stress

Keys to Stress Control

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It is a simple and obvious fact that the matter of stress control is dependent not merely on the amount of stress, but on the amount of the power to deal with it. A little stress can be fatal if there is nothing with which to deal with it. While a large amount of stress can be met if there is sufficient strength to deal with it.

God is developing a group of people who will go through the greatest period of stress that the world has ever seen. Daniel 12:1, last part, foretells it: “There shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation … and at that time Your people shall be delivered, everyone who is written in the book.” The great purpose of the threefold message of Revelation 14 is to develop a people who can deal with unprecedented stress. Verse 12 describes these people: “Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” They are patient, they endure, they do not wilt, they do not faint, they do not fail. They have the faith of Jesus.

God has a program to get His people ready. Ephesians 4:8–14 outlines this program: “… ‘When He [Jesus] ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.’ … He Himself gave some to be apostles, and some prophets, and some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers; for the equipping [perfecting] of the saints for the work of the ministry, for the edifying [building up] of the body of Christ, till we all come in the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, and in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting.”

God’s program is meant to get His people ready so they will not be carried about with every wind of doctrine, cunning, or deceitfulness. This program is designed to resist stress and to equip God’s people with the gifts He has for them. Ephesians 4:7 says, “But to each of us was given grace according to the measure of Christ’s gift.” That is immeasurable.

God gives us a revelation of His will in the Bible, which if studied and accepted, believed and received, will keep us from all the stresses around us. But to be of any value to us, that book must be of unquestioned authority. It is all or nothing, genuine or counterfeit, true or false. This is the way with every message claiming to come from God. It can either be depended upon fully and completely, or it must be rejected as a base counterfeit.

When Moses came down from Mount Sinai, he said that he had met God there. When Daniel wrote his book, he said he saw visions of God, the angels of God, the Son of God and what he wrote down was what he was told to write. When John wrote the book of Revelation, we find him telling again and again of his interviews with Jesus and Gabriel.

The men who wrote the Bible are either telling the truth or they are not. There can be no neutral ground. It is these gifts that God has put in His church to make us able to meet stresses. When we read the promises of God, whether we read them in Genesis or in the Psalms, in Daniel or Zechariah, Matthew, or scriptures written by Peter or Paul, if God is speaking, we are reading the word of the living God and that has power in it to meet any stress.

Think of promises like: “Fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, yes, I will help you, I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10. But if that is only Isaiah’s view of God, it is an awful offer to make to a poor, sinking soul. If what Isaiah wrote is the true word of the living God, then it is hope and it is quick, powerful, living, and full of help for every struggling soul. The power to meet stress all hinges upon whether or not we find the Bible to be what it claims to be—the word of the living God. And the greater the crisis, the greater must be the power to deal with that stress. God has promised to give us all the power of the living word of God to help in the ever increasing crisis into which we are now entering.

Let us look at the gifts God has given. He gave some to be apostles—Peter, James, John, Matthew; others to be prophets—Moses, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, John. The apostle Peter tells us that all wrote by inspiration in 2 Peter 1:21: “For prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.” This statement is either true or false, friends. We may not be prophets, but we can all read the words of the prophets, and share the words of the prophets. When we share the words of the prophets, we are sharing the words written by the men who were moved to do so by the Holy Spirit. If we believe all of this is true, we can meet today’s stresses and those that are coming. If we do not believe, we will be confused and terror stricken as we view the conditions in the world today.

Jesus foretold our time saying, “ ‘… men’s hearts failing them for fear and the expectation of those things which are coming on the earth, for the powers of the heavens will be shaken.’ ” Luke 21:26. But God’s people need not be terror stricken. When these things happen, Jesus says, “ ‘… look up, and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near.’ ” Luke 21:28. The very things that are filling the hearts of men with fear are the tokens of our deliverance, omens of the coming King. Why? Because we believe the Bible. It is that simple.

All of us, in the various experiences of life—physicians and nurses in the medical profession, parents in the home, teachers at school, missionaries in the field—will deal with many stressful situations that affect our physical, mental, and spiritual wellbeing. But God intends that every one of His people will be able to meet these stresses because he or she is solid in the word of God, knows and believes His promises, and finds them to be true in his or her individual experience. God is developing a group of people who can meet unmoved the coming hurricane-force winds of strife, because they are anchored fast in the word of God.

Here is a very beautiful and practical point. The Bible, which was written by men filled with the Holy Spirit, tells us that in the last days God will have a church particularly designated as the remnant who will not only keep the commandments of God, but also will have this gift of prophecy.

Revelation 12:17 says, “And the dragon [Satan] was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.” Satan was and is enraged. Sometimes he roars and is like a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and he always is seeking to devour the flock, to destroy the church.

What is the testimony of Jesus Christ? Revelation 19:10, last part, tells us, “… For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” It is this Spirit that spoke through the prophets such as Isaiah, Daniel, and John. The whole Bible is the testimony of Jesus. In these last days, the testimony of Jesus will speak again because of the remnant of her seed. Is there anything left after the remnant? No, the remnant is the end, the last of something. We find in Joel 2 and Acts 2 that God speaks of the restoration and manifestation of the prophetic gift in the last days. This gift is to keep the people of God from being tossed about and driven by every wind of doctrine. It keeps them because they believe it 100 percent.

The manifestation of the gift of prophecy in this movement is the testimony of Jesus, but how shall we know? Because Matthew 7:15 says, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” The first word in this verse is beware which means to look out, take care, watch. Don’t swallow everything, don’t accept everything. Verse 16 adds, “You will know them by their fruits.” We know if a prophet is true or false by considering their fruit. The fruit is displayed in the lives of those who accept that prophet’s writings. Do people bear good fruit if they accept the Bible as the word of God and follow it? What about the people who accept the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy? Have you accepted them in your life? What kind of fruit do you bear? Does seeing the fruit borne out in the lives of those who wrote and accepted the Bible and the gift of prophecy build confidence in the Bible and Spirit of Prophecy and loyalty to the law of God?

What about the great health program that God has given His people through His gift of prophecy? Is that good fruit or bad fruit? Has it done anything for us? Can we testify that we have found in the writings of Ellen White a healthful way of life that we know has done great things for us physically? But far more important than any physical health, far more important than any successful way of life, is what this gift has done to lead people to Jesus. It has given them a deep, sweet, settled peace.

One might say, “I know someone who reads the Testimonies all the time, but that has not made them happy.” There are many people like that. And some people read the Bible, and it does not make them happy. But should we toss away our Bibles and the Testimonies because not everyone finds happiness in them? There are people who have gotten sick eating food, but does that make us quit eating food? When someone gets sick from eating food, it likely is because they need help in proper selection or for some other reason. The answer is not to quit eating food, rather it is to offer help in knowing how, what, and when to eat. It is the same with the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy.

Testimonies, vol. 5, 675, 676 tells us: “Satan has ability to suggest doubts and to devise objections to the pointed testimony that God sends, and many think it a virtue, a mark of intelligence in them, to be unbelieving and to question and quibble. Those who desire to doubt will have plenty of room.” If I want to doubt, will God let me? God left us free to choose belief or doubt. That freedom of the will relates not merely to our actions, but to our beliefs. God will not force our muscles, neither will He compel our minds. “God does not propose to remove all occasion for unbelief. He gives evidence, which must be carefully investigated with a humble mind and a teachable spirit, and all should decide from the weight of evidence. God gives sufficient evidence for the candid mind to believe; but he who turns from the weight of evidence because there are a few things which he cannot make plain to his finite understanding will be left in the cold, chilling atmosphere of unbelief and questioning doubts, and will make shipwreck of faith.” Ibid.

Do you understand everything in the Bible? Do you believe it totally, or do you just believe the parts you can understand? O friend, believe the whole Bible from Genesis to Revelation. We need it all. “… ‘Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’ ” Matthew 4:4. We should be thankful for the living word. As you keep studying it, it will become sweeter, better, richer to your soul. And we can look forward to continuing our studies with the writers of each book for the endless ages of eternity.

Do you ever find any problems in the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy? They are there. But, friends, the same problems that are in the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy are in the Bible. Show me one problem, one question, one quibble about the writings of Ellen White and I will produce a similar one in the Bible. That does not mean that we question the validity of either one, rather it means that we believe both because we hear Jesus speaking. Somebody says, “Hasn’t there been evidence that some things are copied?” Did you know that there are some things in the Bible that were copied? If you compare all four books of Kings and Chronicles you will find that one copied from the other. If you read Matthew, Mark, and Luke, you will find verse after verse in many of the chapters that are either exactly the same or almost the same. Does the Holy Spirit confine Himself? No. The Holy Spirit is perfectly willing for the prophet to use truth wherever found. The important thing is not that the prophet who wrote it down originated it, but whether it is truth that originated with Jesus.

W.C. White, speaking of his mother, wrote the following in 1933: “In her early experience, when she was sorely distressed over the difficulty of putting into human language the revelations of truth that had been imparted to her, she was reminded of the fact that all wisdom and knowledge comes from God. And she was assured that God would bestow grace and guidance. She was told that in the reading of religious books and journals she would find precious gems of truth expressed in acceptable language and that she would be given help from heaven to recognize these and to separate them from the rubbish of error with which they were sometimes associated.” Praise the Lord for the gift of inspiration. Inspiration is not a matter of God dictating by the Holy Spirit the words as an executive dictates to a secretary. In the Bible we see the prophets being given visions and then left to themselves, aided by the Holy Spirit, to pick out the words they would use to describe the things they saw. God has used many different agencies, including the Holy Spirit and angels, to communicate His word. The important thing is that the final production is the testimony of Jesus.

Bringing all of this back to how it relates to stress, we see that it should make all the difference to us whether we are listening to the testimony of Jesus or whether we are merely reading the ideas of some human being. Test and prove for yourself that the Bible is the voice of Jesus to your soul, and therefore, you will find peace and help, comfort and assurance in the promises contained therein, as well as the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy, for both are inspired by the Holy Spirit.

Someone may be thinking, isn’t the Bible enough? Yes, the Bible is enough. In fact, the Bible itself teaches that the ten commandments are enough. Ecclesiastes 12:13: “Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God, and keep His commandments, for this is man’s all.” Genesis to Revelation is an expansion of the law and in the writings of the Spirit of Prophecy we have the divine magnifying glass upon the whole Bible. Thank God for all the help He has given us. He tells us that He will, by His mercy, bring us back onto the path if we will follow Him, and this should cause us to rejoice. What leads to the Bible leads to Christ and obedience to the law. The fruit of it is a people made ready for the coming of the Lord.

Every promise in the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy is a beautiful, personal promise from Jesus with your name on it. Will you take the promises of God found in the Bible and the Spirit of Prophecy and claim them and prove them as your own? Will you thank God for them? Jesus says, “And try Me now in this … if I will open for you the windows of heaven and pour for you such a blessing that there will not be room enough to receive it.” Malachi 3:10, last part. We must not ask only for what we need or want; we must ask for what He promises, believing that God will do all that He has promised to do and thank Him for His wonderful love.

When we need help in knowing that the Bible is God’s word, in knowing that the Spirit of Prophecy is the testimony of Jesus, or in knowing how to claim these promises for ourselves, God will help us. With His help we will meet all the stresses of daily life, the increasing stresses of tomorrow, next week, next month, and we will be made ready to meet the great stresses of the closing conflict and to stand with the Lamb on Mount Zion, triumphant over all that the enemy has brought against us.

Elder W. D. Frazee studied the Medical Missionary Course at the College of Medical Evangelists in Loma Linda, California. He was called to Utah as a gospel medical evangelist. During the Great Depression, when the church could not afford to hire any assistants, Elder Frazee began inviting professionals to join him as volunteers. Thus began a faith ministry that would become the foundation for the establishment of the Wildwood Medical Missionary Institute in 1942. He believed that each person is unique, specially designed by the Lord, of infinite value, and has a special place and mission in this world which only he or she can fill. His life followed this principle and encouraged others to do the same.

Health – Toxic Drugs Not Needed to Relieve Stress

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The vast majority of American adults say they feel anxiety or stress – every day. As one of the most stressed nations on earth, it’s time to start taking a serious look at the connection between chronic stress and the immune system.

What do we already know about chronic stress? We know it has a significant unwanted impact on your immune system. An overview of studies surrounding stress and the immune system shows a link between stress and how the immune system functions that goes back decades. Additional studies have found that chronic stress increases your risk of inflammation, and elevated levels of inflammation increase the likelihood of cancer and heart disease.

When you’re feeling stressed out, depressed, or lonely, you shouldn’t be surprised if you end up getting physically sick.

Chronic mental stress is a big threat to your future health, according to many studies

Back in the 1980s, an immunologist and psychologist found it intriguing to see studies linking stress to infection. They went on to do their own study on medical students, discovering that the stress of three-day exams decreased the students’ immunity.

Since then, hundreds of studies have been done on the links between stress and health. Those studies have revealed unique patterns. When people experienced stress for a significant duration of time, their immunity went downhill, leading to the conclusion that too much stress can wreak havoc on the immune system.

How does stress affect your immune system? It triggers chemical reactions in the body, releasing the stress hormone cortisol, which can decrease white blood cells. Keep in mind, white blood cells are designed to help us with infections.

Researchers also discovered that individuals who are already sick or older are at a greater risk of stress-related immune dysfunction. In aging adults, even mild depression may suppress their immune system. Some experts even believe that stress may be responsible for up to 90% of all diseases and illnesses, including the big ones like heart disease and cancer.

Chronic stress also increases the risk of inflammation – which increases the rate of tissue damage and infection risk. The effects of stress tend to be cumulative, which means that every-day stress may eventually lead to serious health problems. Unfortunately, the only “solution” that Western medicine offers is a toxic drug, that only adds to stress – especially in the liver!

Your state of mind and how you respond to stressful situations dramatically influences the development of disease or wellbeing. But if you’re dealing with chronic stress, there’s something you can do to help your body fight it more effectively.

New research conducted by the University of Konstanz psychologists and published in the journal Scientific Reports discovered that giving yourself a few minutes of downtime boosts both physical and mental relaxation significantly. And surprisingly, it only takes ten minutes to see the positive effects!

According to this new research, just ten minutes of massage resulted in higher levels of physiological and psychological relaxation in individuals. And it wasn’t just massage.

Taking ten minutes to rest also increased relaxation, although not quite as much as massage did. This is the first solid indication that even short-term relaxation may reduce stress on both a physical and mental level by boosting the parasympathetic nervous system, which is the body’s main engine for relaxation.

This study shows that massage, and even rest, boosts the parasympathetic nervous system, also resulting in less perceived mental stress. According to researchers, understanding relaxation, which is the opposite of stress, offers an excellent way to better understand the negative effects stress has on the body and mind.

The exciting thing about this new study is that it shows us that even short periods of rest or massage are enough to counteract the effects of stress. Researchers found that you don’t even need a professional massage to reap the relaxation benefits. Having a loved one rub your shoulders for just ten minutes or even taking a moment to close your eyes and relax for ten minutes can boost your body’s own engine of relaxation. Of course, when you add slow, deep breathing to the equation, it’s even more effective!

www.naturalhealth365.com/stress-immune-system-3574.html

While massage and rest are beneficial in reducing stress, “Let us turn from the dusty, heated thoroughfares of life to rest in the shadow of Christ’s love. Here we gain strength for conflict. Here we learn how to lessen toil and worry, and how to speak and sing to the praise of God. Let the weary and the heavy-laden learn from Christ the lesson of quiet trust. They must sit under His shadow if they would be possessors of His peace and rest.” Counsels on Health, 251, 252.

Restoring the Temple – Decreasing Your Risk of Disease

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God, the great governor of the universe, has put everything under law. The tiny flower and the towering oak, the grain of sand and the mighty ocean, sunshine and shower, wind and rain, all obey nature’s laws. But man has been placed under a higher law. He has been given an intellect to see, and a conscience to feel, the powerful claims of God’s great moral law, the expression of what He desires His children to be.” The Signs of the Times, July 31, 1901.

“In the beginning God placed man under law, as an indispensable condition of his very existence. He was a subject of the divine government, and there can be no government without law.” Ibid., July 23, 1902.

In outline form, we will look first at those factors that weaken the body’s ability to ward off disease. These are the habits we want to overcome or avoid. Next we will look at those factors which help the body ward off disease.

Factors Associated with Increased Risk of Disease

1 Certain nutritional supplements.

We do not have complete information on all of the nutritional supplements that might increase the risk of disease, but a few include beta-carotene supplements and large supplements of vitamin A. Beta-carotene supplements have actually been shown to increase cancer risk. It can also cause depletion of vitamin E. Large amounts of vitamin C and vitamin E supplements can actually favor the development of free radicals in the body.

2 Cow’s milk formula for infants.

Infants given cow’s milk formula are over 50 percent more likely to develop diarrhea and ear infections than infants who are breast-fed. With the development of antibiotics, we have become unaware of the dangers of cow’s milk for infants. In a 1930 study of 20,000 infants, before the development of antibiotics, the death rate for infants fed cow’s milk during the first nine months after birth was over 50 times the death rate of infants who were breast-fed. The breast-fed infant receives antibodies and white blood cells from the mother. Human breast milk is usually sterile which is never the case with cow’s milk. The mother’s milk can also help the infant avoid a deadly build-up of E. Coli bacteria in its intestine.

3 Use of cow’s milk by adults.

Cow’s milk has been shown to have a relationship to many serious and deadly diseases, including coronary artery disease, cancer, neurological diseases, allergies, and even Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Multiple Sclerosis.

4 Use of tobacco.

Smokers have twice the risk of colon cancer as non-smokers. Smoking one “joint” of marijuana does the equivalent damage to the lungs as a full pack of 20 regular cigarettes.

5 Use of alcohol.

Even moderate consumption of alcohol can significantly damage the immune system, making the person more susceptible to cancer and other serious diseases. As few as two drinks can reduce antibody production by two-thirds.

6 Excessive exercise.

Exercise to the point of exhaustion, as in competitive sports, can result in a decreased immune response by the body.

7 Meat eating.

Animal protein has been shown to be a cancer-producing substance. Women who eat meat every day have a higher risk of developing breast cancer than those who do not eat meat at all (over eight times in one study). Regular meat eaters have a colon cancer risk of about three to four times those not eating meat at all.

8 Stress.

People who are not coping with major stressors in their lives have a greater chance of developing life-threatening diseases.

9 Use of refined sugar.

Refined sugar reduces the ability of white blood cells to destroy bacteria. For example, one study showed that one white blood cell could destroy 14 bacteria before sugar had been consumed, but after consumption of 24 teaspoons of sugar, only one bacterium could be destroyed.

Factors Associated with Decreased Risk of Disease

1 Sunshine.

One researcher has estimated that regular, moderate exposure to sunshine could prevent 30,000 deaths caused by cancer per year in America.

2 Regular, moderate exercise.

Cancer deaths are significantly lower in those who exercise regularly.

3 Foods rich in carotene (pro-vitamin A).

The high-level carotene foods are those that are deep orange in color—such as carrots, yams, pumpkin, cantaloupe, apricots, mangos, persimmons, sweet potatoes—and those that are dark green, such as spinach, kale, turnip greens, broccoli, collard greens, and beet greens.

4 Foods rich in vitamin E

The high-level vitamin E foods are nuts, seeds, and the germ of grains—wheat germ, sunflower seeds, and almonds and the dark greens as mentioned above in the rich carotene foods.

5 Foods rich in vitamin C.

These vegetable foods include bell peppers, Brussel sprouts, broccoli, potatoes, tomatoes, and cabbage. Fruits such as kiwi, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, and citrus fruits are also
beneficial.

6 Foods containing natural chemicals.

Only a few of these phyto-chemicals are presently known, but if you use a wide variety of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and grains, you will get all of these chemicals—even the ones that are not well-known. The secret to helping the body resist disease is not in finding the protective elements in a food and mega-dosing on those through supplements, but consuming foods that contain a balanced form of many compounds. This balance will help the body, but the artificial use of supplements often unbalances the chemistry of the body.

7 Trust in God.

It has been statistically demonstrated that unresolved stress can both cause and exacerbate some of our most serious health problems, such as cardio vascular disease, cancer, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, hypertension, ulcers, and, of course, depression. God has given the answer to stress in Matthew 11:28–30.

8 Adequate water drinking.

Adults generally need eight glasses or more of water per day, depending on their activity and the climate conditions.

9 Cleanliness of person, clothes, and living environment.

About 100 years ago, Ellen White published the following counsel, which, if heeded, would decrease infectious diseases throughout the world approximately 85 percent (according to the estimates of some researchers)!

“Every form of uncleanliness tends to disease. Death-producing germs abound in dark, neglected corners, in decaying refuse, in dampness and mold and must. . . . Nothing unclean or decaying should be tolerated within the home. In towns or cities regarded perfectly healthful, many an epidemic of fever has been traced to decaying matter about the dwelling of some careless householder.” The Ministry of Healing, 276.

10 Adequate rest.

The exact amount of needed rest varies with different individuals, but the vast majority of human beings need between seven and nine hours of sleep per day.

Many people are looking for the miracle food or the miracle vitamin, mineral supplement, or herb that will cleanse the body of all problems and disease. “Miracle foods” come in and out of vogue. The secret of health and long life does not reside in finding the miracle potion, medicine, or herbal supplement but in following, in moderation and with good judgment, all the laws of health that the Creator has made and provided for our use.

Lifestyle – Trust in God — Our Greatest Need

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The mental health of Americans could well be at an all time low with a large number of people complaining of stress, depression, suicide and other health problems directly related to stress.

It has been said that 75 to 90 percent of visits to primary care physicians are due to stress related problems. Job stress, or lack of a job, is taking its toll on many Americans today. Our contemporary stress tends to be more pervasive, persistent, and insidious because it stems primarily from psychological rather than physical threats. It has been said that one-fourth of Americans report major stress in their lives. One-third of Americans report that they are mentally healthy, and the rest fall between major stress and mental health. These statistics could well be higher with the changing economic conditions of the last two years.

Stress is actually necessary for human growth and development and is therefore an essential element of life. It becomes destructive when the intensity or duration under stressful conditions exceeds the ability to react constructively. So, the effects of stress on mental and physical health can be modified by the way we perceive and respond to it.

The foundation on which all of the laws of health rest is trusting in God. Each of the other seven laws—exercise, nutrition, temperance, pure air, sunshine, water, rest—when obeyed, will function in the way that physical and scientific laws react with our body. However, when trust is coupled with the blessing of God in the other seven laws of health, it has a synergistic effect on both health and wellbeing.

God has promised that we can trust Him in all circumstances and at all times. The Bible describes those without this hope: “Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.” Luke 21:26.

When trusting our eternal security with the Lord, regardless of how bad these circumstances, our hearts need never fail us for fear.

“Be it known unto you all, and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God raised from the dead, even by Him doth this man stand here before you whole. This is the stone which was set at nought of you builders, which is become the head of the corner. Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.” Acts 4:10–12.

When things look bleak, be comforted by the promise given in Romans 8:28: “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to His purpose.”

When life seems hopeless and issues arise with those with whom we interact daily, either at work, in the community, and even in our churches and homes, pray as did David: “What time I am afraid, I will trust in Thee. In God I will praise His word, in God I have put my trust; I will not fear what flesh can do unto me.” Psalm 56:3, 4.

“Great peace have they which love Thy law: and nothing shall offend them.” Psalm 119:165.

The One Who created us and loves us with a never-ending love gives us opportunity to view every situation with a different attitude. Trusting in the promises of God gives us the ability to respond affirmatively to life’s stresses, resulting in improved mental and physical health.

Keys to the Storehouse – Character Under Pressure

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We live in a world of uncertainty with much pressure and/or stress. It is how we respond at such times that reveals just who controls our character; is it Christ or Satan? History reveals that during the Reformation, under almost indescribable persecution, Christ upheld His faithful ones, giving them the resolve to stand firm in their faith no matter what the consequences were. “The procession halted, the house was entered, the family were dragged forth and chained, and the terrible company went forward in search of fresh victims. … It was a reign of terror.” D’Aubigne, History of the Reformation in Europe in the Time of Calvin, b. 4, ch. 10.” The Great Controversy, 226.

“The victims were put to death with cruel torture, it being specially ordered that the fire should be lowered in order to prolong their agony. But

  • they died as conquerors.
  • Their constancy was unshaken,
  • their peace unclouded.
  • Their persecutors, powerless to move their inflexible firmness, felt themselves defeated.

“ ‘The scaffolds were distributed over all the quarters of Paris, and the burnings followed on successive days, the design being to spread the terror of heresy by spreading the executions.

  • The advantage, however, in the end, remained with the gospel.
  • All Paris was enabled to see what kind of men the new opinions [new faith] could produce.
  • There was no pulpit like the martyr’s pile.
  • The serene joy that lighted up the faces of these men as they passed along … to the place of execution,
  • their heroism as they stood amid the bitter flames,
  • their meek forgiveness of injuries, transformed, in instances not a few, anger into pity, and hate into love, and pleaded with resistless eloquence in behalf of the gospel.’—Wylie, b. 13, ch. 20.” Ibid., 226.

Compared to these heroes of faith, how do you respond under the little pressures and stresses of each day? We are told that all Paris saw the reflection of Christ’s character shining through the flames. These innocent souls forgave their persecutors in meekness with hearts that were turned from anger and hate to love and pity. That transformation of character is available to all who have that desire and ask. There is no limit to the witness of the one in whom Christ lives. Then, when times of pressure and/or stress come upon us, it is the character of Christ that shines through and touches those around us because He has been transforming us ever so gradually.

Do you want that character that will stand strong in the flames of hate and that will reflect Christ at all times? Ask for it! Ask for the Holy Spirit to come into your life and make that transformation. God is waiting for such a request.

“God knows you by name. He knows every action of your life. …

“God knows every thought, every purpose, every plan, every motive.” My Life Today, 291.

The above group of people had the Holy Spirit working in their hearts daily and when the enemy came in like a flood, the Lord fulfilled His promise in each of them. “I am with you alway.” Matthew 28:20.

What a fulfillment!

Father: I plead for Your Holy Spirit to take total control of my heart. Bestow upon me a constancy today that will remain unshaken and a peace that will remain unclouded through all the pressures and stresses in my life so that Your character will be reflected no matter what may befall me. Amen.

Stress, part 3

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In our last article, we noted that there are basically two ways of combating stress:

To strengthen oneself as a person in order to more readily resist the destructive effects of stress.
To resolve the actual cause of stress at its source.

Bearing in mind that there are many different causes of stress, it may be that a person’s stress problem will not be dealt with by simply dropping it into just one of the above areas. There may well be considerable overlapping. It is hoped, however, that a person of average intelligence should be able to prayerfully evaluate his situation and determine what measures need to be adopted to meet his case.

Previously we began to explore the first aspect of strengthening oneself as a person in order to better handle the stressors of life. In so doing, we dwell at length upon the importance of getting an adequate amount of rest and not overworking. To continue, we now need to consider several other modalities that relate to stress control and life-style in general:

Exercise

It has been rightly said that action is the law of our being. We all need to be physically active, but the sedentary type person who is under stress needs to be especially sure that he makes time for physical activity at some time in his day. Those in need of exercise should bear in mind that while stretching and twisting exercises and some form of moderate weight lifting may have their place, the best exercise for stress is aerobic activity, such as walking, swimming, or cycling. In addition to helping to dissipate stress and tension, this type of exercise also strengthens the heart and lungs and tones up the body’s oxygen delivery system. An efficient circulatory system is much better able to convey waste materials and impurities from the cells to the excretory organs. This will not only result in a clearer mind but, in conjunction with other factors, contributes to an increased energy level, which is helpful in combating stress.

The cells of the body contain minute structures called mitochondria, which produce a special energy substance called adenosine triphosphate (ATP). People who exercise regularly and sufficiently have been shown to have more mitochondria in their muscle cells than people who do not exercise. Often a person who feels chronically tired wrongly supposes that exercise will further deplete his energy level. This is not true. The best way to increase his vitality is to get up and start working out! The more he does, the more he will increase the number of mitochondria producing the ATP, turning his yawns and sluggishness into pep and energy.

It is not unusual for an overworked, under-exercised, and stressed-out individual to suffer from hypertonic muscle tension. This is a condition in which certain muscle groups become tense and wound up like a clockwork spring. Even when a person in this state tries to relax, his muscles in the scalp, neck, and shoulders, for example, remains taut and unable to fully relax. The best remedy for this situation is to go outside and engage in some physical activity, followed by a relaxing, warm bath. Another type of maneuver for dealing with muscle tension is to lie flat on the bed and physically contract the muscles in the arms and legs and then let them relax. Though this procedure is never as good as engaging in a more complete body exercise, it may be of benefit for someone who is trying to relax in bed before going to sleep.

The best and safest type of exercise is brisk walking, several times per week, for about thirty minutes per session. Gardening, weather permitting, is an excellent form of exercise and stress alleviator. These forms of exercise are very helpful as mood elevators, helping to overcome depressions.

Fresh Air

Fresh air is a vital weapon in overcoming stress. Deep, rhythmic breathing has a calming effect upon jittery and shattered nerves. People in the stressful throws of quitting cigarettes have often been advised to begin deep, rhythmic breathing when the craving starts hitting them hard. Coupled with prayer, this is a powerful means of getting them through an intense peak of craving. It has been shown that brain cells require about five times more oxygen than cells elsewhere in the body. A nervous system deficient in the vital element of oxygen is more vulnerable to the onslaughts of stress.

Diet

By far the best kind of diet for anyone, and especially those who seek to increase their stress resistance, is that which is prescribed in Counsels on Diet and Foods, 92; “grains, fruits, vegetables, and nuts.” Such a diet will provide all of the nutritional elements necessary for life and the challenges of living. Unfortunately, many subsist today on highly refined junk foods that do not provide the vital nutrition that their bodies require.

In addition to a deficient diet, the majority of people do not eat at the times best suited to meet the stressors of each day. For example, the most challenging part of the work day has been shown to be the morning, up until lunch time. Many individuals, however, go off to work in the morning with very little, if any, breakfast and with the false expectation that they will produce at their optimum. Regardless of how well they my think they have done, it is a fact that people who go to work on a good breakfast generally do better than those who do not. In the case of school children, it was shown in the now classic, Iowa breakfast studies of several years ago, that children who face school after an adequate breakfast did better academically and emotionally than those who ate little or no breakfast. Adults who eat breakfast have been shown to have better concentration and dexterity and are less accident prone than those who skip breakfast. It goes without saying that those who ate breakfast had much better resistance to stress.

One of the key factors in all of this is the blood glucose level. People who eat little or no breakfast, other than possibly some other type of sugary junk food, may have difficulty maintaining an adequate level of glucose in their bloodstream throughout the morning. Because junk foods are highly refined and usually contain a lot of sugar, they are very quickly digested. Their carbohydrate content is rapidly converted into glucose and released into the blood stream. This quick source of energy is soon spent, often leaving the individual as deficient in vitality as before. The rapid surge of large amounts of sugar into the circulation can cause an overreaction in some people as their bodies seek to restore homeostasis. The pancreas becomes over stimulated because of the sudden, rapid rise in circulating glucose and responds by secreting an excess of insulin, in turn causing the blood sugar to rapidly drop below its normal range. Such episodes of low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) leave a person feeling weak, nervous, jittery, and hollow inside. Apart from all of the other classical symptoms associated with hypoglycemia, the person is rendered much less capable of handling stress.

A number of years ago a study was conducted among a group of young women who had been placed on a diet deficient in vitamin B-1. The experiment finally had to be abandoned because they became nervous, irritable, intolerant to noise, and started having a hard time getting along with one another. While a person’s low stress threshold may not be due to a nutritional deficiency, it certainly does no harm to examine one’s dietary practices and especially ensure that he starts each day with a hearty breakfast.

Chemical Stimulants

Chemical stimulants never serve to strengthen the nervous system and fortify it against stress, even though they may give the impression of being beneficial. A degree of stimulation may come as a consequence of eating a flesh diet or ingesting a large amount of sugar, as is sometimes seen in hyperactive children. The greatest culprit by far, however, is caffeine. This chemical rapidly whips up the nervous system, only to produce greater debilitation once its stimulation has worn off. The usual response to this ultimate “let down” is to ingest more caffeine, continuing the vicious cycle of addiction and depletion of vital energy reserves. A physician friend of mine once described a very nervous and stressed out lady who visited his office. No significant cause could be found for her severe agitation until the doctor discovered that she was drinking a very large amount of coffee every day. His prescription was for her to go home and get rid of the coffee pot! She returned home doubting the credibility of his advice; but under the admonition of her husband, whom she had almost driven to despair, she quit the caffeine. Several weeks later she returned to the doctor’s office so completely relaxed and unwound that he hardly recognized her!

Not all stress problems, however, are related to lifestyle.

Relationships

Some of the worst kinds of stress are the result of strained relationships. In such cases, efforts must be made to facilitate communication between both parties in as unconfrontational way as possible in order to address the underlying issues. It may even be necessary to involve a neutral party to mediate between them.

During these types of situation, when discouragement threatens to break one’s hold upon God, it is crucial to cling tenaciously to the divine promises, believing that all things can work together for good to them that love Him and that God will not permit us to endure more than we are able to bear. (See Romans 8:18; I Corinthians 10:13.) If it yields nothing else, being locked into a stressful, hostile relationship is an opportunity for spiritual growth that may not have been possible on the sunny side of the street.

When subject to the stress of relationship problems, we should prayerfully search our hearts and honestly ask if the problem is not of our own creating. We may have to search our hearts to ensure that what we have said or done for the right has been done properly. It is also appropriate to ask if we are causing stress because of our lack of necessary action.

Quietly stewing inside over what others may have said or done to us is not healthy. This is not said to encourage anyone to passionately rise up in anger and defend a selfish interest. It is said, however, within the context of what Jesus Himself said, “If thy brother shall trespass against thee, go and tell him his fault between thee and him alone: if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained thy brother.” Matthew 18:15. If we are genuine Christians, we will not treat such occasions as opportunities to get things “off our chest” in an attempt to dissipate our stress; but we will ask God to give us the courage and compassion to not only redeem our relationship with the individual and resolve the stress, but to redeem them from a wrong course of action which can affect their eternal interests.

A lot of unnecessary stress and anguish might be resolved if such individuals were willing to honestly enquire as did the psalmist: “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me and know my thoughts, and see if there be any wicked way in me.” Psalm 139:23, 24. In the book, Early Writings, 113, Ellen White states that, “Many who profess the name of Christ . . . are not subdued by grace, and they are not dead to self, as is often shown in various ways. At the same time they are talking of having trials. But the principal cause of their trials is an unsubdued heart, which makes self so sensitive it is often crossed.” Individuals in this category experience tremendous stress which could be decidedly resolved if they were broken upon the Rock and were dead to self.

Learning To Be Content

While we should strive to do our best in life to the glory of God, the good of others, and the wholesome betterment of ourselves, we should ever remain thankful for what we have and for who we are and not allow covetousness to dictate our actions. Many people have pierced themselves through with many sorrows and burdened themselves with stress because they begin coveting the possessions and achievements of others. They get into the rat race of keeping up with the Jones’s and soon find themselves living beyond their means. The only way to resolve the stress that often overwhelms those who have trod this well-worn path is to stop seeking that which God has not called them to seek. Depending on the circumstances, it may require them to change their job, or to be content with less.

When we choose to cut from our lives the things contrary to God’s will that have stressed them out and robbed them of happiness, we may do so with God’s help. He understands each situation far better than we know it ourselves. “’Come unto Me,’ is His invitation. Whatever your anxieties and trials, spread out your case before the Lord. Your spirit will be braced for endurance. The way will be opened for you to disentangle yourself from embarrassment and difficulty. The weaker and more helpless you know yourself to be, the stronger will you become in His strength. The heavier your burdens, the more blessed the rest in casting them upon the Burden-bearer. The rest that Christ offers depends upon conditions, but these conditions are plainly specified. They are those with which all can comply.” The Desire of Ages, 329. We need never fear of doing the right and accepting God’s plan for our lives. “In every difficulty He has His way prepared to bring relief. Our Heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us, of which we now nothing. Those who accept the one principle of making the service and honor of God supreme will find perplexities vanish and a plain path before their feet.” Ibid., 330. As we make whatever changes are necessary in accepting that plan, we can become joyfully content with such things as we have (see Hebrews 13:5) and by faith rest in the assurance that all things needful will be ours. (See Matthew 6:25–34.)

Resolving the Stress of Guilt

In conclusion, we must never overlook the fact that many are stressed with a burden of guilt which they never can resolve in themselves. To all, Jesus extends the hand of mercy, presenting Himself as the only One able to lift the burden from their shoulders and their anxious minds. He alone is able to resolve the stress and inner turmoil caused by sin and exchange it for heaven’s sweet and lovely peace. Those who submit their lives into His keeping may know, even in the midst of a troubled world, the peace of God that passes all understanding. They can also rejoice in the sure hope of one day dwelling with Christ in glory, never again to know the distress of stress!

Stress, part 2

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In our previous article, we noted that it is impossible to remove all stress from our lives. What is more, stress is not necessarily all bad. Without some measure of this commodity, we could not prepare ourselves to meet various life challenges. The kind of stress that stimulates personal productivity and development without burning us out is described as eustress. On the other hand, the stress that exceeds our ability to cope with it is rightly described as distress.

As the body is continually being bombarded by everyday stressors, it is constantly adjusting through various physiological mechanisms to maintain its internal environment. This marvelous action of the body in keeping all systems functioning within their normal operating ranges is known as maintaining homeostasis. For example: if the body is subjected to cold, the surface blood vessels will constrict, causing more of the blood to circulate within the deeper tissues, maintaining the body’s core temperature and protecting the major organs from below normal temperatures. On the other hand, when the body is subjected to warmer temperatures, the surface vessels dilate, allowing the heat to dissipate, thereby preventing internal overheating.

We noted in our previous article that the body is also capable of making rapid and extreme physiological adjustments when faced with an emergency. This sudden response to danger and the threat of injury is called the flight or fight response. Under the influence of nervous and hormonal stimuli, the body’s internal environment is greatly affected as certain major systems are thrown into top gear in order to meet the emergency. While such excessive nervous and hormonal activity may serve the body well in an emergency, such is not the case if such activity continues long term.

When a person becomes subject to unresolved, ongoing stress, the body, in turn, reacts by producing excessive amounts of hormones in order to contend with the situation. This phase of excessive activity by the body to the demand of the excessive level of stress is described as the general adaptation syndrome (GAS). Long term exposure to this type of situation results in exhaustion and physical and emotional breakdown; and unless corrected, will ultimately lead to premature death.

We must now ask ourselves what must be done in order to prevent such a situation from developing, or to reverse, as far as possible, the negative effects of an already present situation.

Basically, there are two approaches to meeting this problem.

  • We must increase our ability to cope with stress, and
  • We must remove or reduce the source of the stress itself.

The First Step

The first approach requires that a person seek to maintain himself in the best possible health through close attention to his lifestyle. A person who is in good health is better prepared to meet the stressors of life. While this may not remove the stressors themselves, it helps us to more effectively meet the stresses and cope with them. A person who has kept himself in good physical condition is far better prepared to handle the stress of running for the bus than the person who has become a couch potato.

Much could be said about each of the approaches, as listed above; but if we will grasp a basic understanding of how adherence to proper lifestyle can help us in the battle with stress, we will have done ourselves a worthwhile service. Depending upon the kind of stress a person is under, he may find that lifestyle adjustments in harmony with the counsel God has given us may actually resolve his stress. For instance, a person may be subject to stress because the quantity and quality of his work may be on the downward slope. He may have gotten to the point where the harder he tries, the less productive he is. As a consequence, he finds himself under stress through concern of losing his job or seeing his business go under. The solution? Do the very thing that in this case would seem to make the least sense: do not spend so long on the job!

According to Ministry of Healing, 127, rest is one of the components of proper lifestyle given to us by God. Such information is not given to us by the Lord on an optional basis. It is a positive command to get rest. This is particularly important if we are consistently running short on rest because of overwork. For this reason, we would like to especially emphasize the importance of rest and its relationship to stress reduction.

God has told us, “The health should be as sacredly guarded as the character.” Christian Education, 183. The person who claims that he has to constantly suffer excessive stress from overwork in order to succeed is the person who needs to reevaluate what true success really means. The writer had a relative who operated his own business. He built a beautiful home and acquired many of the nice things of life. Yet the day came when he died suddenly of a heart attack, leaving behind his wife and three school-age children. That which in this life is termed success if often realized in this fashion by many every year in the so-called civilized world.

There is no question that God wants us to experience the blessing of good, hard work. He wants us to know the sense of satisfaction that comes with a productive and wholesome lifestyle. Christ was not a slacker, and anyone who truly succeeds in life will never do so while rising late and daydreaming at his workstation. There is a place for drive and initiative, but they must be exercised in moderation and controlled by wisdom. The hardworking producer who is truly wise will recognize that in the long run, far more is achieved if he will discipline himself to take a proper amount of rest. Not only will he achieve more at the time, but he will also do so without cutting his life short.

Lesson from Word War II

At the beginning of World War II, in a desperate attempt to produce armaments, British industry was thrown into top gear. It was supposed that if the average workweek were considerably lengthened, it would result in greater productivity. This worked, but not for very long. It was noted that production soon began to decline. As a consequence, the work period was extended even further; but productivity declined to an even greater extent. It was not a question of laziness or a lack of incentive, as their very hope of survival depended upon the output. It was lack of rest, not of motivation, that defeated their efforts to meet higher productivity goals.

Faced with this seemingly insurmountable problem, the government decided to drastically cut the workweek, allowing everyone more rest. The outcome? Production increased dramatically. More and better was finally produced in less time than was produced during the longer work period.

The factors that applied to a nation at war may also apply to a person in conflict with the stress of decreasing production. To refrain from overwork is not a disservice to one’s employer, to one’s self, or to our Creator. Taking necessary rest is the wise choice and will ultimately result in allowing you to not only a longer period of productivity to the glory of God and to the blessing of others, but increased productivity at the time.

True Faith

Further, “It is the very essence of all right faith to do the right thing at the right time.” Testimonies, vol. 6, 24. It is not the exercise of true faith to continue working when the time has come to obtain one’s necessary rest. There will always be emergencies or events that will arise from time to time to rob us of a night’s sleep, but we can be well assured that it is not God’s will that we constantly subject ourselves to the stress of overwork, living from one production crises to another.

At one time in their experience, Jesus told His disciples to “come ye yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest a while: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat.” Mark 6:31. It was the essence of right faith that the disciples demonstrated in doing the right thing at the right time and rested in obedience to Christ’s command. The Scriptures go so far as to tell us that “whatsoever is not of faith is sin.” Romans 14:23. We need to beware of the human tendency to play down the fact that in matters pertaining to health, it is a violation of the Divine will to fail to get proper rest. “Today there is need that God’s chosen workmen should listen to the command of Christ to go apart and rest awhile.” Review and Herald, November 7, 1893. [All emphasis supplied.] While the context of this statement is in respect to those who are gospel workers, it is not wresting the principle from its true setting in applying it to all people.

We are also told that, “He [Jesus] did not urge upon His disciples the necessity of ceaseless toil. . . . He tells His disciples that they will be unfitted for future labor unless they rest awhile. . . . In the name of Jesus, economize your powers, that after being refreshed with rest, you may do more and better work.” Ibid., November 11, 1983.

Rest is a Duty

When we are faithfully performing our Christian duty, we are faithfully working for God. When that duty is to rest, we are doing our appointed work just as surely as in our regular work. To be unfaithful in this duty will cause us to shortchange our Maker in future production and quality. We need to keep in mind that anything we do that decreases our ability to serve to our fullest capacity is something for which we will be required to answer in the judgment. At the same time, we will also have subjected our bodies to higher levels of stress, something from which God is seeking to protect us. Whatever is ours to do within a reasonable daily work period we are to do to the best of our ability, and then leave the results with God. It can be just as much an act of faith to close shop for the day with a multitude of things still to do and trust that God will preserve our enterprise, as it is to believe that God will preserve our business if we faithfully pay our tithe. God is concerned about our temperate life and is just as willing to bless us for our faithfulness in this area, as He is willing to bless us for returning a faithful tithe.

Some might view this as too simplistic and philosophical and not geared to the realities of life. For example, the busy housewife who is not only a mother, but also a home school teacher is seemingly never done with her work; nor is there a place to escape to where she can relax and dissipate her stress. There is also the work supervisor who has to follow people around to pick up the pieces and improve upon the mess that they have left behind, making it presentable to a customer who wanted it all done yesterday for half of its real value. These are but a few of the people who are faced with the harsh realities of life that include deadlines that must be met.

It is Possible?

This raises the question, Is it possible for such individuals to live temperate work lives so that they do not succumb to the stress of overwork? While on one hand there may be factors that seemingly deny the possibility of finding the much needed rest, we must ever keep in mind that there is the constant and unchangeable factor that all of God’s biddings are enablings. (See Christ’s Object Lessons, 333.) What may seem an impossibility from the human standpoint is never so from God’s perspective. For those who choose to do His will, “Our heavenly Father has a thousand ways to provide for us, of which we know nothing.” The Desire of Ages, 330.

“He [God] will change, wonderfully change, the most hopeless, discouraging outlook.” Testimonies, vol. 8, 12.

“Whatever your anxieties and trials, spread out your case before the Lord. Your spirit will be braced for endurance. The way will be opened for you to disentangle yourself from embarrassment and difficulty.” The Desire of Ages, 329.

It is an act of faith to so order our lives that we find deliverance from the stress of overwork and live within the moderate parameters of God’s design. Though it may seem an impossibility to accomplish, if it is the soul’s desire to be right, God will make it happen for those who trust Him.

“Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass.” Psalm 37:5.

A person may be under the stress of over-activity, not so much from his work per se, but because he is constantly seeking to cram too many things into his day. While his day may be packed with good and interesting things, the constant treadmill of one activity after another wears upon the human organism. As mentioned in our previous article, people can ultimately burn out having a good time just as surely as a result of the bad times.

In order to follow God’s plan and rest at the appropriate times, it may be necessary for us to learn to say, “No;” not only to ourselves, but also to others who seek to fill our lives with so much activity. This can be difficult, but we must learn to do it if we are going to obtain the rest and relaxation that we need.

Now another question: What do we actually mean when we speak of rest and relaxation? We should not take this to mean simply going home, putting our feet up, and relaxing in front of the television. The sedentary worker who is brain weary through constant mental activity needs to relax by getting outside and doing something physical. Working in the yard or going for a long walk will do much to clear the mind and strengthen the body. In addition, it will also reduce the stress level.

The person who has been physically exerting himself all day long needs to adopt a pastime that allows more chance for his body to physically rest and his brain to exert itself for a change. A person is much more able to go back to his regular work, refreshed and ready to produce, after having allowed his thoughts and energies to run in a different channel for a season.

Ultimately, the reason why God wants us to come aside and rest is not only so that we can dissipate all of our stress, but to afford us an opportunity to commune with Him, and as we do so, to cast our burdens at His feet. A life that has become a constant whirl of activity is a life that cannot effectively tap into the well of salvation or become firmly anchored in the Rock. Those who will be partakers of the latter rain and give the Loud Cry will prove to be the most industrious army of soul winners that the world has ever seen. They will know what it means to work hard for God, but they will also know what it means to have gone aside and learned to rest in Him.

Work that is Restful

Working unselfishly for souls is one of the most revitalizing exercises of life, bringing fresh zeal and vigor to the faithful laborer. Yet,

“while we are to labor earnestly for the salvation of the lost, we must also take time for meditation, for prayer, and for the study of the Word of God. Only the work accomplished with much prayer, and sanctified by the merit of Christ, will in the end prove to have been efficient for good.” The Desire of Ages, 362.

It takes time to effectually meditate, pray, and study God’s Word to the point that our work will prove to have been efficient for good. Therefore, each day it is important that we do not allow ourselves to become too exhausted to offer God no more than a heavy-eyed glance and a yawn. Those of this class are doing nothing less than shortening their existence for this life through the destructive working of stress and casting away all hope for the next life.

May we so order our lives that God can bring to us the same sweet release from the constant stress that we each face. As we rest in Him, may we find again the wellspring of power so that each day as we leave His presence we are freshly braced to meet the challenges of life. God bids us, “Be still, and know that I am God.” Psalm 46:10. Not only is it here alone that true rest can be found, but this is the effectual preparation for all who would be laborers for God.

“Amidst the hurrying throng, and the strain of life’s intense activities, he who is thus refreshed will be surrounded with an atmosphere of light and peace. He will receive a new endowment of both physical and mental strength.” Ministry of Healing, 58.

Stress the Hidden Killer

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There was once a time when the term “stress” was used mostly within the confines of engineering and was in reference to building design, as in the careful calculations that have to be made in determining how much stress a structure can withstand. More recently, however, the term stress began to creep into the arena of human life as it became increasingly recognized that people, like bridges, airplanes, and ships, can also “fall apart” if the stresses of life prove too great for them to handle.

Until his death just a few years ago, Dr. Hans Selye was recognized as the world’s leading authority on the subject of stress. When Dr. Selye entered the field of medicine, he very soon became fascinated with some of the more abstract and nonspecific aspects of disease. While examining and reviewing the case histories of patients, he would ask his professors perplexing questions which they found to be very frustrating and difficult to deal with. Selye wanted to know, for example, where the general feeling of unwellness came from that accompanied disease and why certain diseases presented themselves without any apparent cause. Unable to give any reasoned answers that would satisfy his inquiring mind, his professors and teachers would tell him not to ask such foolish questions. But Selye did not think his questions were so foolish; and in pursuing the answers, he was destined to discover the relationship of stress to disease, greatly broadening the horizons of medical science.

While working in Montreal, Canada, Selye began experimenting and documenting the effects of stress upon live rats. For example, he devised various means that would subject them to such things as the extremes of cold and physical exertion. Autopsies later revealed that as a consequence of ongoing unresolved stress the rats had developed such conditions as inflamed joints, internal ulcers, kidney and blood vessel disease. Selye found himself looking at certain disease conditions that are so often found in human beings today. He also noted that the rats had enlarged adrenal glands—evidence of excessive hormone production in response to stress. It was then that his mind began to ponder the question: Could it be that certain diseases so common today in humans can also be caused or initiated by stress?

Today, thanks to the pioneering research of Hans Selye and others, we now know that stress can indeed initiate certain disease processes and that it can destroy both a person’s quality and length of life. It can also produce a vague, non-specific feeling of general unwellness that individuals sometimes experience. We must bear in mind that stress in itself is not the only cause of disease; but it is a major component that, along with other causative factors, should not be overlooked. We know, for example, that cancer can be initiated or caused by certain chemicals, irritants, or even viruses. The body also produces a small volume of precancerous, abnormal cells on an ongoing basis, yet this does not mean that a person will necessarily succumb to cancer. If they live a healthy life style and have a strong immune system that aggressively destroys abnormal cells or harmful invasive organisms, they can successfully ward off the deadly killer.

As a result of stress, however, the immune system can become depressed, reducing its capacity to deal with carcinogens. When this takes place, the body’s defenses lose the high ground and cancer or some other disease overcomes the body’s weakened defense system.

As mentioned earlier, Selye discovered that many of his laboratory rats had enlarged adrenal glands. This was indicative of excessive hormonal production, triggered in response to high levels of unresolved stress. We might well ask why the adrenal glands should also figure prominently in the question of stress. A well-known illustration should help to answer this question.

Let us imagine that your cat, having just enjoyed a restful snooze, majestically walks across the lawn, feeling at peace and enjoying the dominion of her front yard. Little does she realize that her dominion is about to be invaded and her sovereignty challenged. Suddenly, the neighbor dog, having slipped his leash, bounds rudely and unannounced into your yard. Like some uncouth ruffian devoid of all etiquette, he propels his uninvited self toward the cat, announcing with yelps and snarls that he is here for “some fun” with Miss Kitty.

As we would expect, Miss Kitty is not amused. In fact, she is far from amused. In an instant, the startled cat’s placid and stately demeanor is changed. Like a lightning flash, she raises her hackles, shows her claws, and hisses at the bold intruder. As the dog draws closer and the situation becomes more desperate for the cat, she raises her shoulders and arches her back yet more. With hair on end like porcupine quills, the little feline is now fully prepared to fight or run for her life! Assuming that Miss Kitty decides that the latter option is the wisest, we see her hastily take off to find refuge up in the apple tree.

Later, after Kitty’s canine friend has left the scene, she ventures earthward to continue to go about her business, just as serenely and placidly as before. The threat has gone; the stress of the whole affair has now subsided; but it would be well for us to get the inside story of what actually happened in order to better understand how the adrenal glands figured in all of this.

As Miss Kitty spied the dog coming into the yard, her brain immediately interpreted this as a danger signal. As quick a flash, the brain shot nerve impulses down line, stimulating the sympathetic nervous system. This triggered a response in the cat known as the flight or fight mechanism. Sympathetic impulses passing quickly down the spinal cord also impinged upon the mid-portion of the adrenal glands, causing them to release adrenaline directly into the bloodstream, which greatly accentuated the cats flight or fight response to danger. This physiological phenomenon, also seen in humans, is a built-in lifesaving mechanism, allowing for a more ready response, accompanied by an increase in strength and speed.

As a result of this automatic and involuntary action, the heart rate is increased, increasing the blood supply to the skeletal muscles. In response, the arteries supplying blood to the extremities dilate to allow increased circulation to these areas. The smaller air passages in the lungs (bronchioles) also dilate to allow an increased flow of air, permitting the blood to become more rapidly supercharged with oxygen.

The metabolism is stimulated and increased amounts of glucose are released, providing energy-rich fuel. The pupils of the eyes also dilate to admit more light, and the coagulability of the blood increases in readiness to impede blood loss should injury arise. Other bodily functions not vital to the preservation of life, such as digestion, are shut down or greatly reduced. It is at such times, when the body is thus reacting to stress, that people find themselves capable of some extraordinary feats of strength and speed.

There is, however, another aspect of this same flight or fight mechanism that can prove counterproductive if allowed to remain operative for long periods of time. The problem is that long after the crisis has passed, some people continue to relive the event from memory and keep the adrenaline and other hormones, in lesser but significant amounts, continuing to trickle into the bloodstream. Though few people are physically threatened, yet with many, the stress hormones are just as readily pumped out when they find themselves confronted with other circumstances which they view as just as hostile and threatening.

For some, the overbearing shop foreman or manager in the work place can create a great deal of emotional stresses. For others, a quarrelsome or abusive spouse who nightly devours them piece by piece may be an ongoing source of stress. Home sweet home is not so sweet and not much of a home to many who suffer the devastating stress of such hostile relationships. In many ways, the short-term, physical threat that can be responded to by direct action may, in the long run, be far less damaging than to emotionally run the marathon day in and day out with problems that just will not let you outrun them, no matter how hard you try. It may be stress caused through relationships at work, home, or school, or in any situation that we face that is emotionally intense but which remains an unresolved difficulty in life. Whatever the cause, it is always there, threatening any moment to overtake you, overpower you, and finally to destroy you!

It is in such situations of ongoing, unresolved stress, where the flight or fight mechanism remains in the on mode. Though it may not necessarily show itself, or be acutely felt, it has the subtle effect of affecting you internally, keeping the system from working as it should. The chronic effect of excessive hormone secretion in response to unresolved stress begins, eventually, to break the body down. Energy decreases, resistance to disease is lowered, and the body becomes vulnerable to sickness and premature death, as Selye noted in his laboratory rats. How important, therefore, that we learn to identify the major stress factors that confront us and, more so, how to deal with them.

“God has endowed us with a certain amount of vital force. He has also formed us with organs suited to maintain the various functions of life, and He designs that these organs shall work together in harmony. If we carefully preserve the life force, and keep the delicate mechanism of the body in order, the result is health; but if the vital force is too rapidly exhausted, the nervous system borrows power for present use from its resources of strength, and when one organ is injured, all are affected. Nature bears much abuse without apparent resistance; she then arouses and makes a determined effort to remove the effects of the ill-treatment she has suffered. Her effort to correct these conditions is often manifest in fever and various other forms of sickness.” Ministry of Healing, 234

If we have lived properly and in accordance with Divine law and in harmony with the physical, mental, and emotional laws that govern our being, we should not prematurely exhaust this priceless endowment of life energy. Unhealthy life practices, however, and such factors as stress can prematurely deplete a person’s measure of this vital commodity.

The body is so marvelously designed and engineered by God that it seeks to function as economically as it can in order to preserve its own supply of vital force. After a person may have literally escaped from a raging bull or some other life threatening episode, the body will soon seek to slow down the machinery again. The excess adrenalin in the bloodstream is dissipated. The pulse rate and blood pressure come down and are brought within their normal ranges of operation. The same happens with all other organs or systems that were affected during the flight or fight response to stress. This act of the body in returning its vital functions to normal and maintaining them within their normal ranges is known as restoring homeostasis.

Stress, unfortunately, affects the body’s homeostasis. The long-term effects of excessive hormone production keep a person and some of his vital, bodily functions flying high. As a consequence, he uses up excessive amounts of vital force. Someone has likened this precious endowment of energy to a special kind of bank account that will allow you to make withdrawals but will not permit you to make deposits. While you have money in the account, you can withdraw as much as you want; but once it is gone, there is no more. So with this life and the precious energy that God has given to us to live this life. Sadly, there are many who have exhausted their supply too early in life because unresolved stress wrote too many checks on the account. It literally robbed them of life.

It is well for us to remember that not all stress is bad. We all need the stimulating challenge of life to prevent us from vegetating. If life was otherwise, there would exist no possibility of developing strength of mind and body and especially development of Christian character. However, it is when the stresses of life exceed our ability to cope with them that, as someone once said, stress becomes distress!

The factors, or stressors, that induce stress may well be different for different people. For example: takeoff and landing for a veteran pilot may be a routine part of life causing only mild stress levels for a few moments. However, should his poor wife for some reason have to take control of the aircraft, it would be sufficient reason to place her under extreme stress. On the other hand, once safely home again, it could be the stressful undoing of her husband to have him prepare a meal for the family—a task which under normal conditions would be routine and low stress for the lady of the house—while she retires to bed with shattered nerves and an aching head.

Several years ago two stress researchers by the names of Holmes and Raye developed a special chart that listed certain stressing life-events that most people experience at one time or another. Each event was given a score. The highest scoring life-events were death of a spouse and divorce. Other events, such as going on vacation, getting married, and changing employment, came lower on the scale. It was noted, however, that if a person’s accumulated score exceeded a certain point, they often came down with a serious illness within the space of two years. While this life-events chart is not infallible, it is a useful tool to show how excessive stress takes its toll. It also enables a person to recognize the importance of taking remedial action to reduce the stress level in his life if he recognizes that he has already accumulated a high score.

Thus far as we have examined this question, we may have looked in a negative fashion at the various stressors that confront us on a daily basis. We must remember, however, that many things that arise to challenge and may cause us stress may not in themselves be negative or unpleasant. The point is, however, all events, even the pleasant ones, draw upon our energy reserves and challenge our coping ability. According to Holmes and Raye, even birthdays notch up a few points on their chart.

In pursuing this aspect of “pleasant stress” a little further, we know it is not uncommon for those who really enjoy their work to push themselves to the extreme. They love what they do, and they do it very well. Promotions and pay raises just get them cranked up even more. Production climbs and soars, and there appears no limit; but given time, in most cases, they eventually reach a plateau. They push harder and longer; but somehow the production, instead of increasing, begins to decline. Though they may have enjoyed every minute, as the old saying goes, you cannot burn your candle at both ends. To be even more correct, you can if you want, but you will burn up your candle much more quickly. “Burnout,” a term that came into use well over a decade ago, applies just as forcefully with people who burned out having a good time as to those who burned out having a bad one. The simple reality is that in the first category, those who finally burn out and crumble under the stress of their job find that their good time ultimately evolved into a bad time. The relentless drive to achieve, the constant pressure of deadlines, enjoyable as it was initially, finally lost its lustre. Energy and enthusiasm ultimately waned and the production curve declined. The honeymoon had turned into a nightmare, and there seemed no way out. It is at such times as these that a person may look beyond and outside of himself for a solution; but in the majority of cases, he seeks escape through drugs and alcohol, or in some cases, even suicide. It is not only what we eat but what eats us that determines the length and quality of our life.

Whatever the causes and the level of stress in a person’s life, it is not God’s wish that he should lose control and finally be consumed by the monsters of his own or someone else’s making. God has a way prepared to bring relief. We will examine this next time.

To be continued…

Health – Conquering Stress

by

Riots and trouble, depression and guilt, hatred and violence, anxiety and anger. We live in a world turbulent with stress. How significant is this to our health, happiness, and success? It is a recognized cause of high blood pressure and of dysfunction in the immune system. Difficulties in any part of the body can be caused or aggravated by stress.

What is Stress?

Stress in the sum total of pressure converging on a person.

How Does Stress Work?

Stress works through the nervous system. There is an intricate electrical and chemical network providing communication within the different parts of the brain, between the brain and the rest of the nervous system, and between these and all parts of the body. For this reason, a great deal of good or harm can be produced by stress signals going around and around in circuits inside of the brain, the capital of the body. Because nerves go to each of the organs and all major blood vessels, stress can derange the circulation of any part of the body, producing a spectrum of problems from headaches to spasms.

As nerves communicate with the tiny endocrine glands, they can increase or decrease the production of hormones that circulate in the blood to reach and affect specific targets or all parts of the body. This “mass communication system” can affect all tissues of the body, with their 120 trillion cells!

Control Systems

There are three major ways to control stress. One of the finest ways of controlling stress is to reduce the input of stressful stimuli, pressures, and forces impinging on you. Many people could markedly reduce the effects of internal violence in the nervous system by not seeing, hearing, feeling, or vicariously experiencing the violence via the mass media, particularly by television, DVDs, movies, radio, magazines, and stress-producing books.

Another way to reduce stress is to focus the imagination and mind on today’s opportunities and duties, instead of worrying about tomorrow’s synthetic potential problems. Stress input can be markedly reduced by solving the problems of the past. From people we have injured we can seek forgiveness for violating principles of human behavior. After we have asked forgiveness we can go to our Heavenly Father and ask Him to forgive us. When this is done, the stress of the past can be buried in the deepest ocean of history. This will make it very much easier for us to have poise and concentration on the day-to-day living, for the Great Physician has counselled us, “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof” (Matthew 6:34).

Another way to reduce stressful input is by developing sensible mental and emotional hygiene. Instead of dwelling on the negatives of life and experience in our families, in our communities, or in our world, thinking and focusing on the positive developments in our lives will greatly reduce our internal stress.

A very potent method for stress control is to increase the coping power that we have available. This can be done in many ways. The finest, most economical, most available, and most powerful way to increase coping power is complete cooperation with Divine Power. United States president George Washington, president Abraham Lincoln, and many other great people of history have found prayer to be indispensable in increasing their power to cope with the pressures, problems, burdens, worries, and anxieties of life.

Reading biographies of great people who have dealt with similar problems and succeeded in life in spite of them is very helpful. Some of the finest of these practical experiences and case records of successful stress control are found in the Bible itself. There are such famous cases as Daniel, surrounded in a foreign culture in Babylon, David, chased from one cave to another by an insane king, and Paul, in and out of prisons for sharing the truth with a secular society. Mention could be made of many others. As we identify our situations with those of other people, and as we see how they made it in spite of everything, this will give us more faith, more courage, more toughness of spirit and mind, more resiliency of soul to stand up and go forward in spite of appearances. We too can learn to live by faith instead of by sight.

Many stress control methods that have some utility neglect the highest region of the brain, namely, the frontal lobe. The major portion of the brain, this is where such great forces as faith, hope, and love are centered. By building up this highest region of the brain, we become men and women of grit, gumption, and tenacity. These approaches transcend shallow quick fixes, and tend to produce more character than depression.

Support Groups

Support groups are very useful and valuable in coping with stress, particularly if the support group socially reinforces the truth. Placebos or shallow pseudo-solutions that do not deal with the root causes of our problems will fail in the end.

Often neglected in stress control is another major portion of the brain, the regions on the right side, dealing with the big picture, with music, and with art. Although singing does not seem to be very potent, in reality it is. When Martin Luther sang with lusty courage, “A mighty fortress is our God” (Martin Luther, 1529), he marched—with his whole brain engaged—with the Leader of the universe and the needs of humanity. Every step he took toward Worms echoed for centuries thereafter. This is stress control at its finest.

One time there was a dear friend of the Great Physician named Martha. She came under considerable stress because of her natural tendency to collect and try to assume more and more duties. A noble person of considerable talent, she neglected the finer dimensions of life and found herself in intolerable stress. Her sister Mary chose rather to spend more time listening to Jesus. This better way relieved her of unnecessary stress and sweetened her life with heavenly music—it will for you too.

Delegation of responsibility, appropriate time management, and other divide-and-conquer methods have their place in stress control.

From one point of view, the main difference between carbon—black, dingy, dirty carbon—and the pristine elegance of a diamond, is stress. The convergence of heat and pressure on carbon can produce the glories of diamonds. This is the finest outcome of stress. When we understand and grasp that the crucible of stress can produce the very finest of personality and character development, instead of fighting the process, we will cooperate with the great Designer, relax in trustful submission, and go forward in spite of feelings.

In this way, common people of common talents can become excellent masters of stress control. To participate in this process will require some real study, faith, and maturity. If we feel like orphans, slaves, or ciphers in the universe, the circumstances of life may appear unfair, unjust, and fatalistic, whereas if we discover by careful study of the Bible that we are sons and daughters of the King of the universe and that He loves us steadily, tenderly, eternally, then our outlook on the universe and on the world—on all of life—will be entirely transformed. The spiritual dimension of stress control is indeed ultimate.

In this, the age of computers, we know that the excellence of modern software is essential for the efficiency of good computer operation. The human brain is the greatest computer in the world, and its excellence, too, depends on its software. The software in our living computers will be the best if, in our life experience and in our study of the Bible, when we come across a promise that rings a golden bell in our lives, we will write it down, keep it, and refresh it in our minds and experience. We can become stronger, more flexible, more resilient, tougher if you please, to the buffeting stresses of life’s turbulence. For instance, the Great Physician promised, “Peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid” (John 14:27). A very good, and useful promise.

And again, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in Me ye might have peace” (John 16:33). These great promises are great pillars of stress control, and when we take hold of them, and understand them, believe them, and trust the Author of all good, beauty, and strength, our lives can reflect more and more that quality and serenity of peace that passeth all understanding (Philippians 4:7).

“Peace I leave with you.”

Bernell E. Baldwin, The Journal of Health and Healing, vol. 16, No. 1, pp. 4, 5.