Overwhelmed With Responsibility

In which areas of your life do you feel like too many people are counting on you? That you’re the glue holding everything together—and if you crack, everything falls apart? That’s a heavy way to live, but many of us know that feeling all too well.

Paul did, too. In 2 Corinthians 11, he lists beatings, shipwrecks, hunger, prison—experiences most of us can’t imagine. But after describing all those physical trials, he adds one more: “I carry the burden of concern for all the churches.”

Paul cared deeply for the people he served. He worried about their faith, their unity, their spiritual health. He wasn’t a distant leader; instead, he carried their names and needs in his heart. That kind of love is beautiful—but it’s also exhausting.

What’s encouraging is what Paul says in the very next chapter: “When I am weak, then I am strong.” Paul wasn’t trying to impress anyone with his toughness. He admitted feeling weak and overwhelmed. But instead of letting that crush him, he turned to God’s strength.

You might be leading a family, managing a team, mentoring students, or running a business. The pressure to hold it all together is real. And here’s the truth: you can’t. Not on your own. That’s really good news. And the even better news? You don’t have to.

God doesn’t call you to carry the weight of the world on your shoulders. He calls you to trust him with what you can’t control. Strength isn’t pretending you’re fine. It’s leaning on Jesus when you’re not. That’s actually what the New Testament word “faith” means: to entrust ourselves, our lives, and our burdens to God.

What would it look like to stop pretending you’ve got it all handled and start inviting God into those pressures?

Reflect: What responsibility feels too heavy for you right now? What would it look like to hand that to God? Make a list of all the pressures you feel and pray over each one, releasing them to God and asking for his help.

Pray: Lord, these burdens are too big for me—but not for You. I give them to You now. Carry what I can’t.