Stress Management

ARE YOU UNDER PRESSURE AND EXPERIENCING STRESS?
DO YOU HAVE LESS ENERGY AND MORE HEALTH PROBLEMS?

Stress results from responding the wrong way to necessary pressures. Developing wrong habits of response makes many unnecessary pressures come about. These pressures, in turn, encourage more bad habits. Perhaps you are caught in this downward cycle of stress and more stress without even realizing what wrong responses you are making to your pressures. There are three interrelated approaches to identifying these wrong responses: physical, mental, and spiritual.

THE PHYSICAL APPROACH TO STRESS

Take Care of Your Body With Good Diet (Romans 12:1). To develop the physical health you need to help deal with pressure, go off sugar and white flour. Instead of these, eat honey and whole grains, reduce salt intake, and increase fiber intake by eating celery, carrots, apples, and/or bran every day.

Good breakfast examples: Whole-wheat toast, fruit or juice, oatmeal. Avoid cereals that contain sugar. Another one is boiled or poached eggs, grits, whole-wheat toast, fruit or juice. Or you could serve cornbread or whole-wheat pancakes with honey or molasses.

Good main-meal tips: Eat whole-wheat bread, rice, and noodles, eat less french fries and mashed potatoes. Use only fresh or frozen vegetables, not canned if possible. Serve raw or lightly cooked vegetables in a steamer or pressure cooker. Do not boil them in a lot of water. Do not fry food if possible. Only bake, broil or grill. Serve more vegetable protein such as beans and brown rice and lean animal protein. If you do use animal protein, follow these suggestions: chicken, fish with fins and scales like tuna fish, lean beef, and avoid pork.

Food Supplementation. When you are under stress your body consumes large amounts of B-Complex and Vitamin C. Therefore, we feel that food supplementation would be helpful in dealing with stress. Whole natural food supplements deliver the most nutrition for the body.

I have found SHAKLEE to be the highest quality. NUTRILITE, SCHIFF and top of the line health food store vitamins are good also. The following regimen may be appropriate:

General Vitamin and Mineral Supplement: One tablet each meal. It should contain all of the FDA's minimum daily requirements in balance in a completely natural form. Add natural vitamins as needed by recommendation of a holistic Doctor or Nutritionist.

Eat together as a family as much as possible. Also, eat a big breakfast, medium-sized lunch, and a light dinner. Drink plenty of water between meals. Do not skip breakfast. Regular exercise is vital for dissipating accumulated effects of stress in the body.

Get sufficient sleep each night by going to bed early and getting up early. Every hour of sleep before midnight is worth two hours of sleep after midnight.

THE CHRISTIAN MENTAL APPROACH TO STRESS

To develop the mental health necessary to deal with stress, choose to respond the right way to pressure with a loving lifestyle. Eliminate unnecessary pressures by making a commitment to practice these Biblical principles of how to love your neighbor.

Pray over and organize your day (Proverbs 3:5-8). Make the best of your time (Ephesians 5:16) by concentrating on the vital few activities first. Put off the trivial many until later. When listening to music, use Christian, classical, or easy listening music to soothe the nerves. Avoid tobacco, drugs and alcohol.

Love God (Exodus 20:1-11; Mark 12:30). Change your priorities and put God first in your life and then your family and work. Respect God by eliminating speaking and listening to vulgar language. Take Sundays off to worship and rest from daily work and unnecessary chores. Do not get involved in any form of the occult such as following astrology, horoscopes, seances, Tarot card readings, Ouija boards, etc. (Deuteronomy 18:9-12).

Love your Neighbor (Matthew 22:39). Stop resisting those God has providentially placed in authority over you and honor their position. To have peace in your home: Husbands lead and love your wives. Wives obey your husbands. Make homemaking first to any outside work. Children obey your parents in the Lord (Ephesians 5:22-6:2).

Humble yourself and choose to forgive your mate quickly and all others who humiliate and offend you (Matthew 6:14-15). Do not plan revenge, but pray for and bless your enemies. Learn to release anger constructively to confront and solve problems, not destructively by losing your temper or brooding in silence (Ephesians 4:26-32).

Screen out violent and vulgar television programs. Brush aside sexually tempting thoughts and pictures that lead to sex outside of marriage with all its stress of guilt, fear and disease (Matthew 5:28; Phil. 4:8).

Be honest and eliminate all forms of lying, stealing and cheating (Exodus 20:14-17). Do not strive to get something without working for it. Stay away from all forms of greedy materialism such as gambling including bingo, sweepstakes, and lotteries, etc. (Luke 12:15; Galatians 5:19-21).

Avoid selfish greed for material things. Learn to give and be self-sacrificing. Develop an attitude of gratitude to God for what He has providentially given you and be content (Heb. 13:5). Do not covet what your neighbor has. Avoid the financial pressure of debt by learning to live within your income. Tithe, save, and pay cash for depreciating items (Rom. 13:8).

THE SPIRITUAL APPROACH TO STRESS

How to Deal with Stress Spiritually. Set aside a few minutes each day to read and meditate on portions of the Bible. Begin with reading the Gospel of John about the life of Jesus. Grasp the basic message that Jesus Christ died on the Cross to pay the penalty for sin, then He rose again to justify sinners who repent and change their ways.

Turn your life completely over to Jesus Christ and daily seek His direction. Be filled with the Holy Spirit to empower you to change and develop peace, patience, and self-control (Ephesians 5:18; Galatians 5:22-23).

Many have attended church at one time and now do not. Such spiritual backsliding exposes one to many unnecessary pressures and temptations in his spiritual and social life. Join and attend faithfully a Bible-believing Church and Sunday School class. Read Bible passages together daily as a family. Make these changes first in order to establish a solid foundation to deal with stress.

In Summary. As a counselor, I find many people get discouraged when they see all these changes that are needed. They have tried to make some changes before, but were never able to follow through. They realized they did not have the willpower to make permanent changes. This power comes from Jesus Christ (Philippians 4:13).

For problems seek Christian counseling from a local minister at a Bible-believing church.

JOE STURZ
Ordained Minister and Chaplain
MA Psychology, Ph.D. Christian Counseling
Biblical Counselor, Elkton-Shenandoah, VA
www.sturzchristiancounseling.com
joesturz80@gmail.com