The Overwhelmed Challenge - Lesson 3 - Things That Cause Stress

In the late summer and early fall of 2014 the adult bible study group did a study titled "The Overwhelmed Challenge". It was the prelude to a much longer study, "Overwhelmed: Winning the War Against Worry". This is the third of the five lessons to that study. If you liked the first study they you will enjoy this one because it was the reason that we did the more detailed study. I recommend that you get the book prompted me to do these two studies, Overwhelmed: Winning the War Against Worry by Noble Perry. You can get it at Amazon by clicking this Link or the image of the book at the end of this post. Romans 8:28 (NKJV) And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. Last week we talked about the challenge of dealing with critical people causing stress and anxiety. We should ask ourselves when faced with a critical person and or criticism: How Well Does This Person Know Me? What Attitude Does The Person Criticizing Have? Is it condemning or Criticism  loving? Does What The Person Is Saying Pass Through The Filter Of Scripture? Context is important Is This Criticism Personal Or Shared By Others? Is This Worth My Time?  I used to try and fight every single ounce of criticism that came my way…and I realized I just can’t. In the end, we all have good things in our lives we need to focus on. So don’t spend your time fighting the critics, spend your time focusing on Jesus and the blessings He has given to all of us. He is the one we will spend eternity with in heaven, and His opinion is the only one that really matters. Introduction and Definition The dictionary defines stress as “physical, mental, or emotional strain or tension.” Everyone suffers from stress at one time or another. In fact, research indicates that children who live in a stressful home environment are at greater risk to become highly stressed by life’s challenges. Stress can cause us to do things we would not normally do or cause us to shut down completely. Anything that causes stress is called a “stressor.” Stress can be caused by either processive stressors or systemic stressors. Processive stressors are those that elicit what is called the “fight or flight” reaction. Systemic stressors are our bodies’ automatic physiological responses to stress. Stress takes its toll on all of us to varying degrees, and how we deal with it depends in large part on who we are. It is no wonder that many days we struggle trying to cope with the stresses that come from our jobs, our health or family issues. God has created us and knows that, because of our fallen natures, we can sometimes allow stress to rule our lives. Stress of all kinds is a natural part of life Job 5:7 (HCSB) 7 But mankind is born for trouble as surely as sparks fly upward.  Job 14:1 (HCSB) Man born of woman is short of days and full of trouble. 1 Peter 4:12 (HCSB)  Dear friends, don’t be surprised when the fiery ordeal comes among you to test you as if something unusual were happening to you. 1 Corinthians 10:13 (HCSB) No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to humanity. God is faithful, and He will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation He will also provide a way of escape so that you are able to bear it. But how we deal with it is up to us. If we choose to try to do it on our own, we face a long, uphill battle that will not end well. The only way we can deal with stress is with Jesus Christ, first by believing in Him. Without believing in Him we are on our own, and success in coping with stress is almost impossible. Second, we need to trust Him and obey Him. Read more:http://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-stress.html#ixzz32jVTx3WP 10 most common things that can cause stress 1. The belief that I am in control of my life rather than knowing that God is in control of EVERYTHING (including my life)! 2. When I do not trust the people who I delegate authority and responsibility to and Stressed actually begin to believe the lie that, “If I want something done right then I must do it myself.” 3. When I know without a doubt what God has told me to do but I begin to listen to the “experts” who tell me that the very thing God has told me to do is impossible. 4. When I try to explain myself to those who don’t really want an explanation; they just want to argue. 5. When I refuse to take some time to disconnect and rest, claiming that the devil never takes a day off while not understanding that the devil isn’t supposed to be my example. 6. When I begin to take on the “Messiah complex” and begin to think about how much I need to do and how Jesus needs me rather than how much I actually NEED HIM! 7. When I worry about results more than obedience!!! 8. When I focus on the size of the problem rather than the size of God! 9. When I fail to share my worries and concerns and admit my mistakes to others for fear that it may make me seem weak and stupid. (The opposite is actually the case. Those around me actually love and respect me more when I ask for help!) 10. When I become unaware of HIS presence every single minute of my life! The starting point for dealing with stress is Jesus Christ. Jesus offers us great encouragement in John 14:1 (NKJV) 1 "Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. We desperately need Him in our lives. We need Him because He is the only one who can give us the strength to cope with the troubles in our lives. Believing in Him does not mean that we will have a trouble-free life or that we will not succumb to stress in our lives. It simply means that a life without Jesus Christ makes coping with stress an impossible and often debilitating task. Believing leads to trusting. Proverbs 3:5-6 (NKJV) 5  Trust in the LORD with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6  In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.  Leaning on “our own understanding” often means adopting the world’s ways of relieving stress—things like alcohol or drugs or mindless entertainment. Instead, we are to trust His Word as our ultimate guide to a stress-reduced life. Psalm 34:4 (NKJV) 4  I sought the LORD, and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears. David knew that by seeking the Lord and sharing his troubles with Him that perhaps he would find favor with Him. The Lord in turn answered him and calmed him down. Perhaps no passage in Scripture better captures how to handle stress than Philippians 4:6-7 (NKJV) 6  Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7  and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. The Lord tells us not to be anxious about anything, but rather to turn everything over to Him in prayer. Lifting our burdens and concerns to a holy and righteous God daily will mitigate or eliminate the stress in our lives Psalm 55:22 (NKJV) 22  Cast your burden on the LORD, And He shall sustain you; He shall never permit the righteous to be moved. Jesus Christ offers peace if we come to Him with our worries and concerns. At Peace John 14:27 (NKJV) 27  Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid. Psalms 118:5-9 HCSB  5 I called to the Lord in distress; the Lord answered me and put me in a spacious place. 6 The Lord is for me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? 7 The Lord is my helper, Therefore, I will look in triumph on those who hate me. 8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man. 9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord Matthew 6:25-34 (NKJV) 25  "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26  Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27  Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? 28  So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29  and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30  Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? 31  Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' 32  For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. 34  Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble. Jeremiah 29:11 (NKJV) 11  For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Please remember and be encouraged that His plans are greater than any plans we could have for ourselves. So don’t worry, God’s got this. Books on overcoming worry with the Word of God.