Not the Boss of Us

Wills Wyma Kay

Description

Too much to manage and not enough time or energy to do it? Join the club. Life is a pressure cooker and, more and more, being overwhelmed is just considered normal. But, truth be told, life's stresses and circumstances aren't the boss of us. What if we could take Overwhelmed and diffuse it--or, better yet, reframe it to good?Author, blogger, and mother of five Kay Wills Wyma has learned that if we're going to be overwhelmed by anything, let's have it be Truth with all its grace, hope, peace, and love. In this freeing book, she shares how to confront life's pressures we face--at home, online, at work, in our relationships, on our calendars--and replace all those heavy expectations with the liberating truth that we were made for something better. Through her inspiring personal stories sprinkled with a dash of humor, she gives readers permission to step back, let go, and find fulfillment and freedom in a life lived in light of eternity.

Informations

• Publié par: Baker Publishing Group
• Date de parution: 21 août 2018
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781493414994
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 3 Mo

Extrait

Cover
Title Page
Copyright Page
© 2018 by Kay Wills Wyma
Published by Revell
a division of Baker Publishing Group
PO Box 6287, Grand Rapids, MI 49516-6287
www.revellbooks.com
Ebook edition created 2018
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means—for example, electronic, photocopy, recording—without the prior written permission of the publisher. The only exception is brief quotations in printed reviews.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file at the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
ISBN 978-1-4934-1499-4
Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from the Holy Bible, New International Version®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com
The author is represented by the literary agency of Wolgemuth & Associates, Inc.
Some names and details have been changed to protect the privacy of the individuals involved.
Endorsements
“I love how Kay brings great wisdom to bear on the kind of real life all of us are experiencing. Who’s not overwhelmed, right? Here’s someone who can guide you to the rest and peace and joy your soul is craving.”
Bob Lepine, cohost of FamilyLife Today
“I’ve learned to trust Kay Wyma in matters of family—and life. . . . In Not the Boss of Us she shoves the overwhelming threats around us back into the shadows and allows us to embrace the freedom for which Christ set us free.”
Elisa Morgan, speaker; author of The Beauty of Broken and The Prayer Coin ; cohost of Discover the Word ; president emerita of MOPS International
“All of us have times when life feels like a rat race—and the rats are winning! The chaotic pace of modern life can wreak havoc on our health, our families, and our sanity. But Kay Wills Wyma offers an encouraging and uplifting reminder that there’s a better way. We don’t have to let the tyranny of the urgent rob us of our joy.”
Jim Daly, president of Focus on the Family
“Kay has always been the friend who realigns my thinking and reshapes my heart—guiding me gently back to truth every time. This is exactly what she does throughout every page of Not the Boss of Us . It’s a much-needed mind-set shakeup in a world drowning in overwhelmed.”
Courtney DeFeo, author of In This House, We Will Giggle and creator of ABC Scripture Cards
“This book is a breath of fresh air. Kay Wyma’s humor, honesty, and insight will inspire and encourage you to make some very good trades. Rather than allowing yourself to be overwhelmed by the trappings and pressures that seem chronic in this fast-paced world, Kay will show you how to slow down and lean into your Heavenly Father—who, by the way, made you for so much more.”
Sandra Stanley, North Point Ministries
“In Not the Boss of Us , Kay doesn’t gloss over the complexities of the daily demands we face. Instead she shows us how those demands don’t get to dictate how we live. Kay is a gifted storyteller who weaves both compassion and invitation into this book that is a must-read for any woman who has ever felt overwhelmed and under pressure. In these pages you will—you can’t not—find the freedom-full way of life you’ve been longing to discover.”
Jeannie Cunnion, author of Mom Set Free
“I was captivated by the real stories that Kay shares, making the words come alive as she illustrates the importance of us putting our focus on our almighty God—the only real strength for any of us especially when we are overwhelmed. As I interact with women in the workplace, I see so many getting caught up in material trappings, titles, accomplishments, etc. Sometimes God interrupts when our perspective gets out of whack. He did with me. Not the Boss of Us is a must-read for everyone.”
Diane Paddison, business leader; founder and executive director of 4word; author of Work, Love, Pray and Be Refreshed
Dedication
For B
Contents
Cover 1
Title Page 2
Copyright Page 3
Endorsements 4
Dedication 5
Introduction 9
1. The Beginning of the End of Overwhelmed as We Knew It 17
2. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Performance Pressures, Be Overwhelmed by Purpose 40
3. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Appearance Pressures, Be Overwhelmed by Beauty 56
4. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Image Pressures, Be Overwhelmed by Image Bearing 72
5. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Formulaic Right-Way Pressures, Be Overwhelmed by Perfect Imperfection 94
6. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Group Pressures, Be Overwhelmed by Belonging 111
7. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Do-All Pressures, Be Overwhelmed by the Sacred in the Ordinary 124
8. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Product Pressures, Be Overwhelmed by the Process 136
9. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Circumstances, Be Overwhelmed by Looking Up 151
10. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Bitterness, Be Overwhelmed by Forgiveness 168
11. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Present Sufferings, Be Overwhelmed by an Eternal Perspective 184
12. Rather Than Be Overwhelmed by Any Trappings of This World, Be Overwhelmed by Hope 197
Acknowledgments 213
Notes 215
About the Author 221
Back Ads 223
Back Cover 226
Introduction
Things in today’s culture absolutely overwhelm us.
In my world with five tween/teen kids, Life’s Overwhelmed lurks in school halls where grades, test scores, teams, friend groups, and résumé building—either for a college application or a job—threaten to steal joy and peace since enough seems ever elusive with regard to all we need to do. Add that to our own stress, pressures, and life’s circumstances and we might feel like we’re drowning.
So lots of chats about perspective and truth—especially related to identity and self-worth—are had in the kitchen and the car. I might have also, once or twice, been caught yelling out of the car a little reminder about the world’s ways. “This stuff is not the boss of you!”
Words that may have anchored a pep talk I recently gave myself.
Like the items that fall out of the car at school pickup and drop-off, just roll with it , I said to myself, repeating the last part for good measure.
Items had rolled out that morning when feet rushed to scramble out of the car—a water bottle, McDonald’s Happy Meal toys, a bouncy ball, and a French fry wrapper. The last item, lifted by a gust of wind, flew from the backseat out the door and over the car, making its way like a butterfly to the playground in plain view of all the gluten-free, nonprocessed-food-eating crowd. At least the water bottle wasn’t a Coke bottle.
Slightly embarrassed, but business as usual (we are a family of seven—mess comes with the territory), I shrug-smiled at the carpool monitor, cringing that she actually tried to run after the fry wrapper.
The still-in-the-car kids yet to be dropped at the next stop agonized out loud, “Oh my gosh. We’re so embarrassing.”
The kid escaping our flying-litter car while mid-racing to the field to play with his friends yelled back at me, “Don’t forget to come to my presentation.”
“I won’t, sweetheart. You’ll do great!” I singsonged back and then mental-noted, Don’t forget . What I’d give if mental notes were connected to my calendar or some type of electronic reminder. There needs to be an app for that.
Shotgun passenger muttered under her breath, “Yeah, don’t forget him like you forgot me.”
“Oh, honey, I’m still so sorry about that.” I had forgotten her, and she has never let me live it down. Honestly, I don’t blame her. “I didn’t forget you ; I just got lost in a crazy day.”
She eye-roll-nodded, reassuring me that she knows I love her but is still not going to let me live it down.
I remember doing the same thing to my mom for the time she drove away, accidentally leaving me at Safeway. Between the time my mom had given me a nickel to get something out of the gum machine and the time it had taken her to walk to the car and unload our cart of dinner groceries, I guess she had forgotten I was with her. Off she drove as I stood watching from the store sidewalk, wondering— Did I really just get left?
I could have melted into a puddle of poor-me tears. But I didn’t because I knew she loved me and would never really forget me.
So rather than wallow, I went straight inside to our friend Sam the produce man, who promptly called my mom, who was already racing back to get me. We lived in a smallish West Texas town where pretty much everyone knew everyone, and the distance between our house and the store was a whopping five minutes. It was safe; I was safe. I actually learned some important life skills that I continue to tap into, even at my old age. But I still tease my mom about forgetting me.
She had a lot on her plate with four kids and the same pressures to do all and be all, even though looking back, those pressures didn’t seem to have the megaphone they do today. In a world with only four channels on the television, phones connected to cords, and adding machines and electric typewriters the closest things to a personal computer, life’s pressures and circumstances didn’t seem to have the same death grip they have today. But in the moment, the pressures probably felt relentlessly heavy, especially since I’m sure she compared her pressures to those her mother navigated, which absolutely appeared lighter.
I mentally reminded myself of my son’s request and determined to be at school, on time, to watch the patriotic presentations alongside the parents who apparently never forget.
Drop-offs proceeded, as did the day. And I remembered to show up for the school presentations. I sat in the back and relished every moment. Then I raced out to the school parking lot, took note of the strange fact that the car door was unlocked, shrugged it off, got in the car, and made it to the next thing—which is where I fought to hear my own pep talk.
Just roll with it , I mentally cheered again as Overwhelmed threatened a sneak attack, since it lurks in the backgroun