Editor’s Note: The following is an excerpt from Don Colbert’s book, The Bible Cure for Stress, published by Charisma House.
Believe it or not, you can live a life that is free of the negative effects of stress. God actually promises a way to have a peaceful, happy mind no matter how stressful your circumstances. The prophet declared to God, “You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You.” (Isa. 26:3, NKJV)
The Bible provides a strategy for living free from the negative effects associated with stress. You can live in God’s wonderful peace every day of your life no matter what disappointments you face, what pressures you must endure and no matter how many difficult, stressful circumstances surround your life.
It almost sounds too good to be true; but it’s not. Take a look at some strategies from the Bible that promise peace—no matter what!
Renewing Your Mind
Not everyone experiences the same stress reactions to the same life events. For one person, speaking in front of a large group feels like a fun challenge, but it makes another individual a nervous wreck. If one person’s relaxation is another person’s stress, then circumstances are not the sole cause of stress. Your individual perception of the events in your life plays a vital role in your experience of stress as well.
Therefore, a powerful strategy for conquering stress is to deal with the roots of stress in your own life by beginning to change your own perceptions and reactions to circumstances. This powerful strategy is taken directly from the Bible. The apostle Paul declared:
“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will know what God wants you to do, and you will know how good and pleasing and perfect his will really is.” (Rom. 12:2).
With God’s help, we can develop new, less stressful ways of thinking. Doing so, in fact, is a command from God’s Word. It says, “Be renewed in the spirit of your mind” (Eph. 4:23, NKJV).
Renewing the mind is nothing more than breaking the thought patterns and ways of thinking and perceiving life’s circumstances that cause us stress. I call these stressful patterns “stinking thinking.”
Don’t let a mountain of stress avalanche down upon your life and health. There’s so much you can do to conquer that mountain and rise to the top. God never intended for stress to rob your life of happiness and peace.
Why not determine right now to begin implementing these mental strategies for conquering stress:
- Practice time management
- Reject perfectionism and unrealistic expectations
- Reject rigid words
- Just say no
- Learn to delegate
Living stressed out is not God’s best for you. His wonderful Word says:
“Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank Him for all He has done. If you do this, you will experience God’s peace, which is far more wonderful than the human mind can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 4:6-7)
With God’s help and some wise strategies, you can develop entirely new, stress-free ways of living your life.
Don Colbert, M.D., is board certified in family practice and specializes in nutritional therapies. He has his own practice and has helped thousands of people discover the joy of walking in divine health.
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