Dealing With Stress at Work

I thought I’d follow up last week’s blog on work and worship with the subject of dealing with stress at work. If you work for a living you are no stranger to the stress monster. Deadlines, difficult people, physical and mental fatigue, performance demands, plus family concerns can all add up to your muscles and nerves being tied into knots.

 In his second letter to the Christians at Corinth the apostle Paul described how he and his companions faced trouble on the mission field. He wrote “For we do not want you to be ignorant, brethren, of our trouble which came to us in Asia: that we were burdened beyond measure, above strength, so that we despaired even of life. Yes, we had the sentence of death in ourselves, that we should not trust in ourselves but in God who raises the dead (2 Corinthians 1:8, 9).”

 The Word of God does not want us to be uninformed about the types of stress we can experience out in the world. Paul was “burdened beyond measure, above strength” he despaired “even of life.” Perhaps you have felt like Paul at times. But hopefully you weren’t worried about losing your life, maybe your job, but not your life! So how are we to deal with stress? How can we make our work an act of worship even in the midst of deadlines and performance demands? Paul’s answer is that “we should not trust in ourselves but in God.”

 The Scriptures teach us that Christians are not immune to hardships. But how we deal with hardships and stress sets us apart from the rest of the world. From time to time there will be stressful situations that we cannot handle on our own. That’s when we need to rest on God.  The Bible says “humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time, casting all your care upon Him, for He cares for you (1 Peter 5:6, 7).” Don’t try to carry the burden alone. Cast all of your discontent, discouragement and concerns upon God. He cares for you. He knows in advance what’s coming around the corner and He is already prepared for it.

 God will give you wisdom for all of life, including work (James 1:5). And He will grant you peace. “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus (Philippians 4:6, 7).”

And be assured of this too “all things work together for good to those who love God (Romans 8:28).” So keep your focus at work on bringing honor and glory to God in all that you do. Keep Him first in your heart. And finally tell yourself “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13).” Its true!