasons, we have to learn to say “no” to what is of little importance and “yes” to opportunities to show Christ’s love to those in need.
Rest is a gift, but so is the opportunity to serve.
Sometimes we can become so focused on protecting our time and maintaining our routines that we risk overlooking the very people God has placed in our path. We can have the perfect plan for a peaceful day, yet find ourselves face-to-face with someone who needs encouragement, practical help, or simply someone willing to stop and care. Perhaps part of learning to rest in God is trusting Him enough to let our plans change when love requires it.
Of course, this does not mean that every need is ours to meet or that every request deserves a yes. We are human, and our limitations are real. Jesus Himself withdrew to quiet places to pray, and He did not spend every moment responding to every demand placed upon Him. There is wisdom in recognizing our limits. But there is also a difference between saying no because we genuinely need rest and saying no simply because serving someone else is inconvenient.
How do we choose?
I think this is where we must learn to seek God’s wisdom rather than simply follow our feelings. Sometimes our exhaustion is a warning that we have taken on too much. Other times, our reluctance is an invitation to step outside of our comfort zone and love someone in a way that costs us something. We need the discernment to recognize the difference.
One question I have been learning to ask myself is this: Will saying yes to this opportunity help me love God and others more faithfully, or am I simply taking on another thing because I feel obligated?
Not every good opportunity is ours to pursue. But when we recognize a genuine opportunity to show Christ’s compassion, perhaps we should pause before dismissing it because our schedule is already full.
And sometimes the answer will still be no. We may need to protect our family time, honor our responsibilities, or take a much-needed day of rest. Saying no to one thing can make room for a more important yes elsewhere. The goal is not to fill every available hour with good deeds until we have nothing left to give. The goal is to live with open hands, allowing God to direct our time, energy, and resources according to His purposes.
Don’t Grow Weary
I am reminded of Galatians 6:9, which encourages us not to grow weary in doing good. Those words are both comforting and challenging. Doing good can be wearying! Loving people is not always convenient, and serving others does not always fit neatly into our plans.
Sometimes it means giving up an afternoon, losing a little sleep, rearranging our priorities, or doing something we would much rather leave for someone else. But the work of loving others is never wasted when it is done unto the Lord.
I want to become a woman who rests well and serves faithfully. A woman who knows when to sit quietly at Jesus’ feet and when to get up and wash someone else’s. I do not want to use busyness as an excuse to neglect my own soul, but neither do I want to use the importance of rest as an excuse to turn away from someone in need.
Perhaps the balance is not found in creating the perfect schedule, where every hour is accounted for and every need is anticipated. Perhaps it is found in walking closely enough with the Lord that we can recognize His leading, trust His provision, and respond with love—even when it costs us something.
If God wanted us to say no to everything that would disrupt our rest, we would never have children! We would never start a ministry! We would never adopt! Would never serve overseas! And the list goes on.
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So, the next time I find myself saying, “But God, I already have too much on my plate,” I hope I will pause long enough to listen. Maybe He is reminding me that I need to lay something down. Or maybe He is inviting me to pick something up that matters far more than my carefully arranged plans.
Either way, I want my answer to be shaped by more than my convenience.
I want it to be shaped by love.