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LISTEN

“Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”—LUKE 12:27 (ESV)

Reflect
In a culture of more, what if we try doing less? Do you feel your shoulders letting go a little when you read this? Me too. Sometimes we need to give ourselves permission to turn down the volume of our lives. To care smaller. Whenever I have big, unsolvable problems, it’s especially hard to give myself permission to care about the small things instead. Most days, the really big concerns are too heavy to hold in these two human hands of mine and far too massive to solve on my own. Set it down, that’s what I tell myself. And start to care smaller. You don’t have to save the entire forest, but maybe try planting one tree. (House plants are fine. I can never keep mine alive.) Or you don’t have to solve world hunger, but maybe feed one person you know who is in need. You don’t have to save the entire ocean, remembering to take your reusable grocery bags to the store is hard enough. But also feel free to boast about that to friends because, hey. Trying is hard and three cheers for you for getting in the game.

Respond
What small thing do you want to give yourself permission to care about today?

Blessing for small steps when you feel overwhelmed

Life has unraveled.
All my plans, wrecked.
My hopes, impractical.
And it’s daunting imagining
what comes next.

The bills that need paying.
The texts that need responding to.
The loneliness that seeps in every night.
Blessed are you who need reminding that,
lots of things aren’t tackle-able right now,
but there’s something you might try instead.
Taking that tiny step that might
make today a smidgen lighter.
Maybe not easier or better—but lighter.
Being extra generous to a stranger
or hopping in bed a little earlier.

Asking a friend to grab coffee
or listening for the birds
instead of doom-scrolling.

Setting down our to-do lists
and picking up a paintbrush
for no reason at all except joy.
May we anchor ourselves to the now.
Not allowing our minds skip to what-ifs
or what-will-happen-whens.
Blessed are you trying to put aside
the “everything is possible” mentality.
You who know that sheer effort
will not put these pieces back together.

You who have lost perfection,
and found rest in “good enough” instead.
One small step,
one deep breath,
at a time.40

40 Kate Bowler and Jessica Richie. “For Small Steps When You Feel Overwhelmed” in The Lives We Actually Have: 100 Blessings for Imperfect Days. (New York: Convergent Books, 2023). 16-17.

© KateBowler.com