Whatever Is Excellent with Leanne Tuggle
Encouragement and Inspiration for women choosing to rise above the “just survive” mentality and instead set their mind on thriving in all that they say and do. The ultimate goal is to equip you to pursue whatever is excellent in the midst of your ordinary life and in all that you say and do.
Whatever Is Excellent with Leanne Tuggle
54: Excellence in the Midst of Darkness
Have you ever felt like you were drowning under the weight of impossible circumstances? That moment when life piles on more than any human could possibly handle?
A military wife shares her raw, unfiltered journey through the perfect storm of overwhelm: solo parenting three children under five during a pandemic while preparing for an overseas move, only to face an unexpected second deployment just after reunion. Her breaking point reveals a profound truth many of us miss when we're struggling to keep our heads above water.
The most powerful revelation comes not in finding extraordinary strength within herself, but in surrendering to the reality that excellence in difficult seasons flows from connection, not striving. "Apart from me, you can do nothing," Jesus' words from John 15 illuminate the path forward when we've reached the end of ourselves.
Through vivid storytelling and vulnerable reflection, we discover how abiding in Christ transforms our understanding of excellence during life's heaviest moments. This isn't about pushing through on willpower or maintaining a perfect façade when everything is falling apart. It's about the counterintuitive truth that our darkest moments of overwhelm can become the very places where God's strength is most perfectly displayed.
Whether you're currently walking through a season of overwhelming circumstances or supporting someone who is, these insights offer both practical wisdom and spiritual encouragement. The fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control—don't come through our striving but through our abiding. When life feels too heavy to bear, perhaps excellence looks different than we imagined.
Take heart from Psalm 61 and remember that even when your heart is faint, there is a rock higher than yourself. Your circumstances may be overwhelming, but you are never alone in them. Share this episode with someone who needs to hear they don't have to face their overwhelm alone.
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I remember it felt like drowning. It felt like an impossible weight had been placed on my already weary shoulders, and then I had just been told to march uphill into battle. I remember feeling completely hopeless, followed by feeling shame. I knew I wasn't alone, and yet why did it feel like I was? I knew I wasn't alone, and yet why did it feel like I was?
Leanne:In November of 2019, my husband received the call that informed us of our next duty station for the Navy. We would be moving from Virginia to Japan, and he was to report for training in January and then immediately deploy in February. At the time, my twin boys were 18 months old and my daughter was four years old. We scrambled to prepare for the move and get all of the necessary paperwork submitted before my husband had to leave. The plan was for me to join him in Japan in May when he was back from that deployment. Since we had such a great community and church family in Virginia, it made sense for me to stay during that deployment, part of his tour, and so we said our goodbyes and we started the countdown for the days until we would be reunited again Five months, we can do this.
Leanne:I remember thinking, and then, in March of 2020, just after we celebrated the twins' second birthday, the world shut down, church services were canceled, school was closed and suddenly I found myself at home alone with three children, five and under, with little to no support system. But that was okay, because I knew God was with me and that he would give me the strength I needed. I got creative. I figured out how to do preschool at home, I came up with a rhythm and a routine that kept my little family going. I had groceries delivered and I looked forward to our afternoon walk around the neighborhood every afternoon. And then I got an email from a husband that said that his deployment had been extended. He wouldn't be back in Japan until the end of June. Okay, no problem. These things happen all the time in the military. In fact, it's to be expected. I will just wait until the military clears us for travel, and then we will be reunited. It's just a couple more months, right? Finally, the date was set for me to fly to Japan. It was early July and all of our things were packed up, the suitcases were loaded into the car and I just needed to get three kids on an airplane from Seattle to Japan, and then we would be all set. My husband would be waiting for me, I could see the light at the end of the tunnel. Before takeoff, I learned that, due to new regulations, I would need to quarantine for two weeks with my children once we landed. Okay, I remember thinking that's not ideal, but it's just two more weeks, we can make it and then we will be all together again. We are almost there.
Leanne:Well, I barely survived that 13-hour flight with two-year-old toddlers who alternated crying for the entire duration of the trip, but with tears silently streaming down my face, I knew it would be all over soon. God is good and faithful and I believed in my heart of hearts that he was carrying us. This was simply part of the sanctification process. I would hold strong and lean on Him while my babies leaned on me. And then that glorious day arrived. Our quarantine was complete and the moment my husband walked in the door I felt the weight of the world fall off my shoulders. We made it. We were together again. What a relief.
Leanne:Until one week later, my husband came home from work, looked me in the eyes and said they're sending me back out to sea in four weeks, after nearly seven months of solo parenting, moving overseas with three children under five in the middle of a pandemic, my husband leaving again in a month. It was more than I could handle. Again in a month. It was more than I could handle and something broke in my soul at that moment. I look back on those two months that he was gone for the second time and I remember the darkness that surrounded me in that season. I was completely and utterly overwhelmed.
Leanne:The word overwhelm means to bury or drown beneath a huge mess, to defeat completely, inundate, overpower. When someone is overwhelmed, it means that they are experiencing more than they can handle, leading to feelings of being stressed, anxious or unable to cope. Perhaps you have experienced this kind of overwhelm before, or maybe you are in a season of feeling overwhelmed right now. The question that I want us to consider today is what does it mean to embrace excellence when life feels too heavy? I began this episode with my own personal story of feeling overwhelmed and hopeless, because it is important to know that we all have seasons of struggle and darkness In this broken, fallen world. No one is immune from sadness, and depression can affect anyone, even the woman who seems like she has it all together.
Leanne:It is also important to note that feeling overwhelmed is not a sign of failure. Even King David, who is a man after God's own heart, struggled with feelings of overwhelm. In Psalm 61.2, he says From the end of the earth I call to you. When my heart is faint, lead me to the rock that is higher than I. And Jesus acknowledged that feeling overwhelmed exists when he said come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. He says that in Matthew 11, 28.
Leanne:At the time it felt that I couldn't rest. I was beyond weary, and yet somewhere in my heart I did know that God was still with me, even though I felt so very alone, even though this situation felt unfair and even though it was more than I could handle. I knew that God often gives us more than we can handle so that we lean on Him for strength. If I could handle it, I wouldn't have need of a Savior, would I? Have you ever heard the quote? God doesn't call the equipped, he equips the called. Hebrews 13, 20-21 says it this way Now, may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, may he equip you with all that you need for doing His will. Basically, the same power that brought Jesus back from the dead is available to us as believers, and God will give you what you need to keep going through Him.
Leanne:For me, it was the daily habit of reading my Bible that kept me going. Even though I was broken and lost, I knew that the God of the Bible was real and powerful, and so I kept opening my Bible every morning, even though it felt like I was just going through the motions. I chose to believe that there was truth to be found even in the midst of this heavy darkness, like a tiny candle flickering, reading my Bible offered just enough light to see the one truth that God wanted me to find. The other day, our pastor said if you are red lining, sometimes that means you need to read the red lines.
Leanne:In many Bibles, the words that Jesus spoke are often printed in red, and John 15, one through five is one of those passages, and this is what it says I am the true vine and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit, he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit, he prunes that it may bear more fruit. Already you are clean because of the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me and I in you, as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine and you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit. For apart from me, you can do nothing. I have to read that last part again Apart from me, you can do nothing.
Leanne:It was this truth that the Holy Spirit pointed me towards during that season of overwhelm. As those words turned over and over in my mind, I was reminded how little I can do in my own strength. Somehow, in those seven months of solo parenting, I had allowed pride to take over and give me a false sense of confidence in my abilities to show up with excellence every day on my own. This season of overwhelm was meant to gently humble me and bring me back to Jesus. I needed to abide in Him once again. Jesus, I needed to abide in Him once again. To abide means to stay connected to Jesus. Like a leaf will wither and die if plucked off the vine, so will we if we strive in our own strength.
Leanne:This self-reliance leads to exhaustion and overwhelm, but the fruit of the Spirit that we bear when we abide in Him is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control, as it says in Galatians 5, 22 and 23. So when the world feels heavy, when you feel overwhelmed by the circumstances of life, the best way to embrace excellence is to abide in Jesus. For me, that tiny flicker of light grew with every word of Jesus that I read, with every reminder to abide in Him, until I looked around and I realized that the darkness was gone. Joy had replaced the tears of overwhelm. Peace flowed from my renewed trust and belief that God is faithful and that he still loves me, even in the midst of my struggle.
Leanne:Jesus says in John 15, 9-11, as the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in His love. These things. I have spoken to you that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be full. If you are feeling overwhelmed right now, I hope that this story encourages you to know that this too shall pass, and I pray that you are inspired to turn to God.
Leanne:Pause and acknowledge your feelings of overwhelm and sadness. Replace your thoughts of I can't handle this to through him, I can bear fruit. Or, as Elizabeth Elliot said, simply do the next thing Rest in Christ's strength, knowing that spiritual fruit comes from him and not through our own efforts. Pray, sing, read the word and, above all, abide. Abide in Him. This is how you embrace excellence in the hard seasons. To close this episode, I want to leave you with this encouragement from Psalm 61, so that the next time you feel overwhelmed, you can courageously seek God's sustaining presence. Psalm 61, 1-3. Hear my cry, o God, and listen to my prayer. From the end of the earth. I call to you when my heart is faint. Lead me to the rock that is higher than I, for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy.