How do you react to the statement that we are never given more than we can handle? Does it seem true or untrue? Think about your current circumstances for a moment, do you ever wonder if you are in over your head? Maybe, we are never really in over our heads at all. Maybe, the whole concept of being in over our heads is a myth that we have believed for far too long. If we could let go of the fear that we are in over our head when we face difficult, confusing circumstances, think about how liberating it would be to trust and believe that we will figure out how to work our way through our difficulty in the end.
I had lived with the fear that I had gotten myself in over my head until recently. Leaving my public health career behind without a new job or even a clue as to what I wanted to do with my career was the boldest move that I have ever made in my entire life. The people in my life were afraid for me. They believed that I had made the biggest mistake of my life and it would be difficult to undo. I knew that I needed to make this bold move, but I was scared to death. I had my doubts about what I was going to do and even wondered more than a few times if I made a big mistake. People even said that I was in over my head and that they were worried about how I would put my life back together after such a big mistake.
When I decided that it was time to make major changes again in my life, I had so many fears and doubts. The answers were not easy to come by about what to do next and how to manage another major life transition again. I panicked and immediately wondered if the naysayers were right that I was in over my head. A huge feeling of being wrong came over me and put me in a tailspin. I thought they were right and I was wrong. What am I going to do now to clean up this big "mess"? Is it too late to clean up now?
When I needed it most, I found a powerful spiritual teaching in an autobiography by actress Marsha Mason entitled Journey. The spiritual teaching says that "we are never given more than we can handle." My decision to leave public health to pursue a new career path and now my new decision to start over again with a new career were not more than I could handle. Whenever I face trials and tribulations with anything in my life now, I remind myself that I can handle these circumstances. Anyone who suggests that I am in over my head, I simply tune out that message because it is no longer for me. I will no longer unconsciously entertain other people's limiting ideas and apply them to my life.
When we are in the midst of transition or any difficulty, we have to rally around ourselves. We have talk ourselves up. We have to remind ourselves that we can handle this situation. No situation is ever as bad or as hopeless as it may appear. We can never predict how the Universe will rise up to support us and help us work through our greatest challenges. We have to remind ourselves that we have several options available to work through our challenges, even if we cannot identify those options right now. Our confusion is temporary. We have to find a way to calm all our irrational fears and allow our wise soul to guide us to the answers of what to do next. Our lives are not hopeless. We are not out of luck or hopelessly trapped in misery. We did not ruin our lives nor will our circumstances ruin our lives either.
We have to become our biggest cheerleaders, even when we have no clue about what we are going to do. We have to remind ourselves that we will figure it all out sooner or later. We cannot panick and give into our fears and desperation. We can learn to cultivate an unshakeable faith and trust in ourselves that will help us weather the storms within our lives. Reminding ourselves that we are never given more than we can handle is a start in developing greater faith in ourselves.
Our life experiences are always presenting us with lessons to expand our awareness about who we are and what we want for our lives. We have to trust ourselves and our choices, even if we do not get the results we wanted in the end. Maybe, the purpose of us taking the journey was never to get what we wanted, but we did not know that in the beginning. The journey served us in some other powerful way that we will eventually understand later.
We have to always remember that we will survive. If we were brave enough to go out on a limb, we are not going to be left out there alone to struggle and suffer. Somehow, we will find our way back to surer footing on the ground again. We simply have to trust ourselves to figure it all out. We are never given more than we can handle. So whatever we are facing, we can really handle it. Now we have to really believe it and get in the business of supporting ourselves all the way.
We are never given more than we can handle. We can be dealing with the scariest, most difficult circumstances that we have ever faced, but we can really handle it. We might be knee deep in confusion about what to do and what will happen next, but we can really handle it. It is so wise to remember to have faith and confidence in ourselves. Life is always supporting us, but the question is are we always supporting ourselves? Listening to people who tell us that we cannot handle our circumstances is a way that we are not supporting ourselves. Blaming ourselves for creating the "mess" we find ourselves in is another way that we are not supporting ourselves. Believing that every fearful thought of what could go wrong will actually happen is not being very supportive of ourselves, either. Support yourself. Remember that you are never really given more than you can handle. Believe in yourself. You have the power and ability to work through any set of circumstances you find within your life.
Copyright©2008 Jeannine Robinson All Rights Reserved