Doing “more” for me was a need to compensate for my inadequacies, a need to prove that I could do what the others could do. Through school, my vision impairment meant I had to work twice as hard as the others to achieve the same result. This continued in the jobs I had in my early career. My personality played a role too, since I’m very diligent.

This all came to an devastating halt when I suffered a breakdown followed by a major depression. I was off work for two years and couldn’t function at all for the first six months. Through therapy, prayer and inner healing, I learned to value myself based on being a precious beloved daughter of God, not based on how much I could do and do perfectly.

I’ve been doing less since my 40s than I did in my 20s and 30s because I don’t “people-please”. I know what my limits are, what I’m willing to do, and what I enjoy doing. I base my priorities today on what I believe God is calling me to do, what types of service my gifts best enabled me to provide, and what I most enjoy doing.