Stressed-out Family? Seek Constructive Change - Part 1

Life is stressful, and learning to managing stress constructively is a necessity. Continuously struggling with stress produces tension and anxiety that trigger symptoms like headaches, stomach issues, and neck and back pain. Stress in children may be acted out behaviorally, like a six-year-old’s disruptive classroom antics brought on by his parent’s marital battles.

While it’s impossible to stress-proof your children or to protect them from troubles, you can help them cope with the uncertainties of life. Telling your children age-appropriate truth prepares them for reality. Imagine the parents of a four-year-old in divorce proceedings. The mother and child abruptly move to another state without preparing the child for these changes.

While it's not healthy to tell a four-year-old details of a nasty divorce, age-appropriate truth helps to prepare them for important changes and to reassure them of your love and commitment. Helping your child grieve and express anger in non-destructive ways can prevent unacceptable acting out. God will come to your aid when the storms of life seem overwhelming. 

Stress Management: God's Gift of Insight - Part 3

Have you wondered how children growing up in the same home can turn out so differently? Even when troubled families expose children to chaos and  violence, some manage to sidestep the dysfunction to establish successful lives. They have unique insight on how to avoid enmeshments that leave others in a state of hopelessness.

Gaining insight is a lifetime endeavor and becomes a lifeline for every stage of life. A man described how his eighty-year-old father had keen insight for managing the issues and stress of aging. Insight enables a person to withstand the turbulence and unpredictability of life. Insight builds competence for asking difficult questions and accepting hard answers.

One important insight is knowing God gives us peace when the stressors of life could be overwhelming. Proverbs points out the way. "Follow the steps of the godly and stay on the right path, for only the righteous enjoy life to the fullest." So search for godly role models and remember, Jesus challenges us to come and learn from him.  

Stress Management: God's Gift of Insight - Part 2

Have you ever had to confront a problem that was so important, you were willing to do whatever was required to find a solution? The insight gained from such an experience is a treasure worth keeping. Someone defined insight as "the mental habit of asking searching questions and giving honest answers." This is required for managing the reality of everyday stress.

Insight includes understanding and wisdom. Proverbs 1:7 asks this pertinent question: "How do people become wise?" The answers is "trust and reverence for God." Proverbs 2:1 gives another step. "Every person who listens and obeys God's instructions will be given wisdom and good sense." Insight and wisdom provide skills for managing the stressors of life.

Insight strengthens resilience, which enables God's people to manage stress appropriately. In the Gospels, Jesus consistently modeled insight and resilience which came from knowing God his Father and his Father's word. While we do not have perfect insight or understanding, God promises to give us wisdom when we ask for it.  

Stress Management: God's Gift of Insight - Part 1

Surviving from trouble in this world unscathed emotionally or physically is impossible. Yet some people believe they should be exempted from hardships. When the struggles of living surface God's goodness is questioned. Stress overload may cause the toughest personality to react in ways that are contrary to personal values and beliefs.

No matter what your status in life is, stress will seek you out because stress is a natural part of living. How it's managed determines whether it has a positive or negative effect on you as a person. God gives insight plus emotional and physical stamina for coping with stress, regardless of its source.

So how do you cope with unwanted stress? One way is to shift your focus from the source of agitation to whatever God has provided that makes your life worth living. Secondly, give thanks to God with a sincere, appreciative heart. "Count your blessings, name them one by one, and it will surprise you what God has done." This will put a productive spin on stress management.  

Resisting Stress: God Empowers - Part 3

What's the greatest challenge you've had to face? For some people a challenge is welcomed. Challenge suggests that  a possibility for change exists. For others, challenge staves off boredom and stress, which is similar to pressure you feel when overloaded with too much to do and not enough time to get it done.

To feel challenged is an invitation to test your competence. Challenge demands engagement outside of what's commonplace. I'm not referring to extreme risk-taking, but being pushed to use your mental, physical, and spiritual capacity to do what's within your integrity and skills to do. Integrity implies strength of character to handle stress effectively.

Hardiness of character does not imply the absence of weakness, but rather the willingness to face challenges made possible by faith that comes as a gift from the Lord God. True disciples of Christ have weaknesses, but they know their purpose is to engage the world as a witness for Christ Jesus. This confidence provides strength to contend with the stress they're sure to encounter. 

Resisting Stress: God Empowers - Part 2

Stress affects everyone because the pressures of living cut across all  boundaries of society. One of the mysteries of stress is that it effects people differently who face similar situations. There are those who succumb to stress and develop ulcers, migraine headaches, and other physical symptoms that can render them unable to function.

Stress-resistant people are open to change and see stress as a challenge rather than a threat. Change is necessary for the prevention of mental, spiritual, and emotional stagnation. Where change is unwelcomed, crises in relationships  or within oneself are assured. Crises point to a decisive moment when a person fails to alter the way life is lived.

People who are stress-resistant portray a hardiness of character and possess an attitude that's open to challenging the status quo. Individuals willing to change understand that stress levels depend on how a specific life event is appraised. They know God gives each believer a measure of faith and courage to challenge troubles that come their way.  

Resisting Stress: God Empowers - Part 1

The word stress can be defined differently for anyone managing a difficult situation. "I'm stressing," is a negative expression known to everyone who believes stress is undesirable; yet without stress there would be limited motivation to make needed and necessary changes. Stress challenges us to reach outward and inward for solutions to bad situations.

While it's true that stress can be overwhelming, it doesn't have to be disastrous. If your attitude encourages surrender and defeat, then stress can be devastating. It's your attitude that supports the will to challenge difficult situations. The readiness to challenge and change situations determines the negative or positive influence stress has on your life.

When Jesus called his disciples, he endowed them with resilience that made it possible to challenge and change what they previously believed was impossible to do. When troubles came, their faith prevented stress from becoming overwhelming. They believed Christ Jesus was on their side and was the source of their empowerment. This is what he offers to you.