When stress gets to you.

This week is shaping up to be an extremely busy and stressful one. I have my trial HSC exams next week and up to this point I've been busy doing assessments and haven't really had much chance to study. I've done my best with my time, but the question remains: what if it isn't enough? What if I don't get time to study everything I need to? What if the essay questions are terrible? What if my music performances fall apart on Wednesday? What if? How can I know?

Stress is a powerful force, it can be helpful (it's certainly a good motivator), but it can also be very harmful.

So what should my response be to stress according to the bible?

1 Peter 5:6-7

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.

Humility

I have to say, it's nice to go well in exams. It's nice to see that you've done a good job at something. And it's also nice to get puffed up about those things - but that isn't good. It is sinful.

What I need to realise is that all I can do is my best. The rest is up to God. Nothing I do can make me go better, what I'm called to do is just to trust God.

That's pretty humbling. It's not about me, and it's not about my effort, it's about God, and its all for his glory. God is mighty, and he will achieve his perfect plan, so we don't need to stress about all this stuff. Just trust God.

Cast all your anxiety on him.

This is tied to being humble. We trust God, and therefore we trust him with our anxieties. We trust him with our stress. We pray for his help, we spend time honouring him and learning about him (even though that time could go into studying) and then we use our time wisely to honour him as well.

God loves us, and he cares for us. He calls us to cast our anxiety on him - You and I don't need to carry it on our own. God knows what we face and what we are struggling with and he wants us to trust him enough to cast it on him.

Don't get weighed down with the things of the world. Trust God, be humble and cast all your anxiety on him - he cares for you.

What are you anxious about? 

God is strong enough to deal with it and he is good. Cast t all on him.

God Bless!
Nat.

P.s. Prayers would be greatly appreciated over the next few weeks!