I will rest and not stress
I want to start this reading by sharing a very personal story with you. One of the enriching relationships that I have in my life is with my daughter – Sophia Adabale. As a matter of fact, we co-authored my 4th book together titled – Diamond Believer for Teens.
We do a lot of filming together and host the Diamond Believer for Teens interactive event. We have an amazing screen and stage presence together and we get positive feedbacks from what we do.
However, our relationship did not start that way; why, because I was always fussing on her and stressing on her saying “read your books, clean your room, tidy the house, read your bible and more”
Furthermore, we are so different, I am logical, structured, and focused; She is creative, free spirit and ‘goes with the flow’. Furthermore, when preparing her for the entrance exams into grammar school, I did not think she was studying enough for the exam and thought that was why she did not make it to the grammar school I wanted her to go.
However, my deliverance came when I read in Psalm 139:14-16 that God has already planned every day of her life. At that point, I left the choice of her secondary school in God’s hands, and I decided that I will rest and not stress. Five years later, she did very well in her GCSEs, she eventually went to a better grammar school for her A’Levels, was more spiritually matured, emotionally advanced and academically driven.
Question, which experience do you think was better for me in the five years in which she was in the secondary school that l did not want? The option of resting and letting God have His way in Sophia’s life or the option of me stressing and fussing over her?
Friend, the purpose of external pressure is to see how it can get into you to become internal stress. However, as long as you decide in yourself that by the grace of God, you will not be stressed – that will ensure that you are not stressed in Jesus’ name.
External pressures could be financial, health wise, relationships and more. Whatever it is, so far you fortify yourself, and decide that you will not be stressed indeed you will experience God’s rest.
I have discovered that the pressures of life are inevitable by stress is optional.
So what is the difference between stress and pressure? Pressure is what happens on the outside due to external factors e.g. people’s expectation, reality of your situations and the fact of your circumstance based on your 5 senses – however, stress is an internal conflict as a result of the gap between what your 5 senses present to you and what your inner conviction expect to be your reality.
Stress is a decision
I’m reminded of a saying by that “Indecision is also a decision; you are just letting someone else make that decision for you”.
Jesus encouraged us not to stress about things and fuss about life, see below
Matthew 6:25-34 (The Message)
25-26 “If you decide for God, living a life of God-worship, it follows that you don’t fuss about what’s on the table at mealtimes or whether the clothes in your closet are in fashion. There is far more to your life than the food you put in your stomach, more to your outer appearance than the clothes you hang on your body. Look at the birds, free and unfettered, not tied down to a job description, careless in the care of God. And you count far more to him than birds.
27-29 “Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them.
30-33 “If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.
34 “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.
Friends, the pressures of life are inevitable, but Stress is Optional. We must decide that we will rest and not stress
Rest is a gift from God and a promise from God ~ Hebrews 4
Decide not to be stressed but embrace this gift of God and receive this promise of God to rest through the situations of life.
This Blog is an extract of the book Diamond Believer which is available as paperback, audio book and ebook. The focus of this blog is Chapter 8 of the book. Withstanding the pressures of life.
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