How to accomplish and reconcile our needs is something we all struggle with from time to time. Perhaps there is no better way to connect with the Holy Trinity of God than to learn a deeper regulation of our basic human needs. Beyond ourselves lies the issue of connecting with our family, business, community, and the general duties of daily living. What if we are still missing a significant piece of our needs?
I had a dream about a baby for whom I was to care. For whatever reason, it was not my baby – just in my immediate care. As I went along my journey, in the dream I would continuously keep dropping the baby. Each time, I didn’t notice right away and would run back to recover the baby and find that the baby wasn’t hurt or marred in any way but with each fall, was increasingly hungry. As I awoke, I asked the Holy Spirit who the baby was and I heard, “you.” Yes, me! There was a strong sense of importance to the dream and hence the title of this blog.
Regulation of our basic human needs is one of the most neglected areas in today’s world. A study today reported 79% of current day teachers to be considering quitting their jobs. Why? The number one reason listed, burn-out. At its core, burn-out is a depletion of one’s physical, mental, and spiritual resources caused by too little care and replenishment of personal needs, (sourced by https://www.teachingfellowshipinstitute.org)
Those of us called to passionately pursue our God-given destiny are not exempt from this insidious destroyer. In this season, I am personally taking a deep dive into how to attend to human needs - mine, and others - so that increased nourishment, vitality, strength, and ‘sparkle’ is added to our personal spirits as we come to connect with ourselves and in relationship with our triune Godhead.
There are always going to be external demands of one sort or another competing for our attention. Let’s begin by focusing on what within us is ours to attend to amidst our daily assignments. If we do this through ‘white-knuckle’ willpower to ‘do what is right,’ burn-out will only be delayed.
An opposite stance is to invite a new level of dependance on the Holy Trinity. Smell the roses, and ease into moments of joyous delight in what has been brought to us. Forgive and release others to find their way, to gain momentum and freedom to enter into their own part of the equation. Take on only what is yours in this season and be fed by it. Start with some refreshing words of God in Isaiah 49:15b-16. “surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you. See, I have inscribed you on the palms of My hands; your walls are continually before Me.”
Thank you, Jesus.