From Burnout to Breakthrough

An excerpt from the most recent Royal Daughters Ladies Brunch:

We’re stressed out, burned out and put out with lives spinning out of control. Because we are stressed out, we don’t want church to stress us out more by putting pressure or more activities, talking of prayer meetings, evangelism times etc. We are running to ministries that preach word that makes us feel good rather than challenge us as we have enough challenges. The truth is however that we need to balance life beginning with God first and other things will fall in to place.

Our attitude matters a lot, do you allow yourself to feel that life is spinning out of control or do you realise that God is in control. Everything in the universe, from galaxies down to atoms, spin? But they don’t spin out of control because God has everything in control and timed perfectly.

Rick Warren, author of Purpose Driven Life says: “It’s not about you. The purpose of your life is far greater than your own personal fulfilment, your peace of mind, or even your happiness. It’s far greater than your family, your career, or even your wildest dreams and ambitions. If you want to know why you were placed on this planet, you must begin with God. You were born by His purpose for His purpose.

What is burnout?

Physical or mental collapse caused by overwork or stress. If you are in your purpose you will find that your stress levels will go down. Breakthrough will come when your stress level is reduced and you are working in your purpose.

What is breakthrough?

A sudden, dramatic, and important discovery or development.

Which are you, Burnout or Breakthrough?

Here are the 12 signs:

1. When in breakthrough mode you can’t wait to start the day. In burnout you can’t wait for the day to end.
2. In breakthrough mode you are ministering out of the overflow of Christ’s life in you. In burnout you are ministering purely out of your natural giftings and spiritual anointing without a fresh infilling from the Holy Spirit.
3. In breakthrough mode you have passion to serve. In burnout you have passion for pleasure and relaxation.
4. In breakthrough mode you are living within set boundaries that enable self-renewal. In burnout you constantly feel like you are living outside of the measure of God’s grace for service.
5. In breakthrough mode your mind is constantly being renewed with fresh ideas, creativity, and vision to conquer. In burnout your mind and emotions are worn out and you are in maintenance mode.
6. In breakthrough mode you are walking in the fruit of the Spirit; in burnout the fruit of the flesh.
7. In breakthrough mode you have time for soul care. In burnout you only have time for serving others.
8. In breakthrough mode you envision great expansion of ministry. In burnout you dream of retirement and contemplate leaving the ministry.
9. In breakthrough mode you proactively spend time with key relationships. In burnout your time is spent reacting to relational problems.
10. In breakthrough mode you are in faith; in burnout you are living in fear.
11. In breakthrough mode you are refreshed in spite of your stress. In burnout mode you are depressed because of the stress.
12. In breakthrough mode you sense clarity of vision and purpose. In burnout you experience confusion regarding your purpose

Burnout, is about not enough. Being burned out means feeling empty, devoid of motivation, and beyond caring. People experiencing burnout often don’t see any hope of positive change in their situations.

If excessive stress is like drowning in responsibilities, burnout is being all dried up. One other difference between stress and burnout: While you’re usually aware of being under a lot of stress, you don’t always notice burnout when it happens.

Therefore recognise and correct the signs of stress before you reach burnout as it is more difficult to rectify burnout than stress. However even if you have reached burnout, reach out to God who makes all things beautiful in its time. Get back I into walking in  your purpose and you will break through the burnout.

Physical signs and symptoms of burnout

Emotional signs and symptoms of burnout

Behavioral signs and symptoms of burnout

Dealing with Burnout: The “Three R” Approach

• Recognize – Watch for the warning signs of burnout
• Reverse – Undo the damage  by managing stress and seeking support
• Resilience – Build your  resilience to stress by taking care of your physical and emotional health

I want a simple, stress- free life

Matt. 6:25-27

We think we are in control but we really can’t control what happens day to day. So Jesus gives us a stress free plan – live one day at a time in Him.

Joyce Meyer – There are some things you can control in life – your choice of job, who your friends are, your coffee intake and late nights. For the things you can’t your attitude towards them and how you react   determines your stress level. People who regularly get upset over small things suffer in many ways, those who shrug them off do better.

Defining your top priority

Phil. 1:9-10

“I pray that your love will overflow more and more, and that you will keep on growing in knowledge and understanding. For I want you to understand what really matters, so that you may live pure and blameless lives until the day of Christ’s return”.

Paul had a stressful life with regularly being threatened, being wrongfully accused, arrested, imprisoned, beaten and shipwrecked but he maintained his joy and his first priority was knowing God.

Next when you are faced with a choice to say yes or no to an activity ask yourself if it is a priority in God’s plan for your life. When you know God’s word, it gives you discernment to make tough choices.

When our lives are overbooked, it’s easy for us to become spiritually dry and undernourished. You can’t underestimate the power of prayer as it keeps you in His presence and cools you down. You can tap into His power. The purpose of marriage as we have said before is to illustrate the relationship between us and Christ. There are times when life is so stressful but when I am in the arms of my husband, I can shut out the world, listen to His heartbeat and be at peace. We can also do this when we worship God, it is like relaxing in His arms.

There is a song by Kari Jobe that says:

The more I seek you,

The more I find you

The more I find you, the more I love you

I wanna sit at your feet

Drink from the cup in your hand.

Lay back against you and breath, feel your heart beat

This love is so deep, it’s more than I can stand.

I melt in your peace, it’s overwhelming

 Unclutter your life.

There is a magazine called Real Simple which has become the number one seller in the US. The magazine has struck a chord with busy women looking to make life easier, currently reaching 8.6 million readers per month. You can visit their website and it has lots of great tips for organising your life and home.

Enjoy the simple things in life like taking a walk and enjoying nature.

 Unclutter your mind.

Sometimes our mind looks like our wardrobe, we fill it with stuff that doesn’t need to be there. Take an inventory of what’s in your mind and measure it by Phil. 4:8.

Also watch out for symptoms of stress in your child, a result of over activity and stimulation. Being clingy, on edge or more temper tantrums than usual can be a sign of stress. Teach them how to control their level of arousal and switch off their adrenaline when it is no longer needed than constantly being psyched up. Teach them to have down time. Instil in your children the faith, security and peace found in God’s word.

 Tips:

• If you’re stressed out, getting enough sleep should be your number one priority. Give yourself time to wind down before going to bed, and create the quietest, darkest sleeping space possible
• Make your devotion or quiet time a priority.

Think of all the time you spend in the shower? Why not worship and pray while you are there? One study suggests that by the time you are 72 you will have spent 182 days in the shower and that is based on just minutes per day.

The more stressed I am, the more I try to do before breakfast (and breakfast often ends up eaten at lunchtime). Skipping meals and snacks leads to low blood sugar, fatigue and brain fog, making you feel unable to cope. Discipline yourself to get some real food into your mouth as soon as you get up – you’ll feel much calmer, clearer and more focused. Make sure you eat throughout the day and don’t let yourself ever get too hungry. Don’t ignore your body’s cues for needing food and water, no matter how busy you are.

Drink water – Most people don’t drink enough water, and end up feeling dehydrated, tired, cranky and achy. Next time you feel dry or in need of a liquid “pick me up,” go for the water bottle instead of coffee or soda. In fact, experts say that once you feel thirsty, you’re already dehydrated, so drink up. An added bonus? Water helps flush toxins away.

Keep everything simple, complicated systems, tools appliances and clothing only take more time.

Divide big jobs into smaller ones

Ask for help

Buy duplicates of high demand items like toilet paper and toothpaste to avoid emergency trips to the shop.

Have special places for your keys, your purse and other items that are always getting lost.

When you have shopping and errands to accomplish, make a night of it. Plan your route from one shopping place to the next so you don’t have to back track.

Use delivery services if you budget allows – same cost as taxi.

One day a week, try to avoid doing anything that feels like work. Turn off your phone. Don’t go online. Take a nap. Read a good book. Spend some time with your family and friends. Go for a walk together. This day of rest and rejuvenation will refresh you and give you the energy you need to face the trenches yet again for another week. And you will still somehow get everything done