With all the weight and burden that life throws away, it's pretty easy to get stressed. Nowadays, stress is seen to be a norm in society and is often correlated with productivity. People often think that when you're stressed, you're better off because it means you're doing a lot of things.
What does the Bible tell us about stress? As true as it is that God wants us to be proactive and productive, I refuse to believe that God wants you to be stressed. Merriam-Webster's defines stress as "something that causes strong feelings of worry or anxiety." But the Bible makes it very clear that we are not to worry.
If you're the person who frequently worries and is chronically stressed, please don't beat yourself up and feel bad because that's just going to get you more stressed! However, it's important that you know that stress, worry, anxiety was never God's original plan for you.
Yes, God allows challenges, circumstances and suffering to come, but His word promises us that God will and has already provided you with a way out.
God never promised that our life will be free of stressors and problems. He has promised, however, that if we remain in Him, He will remain in us, and that He will be a firm foundation that will help us withstand any storm and trial that comes our way.
Here are some scriptures in the Bible that tell us of the freedom we have from worry and stress:
1. Philippians 4:6. "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God."
2. Hebrews 13:5-6. "Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, "Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you." So we say with confidence,"The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?"
3. Matthew 11:28-30. "Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, 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. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light" ().
4. Romans 8:31. "If God is for us, who can be against us?"
5. 1 John 4:18. "There is no fear in love but perfect love drives out fear, for fear has a torment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love"
6. John 19:30. "When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit."
7. Romans 8:28. "And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who[a]have been called according to his purpose."
