Living Successfully In A Stressful World

Push, produce, succeed, get ahead, get the job done — that pretty much defines the fast-paced world we live in today. The burden of continually producing, creates stress — either by self-motivation to get the job done, or by pressure exerted by someone else to perform. And along with stress, comes irritability, hyper criticism, angry words, and even biting and consuming our family members and fellow Christians (Gal. 5:13-15) — each link of the chain seems to feed off the other and compound the problem. There is little calmness and serenity in our lives — little time just to enjoy the simple pleasures of life.

How can stress be avoided or, if it cannot be avoided, how can it be dealt with successfully? Some degree of stress is unavoidable in life — it can be diminished or increased depending on our desires and expectations. Someone said that happiness comes from either increasing our ability to provide the things we want or diminishing our wants — the latter is usually easier and will produce a greater amount of satisfaction.

The Lord addressed this problem when He said:

“Do not worry about your life .… But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:25-33).

Paul encourages us:

“Don’t worry over anything whatever; whenever you pray, tell God every detail of your needs in thankful prayer, and the peace of God, which surpasses human understanding, will keep constant guard over your hearts and minds as they rest in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 4:6-7 – J.B. Phillips Translation).

We can relieve some of our stress by shouldering our own responsibilities (Galations 6:5). When we accept responsibility, we also relieve stress on those about us. Nothing irritates us more than having to do someone else’s job. On the other hand, when we see someone weak and struggling, we are instructed to help him with his load (Galatians 6:2; cf. Romans 15:1-3).

Dear reader, there is no better “stress management” than doing the best we can, then praying and trusting in God, "casting our cares on Him" (1 Peter 5:7; cf. Psalm 37:5; Psalm 55:22 — that’s living successfully in a stressful world.

—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets