REDUCING THE STRESS

“An anxious heart weighs a man down…”
(Proverbs 12:25) 

Summer is winding down.  School is starting soon.  So, let’s focus for a couple minutes on the great American pastime.  No; not baseball, apple pie, ice cream, or visiting grandma’s house.  I believe the great American pastime these days is stress!  We don’t really like it, but it’s a game we all play today.  Here are a few symptoms of stress.  How many are you experiencing?

• Decision-making becomes more difficult
• Excessive day-dreaming
• Increased use of cigarettes, alcohol, or prescription drugs
• Thoughts trail off while speaking…or writing…or praying.
• Sudden outbursts of anger or hostility
• Paranoid ideas and mistrust of friends
• You dream of escape all the time

What is stress?  Stress is simply the result of carrying too great of weight!  We do it in many ways, but especially in our schedules and our finances.  We cram as much into our days as we possibly can from the moment we wake up until we go bed at night.  Then, we wake up the next day to do it all over again – and again – and again.  We never build any margin into our days.  We go full-throttle, 24/7/365.

On top of our schedules, we add the stress of finances.  Most Americans are buried in debt with home mortgages, seconds on the house, auto loans, school loans, credit card debt, etc. etc.  Like our schedules, there’s no margin in our budgets, either.  So, whenever the car breaks down or we just want to have an evening out, we pull out a credit card and keep adding to the debt and the stress.

So, I’d like to offer a couple suggestions on reducing stress in the year ahead…

1. Build some margin in your life – in your schedules & in your finances.
2. Focus on your priorities & learn to say “no” – to yourself and to others.
3. Start each day and each week with the Lord.

Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened (that’s stress), and I will give you rest.  Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”  (Matthew 11:28-29)

 Heavenly Father,
You are the God of all comfort and peace.
I come to You now because I am weary and stressed.
May I find strength each day by resting in You.
In Jesus name, Amen.

 

TAMING MY TEMPER

“A fool gives full vent to his anger,
but a wise man keeps himself under control.”
(Proverbs 29:11) 

Alexander the Great, in a fit of rage, struck his favorite general one day and killed his best friend.  He cried out, “I’ve conquered the world, but I can’t even conquer my own soul.”  An uncontrolled temper has brought down many great people throughout history.

The average man loses his temper 6 times per week; the average woman loses her temper 3 times per week.  Men tend to be more physical with their anger; while women tend to be more verbal.

So, is anger a sin?  In Ephesians 4:26 Paul instructs us, “In your anger, do not sin…”  Apparently, anger is not necessarily sinful.  In fact, Jesus got angry a couple times.  He even made a whip and threw some money-changers out of the Temple courts.  But, how you express your anger can be very hurtful or sinful.

Some authors have suggested that everybody tends to be a skunk or a turtle.  If you’re a skunk, when you get angry, you just blow up and spray your anger all over the room.  If you’re a turtle, when you get upset, you withdraw into your shell and stuff all your feelings in.  Both responses are unhealthy and hurtful.  Skunks tend to blow up and hurt other people, while turtles internalize their feelings and hurt themselves.  So a wise person learns how to tame his temper and manage his anger.  Here are five tips from Solomon on anger management from the book of Proverbs… 

• Resolve to control your anger  (29:11)
• Remember the cost  (29:22)
• Reflect before reacting  (17:27)
• Restrain your remarks  (21:23)
• Release your anger appropriately  (15:1) 

Which is better?  Conquering the world or conquering my own soul? 

Heavenly Father,
Thank you for creating me in Your image.
You gave me an intellect with which to know You,
emotions with which to love You,
and a will with which I can choose to follow You.
Give me the desire to know You and love You more and more
and the courage to follow You wholeheartedly.
In Jesus name, Amen.

MANAGING MY MOUTH

“He who guards his lips guards his life,
but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin.”
(Proverbs 13:3)

Did you know that the average individual speaks enough words in one year to fill 66 books, 800 pages long?  The average man speaks about 15,000 words a day; the average woman speaks about 30,000 words a day.  On an average Sunday, 55 million Americans listen to 400,000 preachers deliver over 1 billion words.  We are a nation of talkers – talk shows, talk-radio, wireless phones, cell pones, chat lines, etc.  Is it any wonder our mouths get us into so much trouble?  We love to talk!

Proverbs has a lot to say about our mouths.  In fact, there are over 120 verses in Proverbs that address some aspect of our speech.  Here are a few examples…

• 12:18 – “Reckless words pierce like a sword, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.”
• 12:19 – “Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment.”
• 15:1 – “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.”
• 15:2 – “The tongue of the wise commends knowledge, but the mouth of the fool gushes folly.”
• 20:19 – “A gossip betrays a confidence; so avoid a man who talks too much.”
• 21:23 – “He who guards his mouth and his tongue keeps himself from calamity.”

How many different ways can you identify that your mouth can get you in trouble?  If we want to avoid the pitfalls that accompany our mouths, we must learn to manage our mouths.  Fortunately, Solomon gives some advice on how to manage my mouth.  Here are four suggestions…

• Think before you speak  (engage your mind before putting your mouth in gear)
• Speak the truth
• Speak in love
• Reprogram your heart

I believe that last suggestion is the most important, because your mouth is only a reflection of your heart.  Jesus said, “For out of the overflow of his heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45).   The best way to manage your mouth is to reprogram your heart with God’s Word.  

Heavenly Father,
Thank you for the Bible.  Your Word is truth!
“May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart
be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.”
In Jesus name, Amen.”

A GOOD REPUTATION

“A good name is more desirable than great riches;
To be esteemed is better than silver or gold.”
(Proverbs 22:1) 

What kind of reputation do the following individuals have in your mind?

- Abraham Lincoln
- Bill Clinton
- Adolf Hitler
- Fidel Castro
- Bill Gates
- Mother Teresa

Whether good or bad, our reputation follows us wherever we go, even after we die.  With our present economy, it’s hard to imagine that anything might be more valuable than silver or gold; but the wisest man who ever lived (Solomon) suggested that a good name – a good reputation – is more valuable than great wealth. 

So, how do we build a good reputation?  First we must recognize that a good reputation is much different than status.  While status may be expensive, it’s relatively simple:  wear designer labels, live in a ritzy neighborhood, drive a Porsche, dine at the finest restaurants, and attend the opera and symphony.  In other words, you can buy it, wear it, drive it, live in it, eat it, or attend it.  But, a good reputation isn’t that easy. 

So, how do we build a good reputation?  In the book of Proverbs, Solomon offers a few suggestions on building and maintaining a good name.  A good reputation is built on character, rather than image.  Several character traits jump off the pages of Proverbs at us – things like integrity, kindness, generosity, and humility.  And those four character traits also suggest a few things that will destroy a reputation – things like dishonesty, anger and fighting, selfishness and greed, and pride.

How is your reputation?  With your family?  In your neighborhood?  On the job?  With your friends?  As God’s children, let’s live up to His name!

 Yahweh,
Your name encompasses all that You are.
You are a God of holiness and truth, and a God of love and compassion.
May I live up to your name?  May my life reflect Your character in all I do?
May others see Jesus in me!
In His name, Amen.

GOD BLESS AMERICA

“Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord…”
(Psalm 33:12)

This weekend, we celebrate Independence Day.  It was 233 years ago – July 4^th, 1776 – that our founding fathers signed the Declaration of Independence and declared our freedom from British rule.  Today, there is some debate whether America is a “Christian” nation or not.  But, it is an undeniable fact that our founding fathers believed in God and America was founded on Christian principles.  Take a look at a few quotes from some of the men who signed our Declaration of Independence… 

• “God who gave us life gave us liberty. And can the liberties of a nation be thought secure when we have removed their only firm basis, a conviction in the minds of the people that these liberties are of the Gift of God? That they are not to be violated but with His wrath? Indeed, I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just; that His justice cannot sleep forever….”  (Thomas Jefferson, author) 
• “Resistance to tyranny becomes the Christian and social duty of each individual. … Continue steadfast and, with a proper sense of your dependence on God, nobly defend those rights which heaven gave, and no man ought to take from us.” (John Hancock, first signer) 
• “The general principles on which the fathers achieved independence were the general principles of Christianity. I will avow that I then believed, and now believe, that those general principles of Christianity are as eternal and immutable as the existence and attributes of God.”   (John Adams, signer) 
• “Here is my Creed. I believe in one God, the Creator of the Universe. That He governs it by His Providence. That He ought to be worshipped. (Benjamin Franklin, signer) 
• “It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ.” (Patrick Henry, signer) 

Of course, we are all familiar with the words in the opening of the Declaration of Independence itself, but take a look at the closing words, as well… 

• “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”  (beginning) 
• And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our lives, our fortunes and our sacred honor.”  (closing)

The first President of the United States was a Christian, as well.  His words are a good reminder for all of us…

• “While we are zealously performing the duties of good citizens and soldiers, we certainly ought not to be inattentive to the higher duties of religion. To the distinguished character of Patriot, it should be our highest glory to add the more distinguished character of Christian.” (George Washington, first President.)

Clearly, our founding fathers believed in God.  Clearly, America was founded on Christian principles.  As you celebrate the “fourth” this weekend; celebrate our Christian heritage, as well.  May God bless America!

 Dear Heavenly Father,
Thank you for this great nation in which we live,
and for Your many blessings on America over the past 233 years.
We pray for revival in our nation!
May Your Holy Spirit draw us back to Yourself!
In Jesus’ name, Amen.