Breathing room is the space between your pace and your limit. It’s an unhurried conversation with your best friend. It’s dinner around the table instead of the drive-thru. It’s being able to give generously because you haven’t spent every dollar that you’ve made. Breathing room is an intentionally slower, smaller, reprioritized life.
I know you’d agree that living that way sounds better than the frantic, frazzled feeling of being overcommitted and overwhelmed. And yet, a glance at your to do list or calendar probably shows that—like the rest of us—you struggle to slow down.
So what’s pushing you to live beyond your limits?
It’s hard to recognize and a little bit hard to admit, but usually it’s fear. You’re afraid of missing out, so you try to squeeze in time with the kids even though your day’s been exhausting. You’re afraid of falling behind everyone else, so you browse online for a new car even though yours is perfectly fine. You’re afraid of disappointing people, so you agree to join the committee even though you’re not passionate about the project . . . do these sound familiar?
Fear whispers the lies that we’re being left out and left behind, so we load our calendars and drain our bank accounts. Fear steals our breathing room. But do you know the most repeated command in the entire Bible? Do not be afraid. God tells us that we don’t have to let fear bully us around. He offers us a surprising simple way to overcome it.
Look at your calendar and ask: What’s one thing I agreed to attend just because I was afraid of missing out or disappointing someone by saying no?
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