Warning: Today’s words may not seem really encouraging so stay tuned through the next couple of blog posts over the following Mondays. Today, we will discuss dangers and threats!
Life around us doesn’t seem very encouraging at times. Especially when we SEE, HEAR, FEEL, and directly TOUCH all of the chaos going on around us. In some way this touches and affects all we do. Our business, work, other’s jobs, our family, and our livelihood.
This is a seriouis matter. So we are going to dig in on this over the next several weeks. The focus will be on Who is God regarding stress. I will also take a look at Who I am, How I Think, and What I do, in regard to Stress. Are we living in the danger zone?
God’s Word
God’s Word is living. It is at work in us and through us. That’s why we must renew our minds daily with the Word of God. That is our Hope, and Faith is the substance of things Hoped for, the evidence of things unseen. Remember, Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. So the Word of God is the substance of things hoped for. The Word of God is the evidence of what we do not see.
In the midst of a stressful life that you may be living, here are some actual words of encouragement and comfort:
Psalm 23:1-6
1 The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters,
3 he refreshes my soul. He guides me along the right paths for his name’s sake.
4 Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
6 Surely your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Watch Out For That Spear!
Ever feel like you are having spears hurled at you? Maybe at this moment you do, or maybe you don’t, but we all have at one time or another. David, after a great victory over the giant Goliath, was soon on the run from a King (Saul) who was hurling spears at him. Saul now had a ‘perceived’ threat to his thrown and he wanted to remove that perceived threat. This is David, writing Psalm 23, in the midst of Spears flying all around him from a King he served and loved. How was he able to do that? Well, let’s define Stress:
Cooper defines stress as:
“The response of the systematic nervous system to a perceived or actual threat.”
Further,
“Technically it means that stress is the way our body responds to threats or dangers.”
Our blood pressure rises and our muscle strength increases. And now we are ready to fight or fly. This is what happened to Saul. He ‘felt’ threatened, his blood pressure was raised and he had great strength to throw that spear, and with David barely escaping.
Mental Wellness and Threats
Unfortunately, one of Saul’s shortcomings as a leader was his inability to deal with his perceptions of danger. Stress will undermine your mental wellness. Saul is an example. Mental stress is harder on us than being physically drained at the end of a physically laboring workday because we tend to carry stress with us. It is what keeps us up at night! It eats away at us.
What are your perceived or actual threats? What are those dangers or threats that currently loom over you? Is it a bad relationship, being found out, finances, not being accepted or not being good enough, sickness, and what more?
Those threats and dangers could in fact be real! Whether real or perceived, how are you dealing with it? Effective leaders learn how to manage stress both for themselves and for the team they lead. How are you leading through the dangers and threats to life? Stay tuned, and until then, here’s Crowder with Let It Rain…
Challenge of the Week
Know what stress is. Know how to prepare for it. And know how to respond to it. Learn to identify your perceived and actual threats. And now, go to God’s Word and find scripture that lifts you above the situation. Know that God’s Word is the truth. So be it.
