| “I often feel like the weight of the world is on my shoulders,” writes Vanessa Sticker. “Living in a broken world, there is so much need and pain that surrounds us. My tendency is to want to pick up each burden and add it to the load I’m carrying.”
Sticker's experience is not unique. Studies show that women regularly prioritize helping others. Take a look at just a few examples: Women leaders are up to twice as likely to spend a significant amount of time on Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion (DEI) work that is not included in their formal job responsibilities. (McKinsey) Women were significantly more likely to check on family members and friends during COVID-19 lockdowns. (Ipsos) Girls between the ages of five and seven exhibited more empathetic behavior than their male peers when they witnessed a minor accident. (Nature) From the earliest years of life, women tend to show increased empathy and desire to help. Whether nature or nurture explains this, it’s important to keep a few things in mind. First, helping others is a Christlike act. Second, helping others without care for oneself can lead to resentment, loneliness, and burnout.
When we look to Jesus, Sticker observes, we do not just see someone who ran himself ragged serving others. Even as the Son of God who came to earth to take on our sin and die on our behalf, Jesus spent large portions of time on earth choosing to rest and rely on his Father.
Sticker encourages all who tend to accrue needs to meet and problems to solve to remember these words of wisdom: “Perhaps for those of us who tend to take on too much, our truest act of faith is to slow down, to embrace our limits, and to trust that the Savior will carry what we cannot.” |
