Don't fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns. Philippians 4:6 The Message
We had to consult a horticulturalist recently, concerning a plant in our garden. Not only had it dropped a lot of its fine, lush leaves but we also discovered that it had squishy growths on a lot of the lower branches. Instead of being a lovely lush ball of green foliage, you could now see through the bottom of the plant. I carefully bagged a piece of branch with its odd growth and took it to the native plant nursery for diagnosis.
The lady looked at it and proclaimed, "This plant is stressed. Something is bothering it that has caused it to lose a lot of leaves and now it's become vulnerable to scale!" "Oh," we replied, "Now what do we do?" She told us to spray it with white oil, give it some native plant fertiliser and water it well and it should recover. (That reminds me, I forgot to do the white oil!) Now we watch and wait to see what happens.
Isn't it interesting that plants can suffer from stress, just like we humans do. Stress takes its toll on plants, taking away their attractiveness, makes them vulnerable to disease and stunting healthy growth. Did you notice that it does the same to us. Just observe people in the shops, on the street or where you work; you can often tell the ones who have a lot of stress in their lives. Their bodies show it, especially the expression on their faces and drooping shoulders. Some are rude and cranky, some eat a lot and gain weight when they are stressed, others fade away to a shadow.
Stress is ugly and it affects our health. In fact many years ago I read that more than 90% of diseases have their root cause in stress. God knows the adverse effects of stress, and I believe that is why the Holy Spirit inspired the apostle Paul to write those words, "don't fret or worry". Instead we are to pray.... give our concerns to God and trust him to work things out. Don't allow yourself to be open to sickness by worrying. This verse in Philippians 4 goes on to say, (when you let God know your concerns) ..."Before you know it, a sense of God's wholeness, everything coming together for good, will come and settle you down. It's wonderful what happens when Christ displaces worry at the centre of your life."
We can allow stress into our lives in many ways; some things that will help to minimize or de-stress our lives are: spend time with God daily and read His word; pray and give him your concerns; allow Him to set your schedule and order your day, let Him walk with you throughout the day; keep your boundaries in place and don't allow others to 'guilt' you into doing things that you don't feel you need to do; make time for your family and friends and take time to relax. Above all, eat properly and regularly and get good rest; a poor diet and lack of sleep will stress your body. Remember too, your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, you are its guardian. Guard it well. If you need any more encouragement, remember Jesus' words "Come to me all you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28)
Prayer: Heavenly Father, forgive me for the times I've worried and not allowed you to carry my concerns. Help me to pray and trust you to work out the things that I worry about. Help me to live my life in such a way that it brings glory and praise to you and demonstrates the benefits of the Christian life to others. Amen
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