top of page
Search
Writer's pictureVanessa Waszaj

When It’s All Just Too Much

One night last week as I put the boys to bed we were talking about good pictures / bad pictures. Many of their friends have phones, some have access to Tik-Tok, YouTube, you name it, and I want to prepare them for the onslaught of images and videos and music they may inadvertently but inevitably be exposed too.


Our conversation ended up veering off into God’s design for life, how it is supposed to unfold a little at a time and how our maturity level and the condition of our hearts often dictate what we can handle. I talked about our identities, marriage, bodies, shame and freedom – how life was supposed to be from the very beginning.


I explained to the boys that God didn’t create the Garden of Eden for Adam (and Eve), yet he chose to bring Adam in, as his child. Its where He chose to create Eve. I compared it to my master bedroom – how it is really supposed to be Mommy and Daddy’s sanctuary within the house. Of course I invite them in. Even if no one is in there, they still love being in our room. They know it is off limits when they have friends over, but MY children are always allowed in our bedroom. Maybe you have a similar rule. 


I went on to explain to them what was in the Garden, and what Adam and Eve had access to - how there was the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and the Tree of Life. I explained how the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil was in God’s earthly sanctuary, for HIS use. I compared that tree to the TV that we have in our master bedroom (that we literally never use, but it’s there!). I told the kids, 'I let you jump on my bed, I let you sneak in your snacks, I let you hide in my closet, I let you build forts with my pillows, but I don’t let you turn on the TV and watch anything you want to – same with my cell phone.'


I explained to them that back ‘in the day’ before people had iPhones, they got their news from TVs, and before TVs, radios and before radios, newspapers, and before newspapers, the town crier, and before the town crier…well, couriers on horseback. I could go on and on and on but I’ll spare you.


I explained that the fruit on the Tree of the Knowledge Good and Evil probably opened their eyes to all the 'news'...every ‘thing’ that was humanly possible – the good, the bad and the ugly – much like our TVs and phones today. I went on to explain how we are not meant to be able to handle anything and everything - that is why there was a boundary…it was intended to protect us.


Genesis 2:16-17 says "You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”  


God, who created us, knows what we can and cannot handle as humans. (Psalm 103:14 For He Himself knows our frame; He is mindful that we are but dust.) He knows how truly weak we are, what will crush our spirit, create cycles of depression and feelings of hopelessness, and He warned us by summing it all up as consumption followed by a slow “death”.

I tell my children something similar – they can’t just turn on a TV and watch whatever they want. They can’t just take my iPhone and play any game or watch any friends video. It is NOT good for them. Once they are exposed there is no going back. We can’t erase what we see, what we feel when we see it or what we think after being exposed to some things.


Sometimes it is all just too much. I wish it wasn't this way, but it is. If there is one thing that breaks my heart, it is watching my children be exposed to the reality of this temporary yet fallen world around them. I’m just a mom, trying to prepare her children, and in the process, I reminded myself -


I can’t handle all of the death and destruction.

I can’t handle all of the heartbreak.

I can’t handle all of the information.  


I was never meant to carry all this, but I know Someone who can.

God has certainly broken my heart for what broke His yesterday...and He never intended for us to handle the onslaught of every evil action going on all over the world. He doesn’t expect us to carry what He alone can. Don’t beat yourself up if you have to turn the news off or take a break from your phone, but also, don’t think you are helpless. You can pray and release your confusion to the Lord…you can pray and intercede for others whether or not you even know their name. You can bring all your burdens and cares to the Lord – nothing too great or too small. He cares for every detail. You can be comforted and then be a comfort to someone else. You can find hope and share that hope with someone who needs it. 


For almost 24 hours I have been trying to find the words to pray to the Lord for the 6 + 1 precious lives that were lost yesterday in Nashville, TN. I can’t wrap my mind around it. My heart won’t let me. I never met any of them, yet I am completely devastated. Heartbroken.


Romans 8:26 reminds me: But the Holy Spirit prays for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in words. Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness.’


I just say “Lord” and I am letting the Spirit do the rest, because I just can’t. Not today.


.At the end of my discussion with the boys the other night, I told them to take the cover off my cell phone and look at the back of it. When they turned my phone around and saw the half-eaten apple logo, their eyes grew in amazement and shock.  It was the perfect way to show them that


WE TOO hold this irresistible fruit in our hands.

We have to be careful what we consume. How much. When. Why. Just because we can, doesn't mean we should.


When it's all just too much, turn over what turns your stomach to the Lord. Even if you don’t know what to say. Protect your heart, protect your eyes, protect your mind to the extent possible. Protect your children while you can. Take care of the ones in your house, your family, your neighborhood, your schools, your church.


Maranatha.   


141 views0 comments

Recent Posts

See All

Comments

Rated 0 out of 5 stars.
No ratings yet

Add a rating
bottom of page