Live the Stress-Free Life
Ministry Partner of Intentional Living
I sincerely believe that living an intentional life in Christ—purposefully doing things to guarantee success—is the only way we can accomplish those things we believe matter most. Now, I also know that everything we set out to accomplish brings with it a certain degree of stress. We all have good intentions—whether it’s to be a good spouse or parent, to excel on the job, or to just be successful in general. But what happens when things don’t go exactly as we intended? What happens when things spiral out of control, or we feel we were never really in control in the first place? The first thing we do is become distressed. We begin to stress out.
Stress has been described as “a growing epidemic recognized nationwide as the culprit behind many debilitating and killer diseases.” And statistics show that Americans are the most stressed people in the world. But there are some things you can do to keep stress from entering into your life—three tools that will help you overcome the obstacles that may be keeping you from living an intentional life in Christ.
The first tool is commitment. When we have something we can commit to, that we can intentionally focus on with a purpose of making it work, then we always do better. You may be going through a rough time with your family, or spouse. Maybe things are difficult on the job. What is your commitment to doing everything you can to make the family better, the marriage work or to succeed on the job? The Bible says in James 1:8 (KJV), A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. In other words, this person can’t make up his mind one way or the other.
When we allow external situations to drive our lives and we’re not intentionally committed one way or the other, stress eventually creeps in. The next thing you know, we’re dealing with health issues. When we learn to be committed, first to God and then to our situation, we’ll soon notice a calm in the midst of life’s chaos.
The next tool is control. Most of us like to feel we are in control of a situation, that we’re calling the shots. To feel otherwise can easily cause us to feel inferior, that we are the ones being controlled, manipulated or pushed around. Those kinds of feelings can quickly result in a stressful situation. In reality, as children of God, we know we really don’t control anything but that it is God who is in control. Our peace and confidence are in the truth that when we submit to Him and His authority, when we are intentional in serving Him, we do have something to do with attaining our goals. We never have a reason to become stressed because we know God will always take care of us. He will provide for us and see that we have everything we need.
A third tool that will help prevent stress in your life is challenge. We always do better when we are challenged. Challenge positions us to intentionally do well because we know the only other option is failure. Instead of seeing things as always being bad, we see the opportunity for God to get involved and make things turn out well. We don’t feel the pressure to make things happen because we realize God is right there working with us.
Where are you in light of these three tools? Are you letting them work in your life to keep you living stress-free? If the answer is “no,” then make up your mind that no matter what it is you’re dealing with, you won’t stress out over it. Become intentional in the way you deal with things, making certain you are committed to whatever it is, that God is in control, and that with His help you will meet the challenge.