When Life Feels Overwhelming: Strike That. Reverse It.

One of my favorite movies is Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory. I even call one of the kids at church “Charlie Buckets.”

One of Willy Wonka’s classic lines is, “Strike that. Reverse it.” He says it while talking about how much time they have in the factory. He tells the Golden Ticket winners, “So much time and so little to do. Wait a minute. Strike that. Reverse it.”

Honestly, that line feels a little too real.

When There’s Too Much to Do and Not Enough Time

Because most days, it doesn’t feel like we have “so much time and so little to do.” It feels like the exact opposite: so little time and way too much to do.

And today is one of those days. In fact, it’s been one of those years.

You know those days where the hours slip away and the list seemingly keeps growing.

Too much to do.

Too many bags.

Too many devices.

Not enough margin.

Not enough motivation.

It isn’t because the work isn’t important. It isn’t because my tasks aren’t clear.

It is because I am simply overwhelmed.

The Real Challenge

Every time I think I am making progress, I am reminded of something else.

The phone dings.

Another email arrives.

If I am being honest, I am over it.

And that is where the real challenge shows up.

This is where we need to “reverse it,” not by pretending the list isn’t long or the responsibilities aren’t real, but by shifting how we carry it.

What Faithfulness Really Looks Like

Because faithfulness isn’t proven on the days when everything works out perfectly and motivation is high.

It’s revealed on days like this – when everything seems overwhelming, but you choose to move forward anyway.

We often talk about trusting God in the big moments: life-altering decisions, crises, the unknowns.

But what about trusting Him with our capacity, or as we talk about a lot now, our bandwidth?

What about trusting Him when we think, “There is no way all this is getting done.”

A Better Way to Carry It

Maybe the issue isn’t the calendar we use or even the size of the list.

Maybe the issue is believing it was ours to carry alone.

A lot of Scriptures come to mind, but Matthew 11:28 says,

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”

Notice that Jesus does not say:

He doesn’t say, “Come to me when you’ve finished everything,” or “Come to me once you’ve proven you can handle it.”

He invites you in the middle of the struggle.

The Shift

God never asked you to fully equipped and sufficient for the assignment.

He asked you to be faithful.

There’s a big difference.

Faithfulness doesn’t mean finishing everything. It means choosing to take the next right step – to do the next right thing.

You don’t have to be perfect or be everything for everyone.

Today’s Decision

So today, I did not conquer the list. I didn’t post this “on time”.

However, I am choosing to move forward.

To do the next right thing. To be present in the next task.

I believe the small things matter.

I believe that God does not measure my productivity, but my dependence.

And maybe that is the real work today. Not getting it all done, even though I want to, but refusing to carry it like it all depends on me.

Anyway, I was just thinking...