Consulting God is the first step of Christian stress management. Prayerfully seek His advice for He urges you to call on Him and He will show you great things which you did not know (Jeremiah 33:3) and these insights will help you discern the right course of action.
The second step of Christian stress management is opening your heart and life to Christ. He is knocking on your heart’s door (Revelation 3:20) so invite Him in so that He can help you manage your present stressful situation and unknown future.
Trusting Jesus is the third step of Christian stress management. It is a crucial step because it frees your mind from the oppression of worry enabling you to have peace of mind. So put all your trust in Jesus even if people have betrayed you for God is not a man that He should lie to you (Numbers 23:19).
The fourth step of Christian stress management is renewing your mind with the Word of God. Read your Bible everyday and meditate on positive Scriptures to neutralize the negative thoughts that may be lurking in your mind so that you can know God’s perfect will for you in your situation. (Romans 12:2)
After transforming yourself by overhauling your mind with positive Scriptures, the fifth step of Christian stress management is positioning yourself. This means placing yourself in the most advantageous place and doing the best that you can with your limited resources. Learn from the beggar in Acts 3 who was positioned daily at the Temple gate called Beautiful to ask for alms and find your own Beautiful strategic place to work from.
The sixth step of Christian stress management is resting in the Lord and waiting patiently for Him (Psalm 37:7) to do for you what you cannot do for yourself as you continue working from your Beautiful strategic position. As you wait on Him incorporate medically proven relaxation techniques into your lifestyle to reduce your chances of developing stress related illnesses. You can start with abdominal breathing as it is the easiest way to counter the body’s stress response. To do this, lie down and take a deep breath through your nose until you feel your abdomen rising and then exhale completely until it falls. Repeat several times and you will begin to relax.
In addition, eat a balanced diet and restrict your caffeine intake from coffee, tea and medication as it can aggravate the nervousness, palpitations, and sleeplessness you may already be experiencing as a result of your stressful situation.
The seventh and final step of Christian stress management is obeying God when He shows you what you should do to manage your stressful situation definitively. Learn from the widow in 2 Kings 4 and obey His instructions even if you don’t understand how they will resolve your stressful situation for she obeyed the man of God Elisha and borrowed as he had instructed her even though she was already drowning in debt and her obedience enabled her rise above her financial crisis.
Adapted from Managing Stress with the Word of God by Dr Miriam Kinai © 2006. For more info click here.
No comments:
Post a Comment