Isn’t life filled with challenges? Certainly, everyone’s life is. Some challenges seem daunting. Some people face repeating challenges such as overcoming our anxieties. I know a young mother who had a terrible car rolling accident on icy roads. It took some time before she was able to get behind the wheel of a car. Her anxieties and fears came rushing back each time she did. Even years later when she must drive in bad weather conditions, she faces those same anxieties. Those are repeating challenges in her life.
Others are inspiring challenges motivating us to undertake the challenge. We all love success and every challenge in life brings opportunity for success. When a new, unexpected challenge presents itself, how do you respond? The attitude with which you respond to challenges goes a long way in determining how you will prosper.
Challenges can be both motivating and draining. Challenges always require some action on our part. The level of action given to any challenge will determine the amount of reward as well as the amount of drainage to our being. For some, the thought of drainage is more than he/she is willing to expend and they are likely to give up and abandon ship. Yet, the drainage can be part of our reward. An athlete vigorously exercises and trains throughout the year for a short season of competition. The drainage of those workouts are producing strength, skill, and endurance that is rewarded during competitions.
Likewise, in life we should be motivated to pour into our challenges knowing that the physical and mental drain is assisting us in meeting head-on and overcoming the challenge before us. The mental and emotional drain can be as depleting as physical drain. Physical drainage is easier to recognize and identify than is mental and emotional drainage. Each one is real and can cause unforeseen issues if not addressed.
Therefore, as we work through challenges, we must also recognize the need for rest and restoration to our body, mind, and soul – our complete being. Your body will tell you when it is physically spent. This is more easily recognized than emotional or mental depletion. For some reason most people do not want to accept the thought that we might be mentally or emotionally exhausted. Time away from our normal, harried mental practice is imperative for complete restoration.
What will you do this week to build a systemic restoration process which you can engage in following the challenges of life? What can you do to refresh your mental and emotional capacity and take care of your physical health as well? How will you safeguard that you will undertake these actions following your life challenges?
Build this restoration process in your life and defeat the drainage of challenges!
George Yates is an Organizational Health Strategist and coach, assisting churches, organizations, and individuals in pursuing God’s purpose for life. Click here to receive this blog in your email inbox each Tuesday.