Hanging By A Thread

If you were to look at my life from the outside right now, you might see a woman spinning a dozen different plates and somehow keeping them in the air.

We are in the thick of the beautiful, chaotic summer season as a family of four. And when I say my schedule is packed, I mean it is bursting at the seams. Right now, my days consist of:

• Working two different jobs

• Hosting a podcast

• Running a full volleyball program from the elementary level all the way up to varsity

• Investing intentionally in our alumni

• Stomaching the pressure of hitting narration deadlines

• Finding my own time to spend with the Lord

• Trying to maneuver a VBS with 100 kids

• Playing taxi driver to get my own kids to their summer activities

• Trying desperately to ensure my family is enjoying summer to the absolute fullest

On top of all that external noise, I am actually experiencing a massive, pivotal breakthrough in my personal life when it comes to my mental and emotional stability. It’s a beautiful thing, but navigating a deep internal shift while running a marathon on the outside? It is overwhelming.

Let's be real for a second: a girl still gotta eat and sleep at some point! Honestly, most days lately, I feel like I am losing my mind. Mentally, physically, and emotionally, I am hanging on by the absolute tiniest, most fragile thread.

But as I sat in the quiet stillness of my exhaustion this morning, a gentle whisper settled over my heart. Yes, you are hanging by a thread. So make sure that thread belongs to the hem of His garment.

When Your Rope Fully Unravels

When we find ourselves stretched to our absolute limits, our human instinct is to try harder. We try to weave a stronger rope out of our own self-discipline, our time-management skills, or our sheer willpower. We think if we can just wake up an hour earlier or manage our schedules better, we can hold it all together.

But eventually, even the strongest cords we make ourselves will snap.

There is a woman in the Gospels who understood this exhaustion intimately. She had spent twelve years looking for cures, spending all her money, and running herself into the ground trying to fix her life. She wasn't just tired; she was completely unraveled.

But then Jesus walked by, surrounded by a pressing, chaotic crowd.

"She said to herself, 'If I only touch his cloak, I will be healed.' Jesus turned and saw her. 'Take heart, daughter,' he said, 'your faith has healed you.'" — Matthew 9:21-22

This sweet woman didn’t have the strength to stand up, push her way to the front, and strike up a long conversation with Jesus. She didn't have a perfectly put-together life to present to Him. She was desperate and weak.

So, she fell to the ground, reached through the dirt and the noise of the crowd, and grabbed the very edge of His robe. Just the fringe. Just a single thread.

And in that one small point of contact, His strength met her absolute emptiness.

Shifting Our Grip in the Chaos

If you are a mama, a worker, a dreamer, or just a woman trying to keep your head above water today, hear me on this: You do not have to be the one holding everything together.

When you feel yourself slipping, it is time to shift your grip. Stop trying to hold onto your own fading strength, and reach for the hem of His garment.

• His hem is enough: You don't need a mountain of spiritual energy or a perfect two-hour quiet time to connect with God. Even a two-second whispered prayer over a stack of laundry or on the way to volleyball practice ("Jesus, I need You right now") carries enough resurrection power to sustain you.

• He welcomes the desperate reach: God doesn't need you to be put-together before you come to Him. The woman in the Bible came to Him at her absolute worst, and He called her daughter.

• The burden isn't yours to carry: You can run your programs, hit your deadlines, and love your babies well, not because you are superhero, but because the One holding you up cannot fail.

Take Heart, Daughter

It is okay to admit that you are tired. It is okay to look at a wildly busy season and say, "I am at the end of myself." Because the end of ourselves is exactly where the grace of the Father begins.

If you are looking at your life today and feeling like everything is dangling by a fragile string, take a deep, deep breath. Drop the heavy expectation that you have to be unbreakable.

You don’t need a thick, sturdy rope of your own making. You just need to reach down into the messy, chaotic reality of your day and grab hold of the Savior. Hold tightly to Him in the rush. His thread will never snap, and He is more than enough to carry you through.