Stress & Trust

Stress. The silent killer. Left unchecked, it will impact your physical and mental health in ways modern medicine is still learning to understand. Stress is basically our response to pressure, a demand, or threat. In most cases, the pressure is never as bad as we think but in the moment it sure feels like it and the result is we regularly carry the stress around until the next big stress replaces it. All stress is not bad but the kind of stress I'm talking about is.

 

And as a follower of Christ, it is something I'm working hard to reconcile how I feel (pressure) with what I believe (God). If we take God at his word, then we know we don't have to carry the stress alone. Now this is where it gets hard - an appropriate level of stress is to be expected but defining an appropriate level is very subjective. So, I think the best way to think about it is to simply ask the question: where does your ability to carry it all end and the need to rely on Him begin? That's not to say we shouldn't rely on him to help carry it all, BUT if we're "stressed out", I think it is fair to say we're not relying on him and instead are relying only on ourselves.

 

If you're reading this, my challenge to you is no different than what I've challenged myself to. Some stress is normal, but we have to remind ourselves that anytime we are overly stressed we are rejecting God's truth that the burden is not ours to carry alone. We are basically saying "I don't trust you enough" or "I don't think you care enough to intervene". And as believers, we know that isn't true. Let's start acting like it!