Photo by estherproject

By Jerrica KF Ching

Upon learning that this month’s theme was wit, the first idiom that came to mind was “at wit’s end.” I am sure that many readers have felt at times that they are at wit’s end, reaching the point of being emotionally and mentally exhausted. Perhaps you are feeling at this point right now, and it is my hope that you find peace.

When it comes to my personal life, work life, and service life, I enjoy having goals and having plans. But what happens when I accomplish all of these goals? What happens when you are at the top of the mountain that you have spent so much time climbing, and where do you turn to next? What happens when you feel as though you are in an ambiguous limbo of uncertainty, frantically grasping for something to indicate that this is the direction you should go, or that this is what you need to be doing now? What if you can’t find that something? There may be frustration, anger, sadness, tears, heartbreak, headache, stomachaches, grief, and loss.

I know I can only speak for myself, but I believe many of us enjoy feeling in control and feeling as though we know what we want and how to get it. When that sense of knowing or control is gone, it is replaced with a sense of panic, fear, worry and failure. I might wrack my brain, going through every single possible scenario, every potential “what if?” situation, and even looking to the past to see if there is something I missed. It is during these moments when I feel as though I am at wit’s end. It feels helpless, sometimes hopeless, and it is not a fun place to be.

So what can I do when I don’t know what I should be doing? I can choose to continue upon this never-ending path of hypothetical possibilities, or I can choose to remember that God has always had a plan for me. Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Feeling stuck and wanting control is a normal part of being human in an earthly world. The most amazing thing about God’s love is that God gives us a choice if we want to continue feeling stuck or not. He allows us to choose if we want to become so consumed by a fear of failure, or if we want to trust that He has had this plan mapped out for us from forever ago. I can choose to continue to feel stuck and uncertain, or I can choose to feel hopeful and secure. I can find comfort knowing that in my quest to know a plan, God has already had me moving along one, exactly as He’s designed. When God is ready to reveal the plan to us, it can be an astonishing sense of wonder, amazement, and joy. The plan will be revealed in God’s perfect timing, and there is nothing that I can possibly do to rush or postpone that process.

If you are reading this today and you are feeling as though you are at wit’s end, please be kind to yourself. Remember that you are fiercely and wonderfully made, and that when you feel you’re at your end, God has a plan for you for an amazing future.

Jerrica KF Ching grew up on the island of Oahu, Hawaii and currently lives in the beautiful state of Washington, working as a licensed mental health counselor and Asian/Pacific Islander mental health specialist at Columbia Wellness. She graduated with an MA in Marriage, Couple, and Family Counseling from George Fox University, where she is now an adjunct professor and supervisor. She finds joy in sharing her compassion with students on the importance of recognizing and acknowledging racial and cultural differences in others. Her research on racial colorblindness has been published in The International Journal of Social Science Studies.