Seven
Pile On Joy, Not Stress
PROVERBS 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and He will make your paths straight.
Stress. We’ve all given in. When things pile up on us, our immediate reaction is to—maybe unconsciously—stress until it’s out of the way, then make room for the next thing to worry about. It seems unnatural to go through life without stressing. Sometimes it feels like we aren’t worrying ourselves sick, we should be working harder or paying more attention. But we forget stressing is sinful. It means we don't trust God's plans. We may unintentionally follow stressful situations and problems first before God, trying to fix them before we save time for Jesus. God does not want us to live stressed and worried all the time. He wants us to trust Him. Stress is a hit from the enemy, and if you stay stressed, you will not feel the fullness of God in your life. He designed you to live a happy, prosperous life full of joy. When you feel stressed, pray and confess it all to God: “Lord, I know things are hard right now. I’m so stressed, and don’t see a way out. But I know You see the bigger picture, and You are working miracles in my life faster and larger than life. I know I will get through this, not only surviving but also thriving I am Yours, O Savior. I no longer take ownership of the stress, which used to attack me. I do; however, take ownership of the love and healing that comes from Your hands.”
Stress roots from not trusting God and instead relying on our own strength, which invites nerves and doubts into our thoughts. After doing this, we soon realize soon it cannot be done without help. We may unintentionally follow stressful situations and problems first before God, trying to fix them before we save time for Jesus. God does not want us to live stressed and worried all the time. He wants us to trust Him. Stress is a hit from the enemy, and if you stay stressed, you will further separate from The Creator, who never designed you to be stressed, but live a happy, prosperous life full of joy. Today, remind yourself you are a part of the body of Christ, meaning you represent Jesus and are here for the purpose of lifting up others and showing God’s children His grace, goodness, and power. Go out and show Jesus through your actions. Show people how they should believe by showing them they way you believe. Show them how God delivered you from stress and how He can do the same for them.
Something great happens when we decide to let go of that stress. Well, first we have to decide how to get ride of the stress. There are many ways to calm stress, such as yoga or meditation, but the one true, permanent answer is prayer. Immediately after stressful feelings arise, submit them to God and ask Him to renew in you a calm, unhurried spirit. Ask Him to slow your restless thoughts. Many people disregard the idea of praying for stress to leave because our society makes us think stress is necessary. But God knows better than our society. He knows you can accomplish your dreams without stressing, and that’s why we need to ask for His help—because only He can take away stress forever. If you pray with faith and belief in God’s true power, you will notice a shift in your thinking, a shift from worldly thinking to Heavenly thinking, how God wants us to think.
And the great thing is God already has a plan for you that is much larger and greater than anything you could imagine. God’s vision is not limited, and He is bringing to life the incredible plans He has for you.
Do not allow yourself to cave into stress. You are better than that. Jesus never stressed, and His Spirit lives inside of you! God made you wonderfully and fearfully—don’t let your obstacles have the power to control you or make you forget that God is always victorious.
God is the only guidance you need. When you feel stressed, lost, or like nothing good will happen to you, meditate on God’s word for you and His plan to prosper you, as He promises in His Word. Don’t go searching anywhere else for solutions—God already has the blueprint for your success!
He always has a plan and wins, meaning nobody can even think of defeating Him or ruining the destiny He has ordained for you. God has your back! He is and always will be your defense! If you have God on your side, and you do, nothing should make you stress. It is your issues that should be worried, because they will never win with God fighting for you to win! You are to special in your Father’s eyes to stay stressed. God will put you where you need to be, regardless of the timing and location. If it is meant to happen, God will put it into place. Just wait and ask God for patience as He leads you to the right way. It will land in your lap—that grade, that college acceptance letter, that job application, it will all come to you when the time is right and the sooner you acknowledge that the happier you will live. And that’s all God wants us to do—live happily and wholeheartedly for Him!
When you feel stressed, try to convince yourself that you are capable of overcoming these obstacles: “Lord, I know things are hard right now. I’m so stressed, and don’t see a way out. But I know You see the bigger picture, and You are working miracles in my life more than ever before. I know I will get through this thriving.”
Psalms 55:22 tells us where to leave our worries: “Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you; He will never permit the righteous to be moved.” When you cast all of your struggles and anxious thoughts and other burdens onto God’s shoulders, instead of trying to bear them on your own, you will feel so much lighter, happier, and stronger, knowing that God is fighting your battles. He will not only sustain you and lift you up into a prosperous life. Let Him fight for you—cast your worries on His shoulders. God will never allow you to be moved far away from Him. He will use some situation to pull you back into His path and grant you discernment to remember His sovereignty.
John 14:27 says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” No matter how hectic life can get, nothing is too crazy or difficult for our God. He will always be able to give you peace and calm you down. Nowadays, we rush all over the place, trying to get all our work done. When we ask God to give us His peace, everything becomes still and we suddenly think like Him. His peace makes us forget all of our doubts and worries, and somehow all the work seems to just get done. God is taking the burdens off of your shoulders and carrying it all on His because only He can bear all of the weight. God will speak to you. Just listen, and hear His voice pouring peace, wisdom, and clarity into your soul. When we turn everything over to God, the puzzle pieces suddenly attach and there is no confusion or worrying. Don’t walk with a troubled heart. Let God instill His peace within you. Ask God for rest. This busy, chaotic world tends to drain us of energy and sometimes hope. Just ask God to give you rest and take the burdens of the world off of your shoulders.
Proverbs 16:3 tells us to “Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed.” It is vital to learn the importance of letting go and letting God handle our situations. Instead of worrying, trust in The Lord to bring you the solution. He will put you in the right places at the right times. He will put you with the right people. He will put you in the right position. As long as you commit to God and His plan, you can rest assured knowing that He will come through for you.
Romans 8:6 warns us of setting our thoughts on the wrong things: “For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” We accomplish nothing by focusing on the outside, tangible, and visible things. Our flesh is dirty but our insides—our souls, hearts, and spirits—and pure and clean, thanks to God living inside of us. He wants us to live a life by faith, not by sight. Also, He wants you to not worry about the outside details because He is about to do something for you out of the blue and work from within you. Just like Jesus tells us in this verse, once we put focus on Him and the living spirit within us, we will gain His peace and life in Him—which is the only way to live. God is real, and if we focus on Him, all problems fade into the background.
In John 14:1, Jesus says to us, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, trust also in Me.” Never let your heart feel heavy. When we do this, God grieves. Instead of sitting while worry and doubts destroy us, focus on the One who died for you—He didn’t sacrifice His life for you to sit around and mope or worry! He has you in the palm of your hand, and is taking you to the right doors. When those thoughts of worry, anxiety—”how will I get it all done? There is no way this is possible—and fear try to seep into our minds and hearts, block them out, command them to leave, and remind yourself of God’s power by saying “Jesus, your bigger than these thoughts.” Doing this will always make you win, because God always is and will be victorious in all He does. Let us lift our hearts to Him and cast our worries on Him, while He works on our behalf!
Proverbs 16: 9 talks about how God has the final say: “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.”
It’s funny how we continually worry about the future. What’s the point? No matter how detailed our vision or plan, God has the ultimate deciding factor, and He will take you where you need to go. This isn't always where we want to go, but it is where God will use us to become stronger Christians and where He will use us for His mysterious, perfect ways. If we notice God is opening doors that aren’t exactly matching what we planned to do, we shouldn’t fight it. He knows what He’s doing—He may even get you to that point where you want to go, but His timing may call for you to receive more blessings this way!
On the other hand, if we walk with God and notice our plans matching up with God seems to be aligning, but seem like it’s just too big of a task or door to walk through, that’s when God intervenes. He will guide you and your steps to the right doors and give you His strength to pursue His plan and destiny for you. Don’t ever look back and say, “How did I get this promotion? How did I get this far? I don’t think I’m capable of managing this higher position. I need to step down. This isn't what God wants.” No, thank God for His blessings! He has taken you to where He wants you, and along the way equipped you with His strength, courage, ability, and all skills to manage where you are at. He never gives us more than we can bear. Just keep going—you’re on the right track to fulfill your destiny.
John 16:33 says, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” Since God overcame the world, He already overcame every problem that you will ever face—even ones you don’t even know about yet. All the power of your obstacles died when Christ decided to save all of us by offering His life in exchange for us to live. And just because there will be more problems down the road, that doesn’t mean we should stress and worry about what we may have to deal with later—it means we should thank God for already winning the battle for us! He promises that He is bigger than all our hurdles, and that He will make a path, open doors, and do whatever else it takes to win the battle and become stronger in the process. Work on submitting all your battles and stress onto The Lord’s shoulder, for He is strong even in our weakness.
Faith Reminder
Pile joy onto your life by thinking of all that God has done for you and how much He loves you. Jesus has conquered your enemies, thrown your mountains into the sea, and formed a path for you even across the water for you to walk and thrive by His power and strength! He will fulfill all of your needs and make you whole. Take everything He has given you and ask Him to use it all in incredible ways.