One of the hardest things to do in the midst of adversity is keeping your heart strong with hope and confidence in God for victory. Keeping in a place of peace is often the greater difficulty than the actual difficulty itself. But having a positive expectation of God’s manifest goodness being displayed towards you is important to your health – spiritually, mentally, and physically. These are important to your destiny.
We live in a world full of battles including: relationship challenges, workplace stressors, financial and health struggles, and spiritual warfare. Our Father wants us to be confident in Him and rest in His love. He is confident of His ability to take you from strength to strength and victory to victory. He wants you confident in that, too.
Hebrews 4:11 says we are to make every effort to enter into His rest. In other words, we are to stand firm in all times believing God for His guidance and trusting Him for provision in everything that concerns us. Don’t doubt. Cease striving. Be still in the intimate knowledge that His eyes are on you. He hears your prayers and He answers. It’s who He is.
We are living in very troubling times filled with stress that can have a powerfully negative impact on not only our emotional well-being, but on our physical body. Research shows that stress not only causes chaos in our emotions, but can negatively impact a wide range of molecular structures at the cellular level in response to chronic psychological or environmental stress. Intense mental stress over a long period of time can also create long-term changes in the brain. Chronic stress can impact your ability to fight infection and even cause premature onset of diseases. It impacts creativity and confidence, decision making, and cripples mental function. It can kill a life of joy and divine destiny.
Having gone through a recent stressful circumstance, I could feel the impact of stress on my body and brain. Since I want the full function of my brain and body to fulfill my calling in Christ, I knew I needed to find practical and spiritual solutions to my stressors. I knew that living in an internal state of rest in God is key to our success as His sons and daughters.
You have a purpose in life and a God-given mission to fulfill. If the enemy can’t literally take you out, he will try to devour your strength, energy, and vision through sorrow, grief, and anxiety, or prolonged emotional distress.
Ways to destress and stay confident in stressful times:
Discern the source of your stress and ask the Lord for His strategy and direction. Ask Him and you will receive it. Let patience have its perfect work.
Forgive those who offend or hurt you. Unforgiveness creates terrible stress. Make amends quickly, seek to understand another’s viewpoint, and what can’t be resolved, put into the hands of God to guide you regarding the situation. The more you dwell on an offense, it will enflame stress and steal hope, joy, and peace. Let the Lord’s voice direct your steps, not resentment. A refusal to forgive, seek amends, or adhere to godly direction can open the door to a root of bitterness. Holding grudges isn’t just a sin but left unchecked it can corrupt the whole inward man with hate, thoughts of revenge and spite towards another. The more these occupy your thinking, they will negatively shape who you are as a person and distort your whole life view (Heb. 12:15).
Unforgiveness can create a raging fire-storm of anger. It can turn simple conversations into hailstorms of slander, accusations, and false judgments, destroying not only the people around you, but yourself as the conduit of rage. To relieve your heart from these stressful emotions, practice forgiveness. And too, set boundaries with bitter people lest their bitterness consume you. Don’t engage with their rage; rather, let your words be wise and few.
Hebrews 12:14 says to pursue a state of tranquility with everyone. It will not only empower your ability to get revelation from God, but will destress your emotions and empower a healthy life.
Practice Gratitude. In 1 Thessalonians 5:18, Paul exhorts believers to practice an attitude of thanksgiving in everything. This is God’s will! It doesn’t say give thanks for everything, but in every circumstance. Gratitude is the attitude that God can bring out something good even from a bad situation if we ask. We can be thankful keeping our eyes on Him who is able to do above and beyond what we could ask or think. Gratitude is keeping God’s love, truth, and power ever before us rather than what is hurtful or impossible for us to change. Gratitude for all that He has given you will destress emotions plagued with lack and loss as you dare to see Him as the unfailing Shepherd and author of your faith.
Practice the way of love. Research shows that love is a shield against stress. Love isn’t a mere feeling, but a fundamental, emotional, psychological, and spiritual force that empowers wellbeing. Love is known to help you engage new perspectives, find creative solutions to your problems, and is a vital key to healing, especially in the midst of painful experiences.
Love is known to help reduce blood pressure and act as a shield against disease. It empowers endurance in the midst of struggles and releases “happy chemicals” in the brain such as dopamine and oxytocin which promotes trust and connection in bonding with others. Love makes you feel better, and can actually change the structure in your brain. No wonder Scripture says that the whole of God’s laws are summed up in love – loving God, others, and ourselves is a super de-stressor. Love seeks to understand others in the midst of conflict, accepting and forgiving mistakes, allowing others to change as you, too, allow God to change you. Love helps you establish healthy boundaries rather than fleshly walls. Love empowers hope, joy, and peace. Love keeps you in faith for faith operates through love.
One of my favorite scriptures is Jude 1:21 – “Keep yourselves in the love of God…”
Seeking God’s guidance, forgiving offenses, being thankful, and cultivating a attitude of love are important keys to health in spirit, soul, and body. They will also help you keep confident in the midst of life’s battles.
