{"id":4463,"date":"2019-02-28T08:17:01","date_gmt":"2019-02-28T14:17:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nafwb.org\/?p=4463"},"modified":"2019-02-28T08:17:01","modified_gmt":"2019-02-28T14:17:01","slug":"gods-remedy-for-stress","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/gods-remedy-for-stress\/","title":{"rendered":"God’s Remedy for Stress"},"content":{"rendered":"

Part five of an eleven-part series on \u201cHabits of Highly Successful People\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Habit #4 \u2013 A Successful Person Recognizes His Total Dependence on God<\/strong><\/p>\n

By Kevin Riggs
\n<\/strong><\/p>\n

I live my life over-scheduled and\u00a0I under-rested. I feel like the rabbit\u00a0I in Alice in Wonderland who, while running sporadically, says, “I’m late. I’m late, for a very important\u00a0date. I’m late. I’m late. I’m late.” If I\u00a0keep up this pace, it will result in emotional stress and physical exhaustion\u2014but I can’t help it. I need to stay busy.<\/p>\n

Is the busy lifestyle what Jesus\u00a0meant by the abundant life? \u00a0Is winning\u00a0the rat race what success is all\u00a0about? Is this how God intended me\u00a0to spend my time?<\/p>\n

God said, “Remember the Sabbath\u00a0day, to keep it holy.” To “remember”\u00a0means “to observe without lapse” or “to\u00a0hold as a present and continuing priority.”\u00a0The word “Sabbath” literally means\u00a0“rest” and the meaning behind “holy” is\u00a0“to set apart and teat as sacred.”<\/p>\n

The principle behind this command\u00a0is that God wants me to make\u00a0it a top priority to set apart one day\u00a0out of seven for Him.<\/p>\n

Myths Concerning Time <\/strong><\/p>\n

The problems I face don’t compare\u00a0to the stress and dangers the Israelites\u00a0were living under. They were in the\u00a0wilderness trying to survive. Every day\u00a0was adventure. Every day was a battle between life and death. \u00a0Yet, God told\u00a0them to rest one day out of seven. Obeying this commandment was a statement of\u00a0faith. It was saying: Lord, we are depending on You to meet our needs<\/em>. By\u00a0setting one day aside every week, the Israelites\u00a0were acknowledging that every\u00a0day belonged to the Lord.<\/p>\n

Is the way l schedule my life a statement\u00a0of my faith in God? When I try to\u00a0justify my workaholism, I usually argue\u00a0one or more of the following myths.<\/p>\n

If l had more time, l could accomplish\u00a0everything I need to accomplish<\/strong>. <\/strong><\/p>\n

If I am not careful, I will treat Sunday\u00a0like any other day because I am\u00a0trying to find more time to do what I\u00a0think needs to be done. If there were\u00a028 hours in a day, I tell myself, then I\u00a0could finish all my projects.<\/p>\n

Not long ago I had a revelation of\u00a0sorts. I was feeling overwhelmed because\u00a0of all I had to do when it dawned\u00a0on me: If there isn’t enough time in the\u00a0day to do what needs to be done anyway,\u00a0then taking one day off per week is\u00a0not going to hurt. \u00a0Since there will always\u00a0be more to do, taking a break will not\u00a0negatively affect the outcome.<\/p>\n

No one is as busy as I am.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Everyone has jobs and families and\u00a0hobbies and children and sports and\u00a0church and meetings. Everyone has the\u00a0same 24 hours per day.\u00a0 Furthermore, as\u00a0busy as I think I am, Jesus was busier.\u00a0Yet, every day He went off by Himself to\u00a0pray, and every Sabbath He was found\u00a0worshiping in the synagogue. If Jesus\u00a0needed a day off how much more do I?<\/p>\n

Being busy is importan<\/strong>t.<\/strong><\/p>\n

There is a strong temptation to\u00a0equate my value as a person with what\u00a0I do for a living. The biggest mistake I\u00a0can make is to think I am irreplaceable.\u00a0Once I missed a business meeting at my church so I could take my\u00a0daughter out. To everyone’s surprise,\u00a0or at least to my surprise, the business\u00a0meeting went fine without me, and\u00a0Katherine and I had a great time.<\/p>\n

I know God ordained work, and I\u00a0know working hard is honorable. But\u00a0I also must confess that being a workaholic\u00a0is a sign of my lack of faith in\u00a0God. Placing my value as a person on\u00a0my busy schedule instead of in the\u00a0image of God is an insult to God.<\/p>\n

I am too busy to take a break. <\/strong><\/p>\n

When I take one week off, I get\u00a0three weeks behind. But the busier I\u00a0am and the more hectic the pace,\u00a0the more important it is that I observe\u00a0the Sabbath. The more stress I\u00a0feel and the more exhausted I am\u00a0and the more depressed I become,\u00a0the more I need to keep the Sabbath.\u00a0God knew what He was doing when\u00a0He said to take off one day in seven.<\/p>\n

\u201cQuiet Time” is a waste of time. <\/strong><\/p>\n

Working seven days a week doesn’t\u00a0make me more productive. It does,\u00a0however, make me more grumpy. Too\u00a0much time may be the devil’s workshop,\u00a0but God did say, “Be still, and\u00a0know that I am God.” \u00a0Cicero said, “He\u00a0does not seem to me to be a free man\u00a0who does not sometimes do nothing.”<\/p>\n

Habit #4<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Fourth Commandment involves\u00a0more than where I spend a few hours\u00a0on Sunday morning. It has to do with\u00a0how I live my life every day. I believe this\u00a0Commandment is still a statement of\u00a0faith. Obedience is a declaration of my\u00a0total dependence on God.<\/p>\n

Thus, the fourth habit is as follows: A\u00a0highly successful person recognizes his\u00a0total dependence on God to meet his\u00a0needs<\/em>. The successful person demonstrates\u00a0his dependence on God by setting aside one day per week as completely\u00a0different from all the others.<\/p>\n

What should I do on this day? How\u00a0do I keep it holy? What are the benefits\u00a0of keeping the Sabbath?<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Relax <\/strong><\/p>\n

I believe this is the main purpose\u00a0of the Sabbath. \u00a0God knows I need a\u00a0day to rest from the routine of life.\u00a0Keeping the Sabbath doesn’t mean I\u00a0do nothing; it means I do things I enjoy\u00a0and find relaxing. Things like\u00a0reading a book, walking through the\u00a0park or going on a bike ride with my\u00a0kids. By taking a break, and resting\u00a0my mind and body, l honor God, especially\u00a0if the first thing I do on the\u00a0Sabbath is take my family to church.<\/p>\n

Refocus <\/strong><\/p>\n

I may rest through some activity, but\u00a0the way I keep the Sabbath holy is by first\u00a0honoring God, the Creator of every day\u00a0and every moment.\u00a0 Coming to worship\u00a0helps keep my life focused. Praising God\u00a0and hearing from His Word remind me\u00a0what is really important. Setting aside\u00a0one day per week to worship God helps\u00a0me focus and readjust my priorities.<\/p>\n

Renew<\/strong><\/p>\n

When I take time out to relax my\u00a0mind and body and refocus my spirit,\u00a0I become renewed and ready to\u00a0face the week ahead. Put another\u00a0way: Weekly renewal through relaxing\u00a0and refocusing is the fuel that\u00a0keeps me going through the difficult\u00a0and monotonous routines of life.<\/p>\n

Re-energize <\/strong><\/p>\n

As I relax, I am able to refocus, which\u00a0results in being renewed, which then reenergizes\u00a0me to do what needs to be\u00a0done. I believe by keeping the Sabbath I\u00a0am better equipped to handle Mondays.\u00a0Without the Sabbath, I become weak\u00a0and worn down. By honoring the Sabbath,\u00a0I get what I need to keep on keeping on.<\/p>\n

A highly successful person knows\u00a0his limitations. He knows there will always\u00a0be more to do than hours to do\u00a0it. A highly successful person strives to\u00a0achieve balance and recognizes his\u00a0total dependence on God by keeping\u00a0the Sabbath day holy.<\/p>\n

Maybe the reason Mondays are so\u00a0bad is because Sundays have become\u00a0just another day. Setting aside one day\u00a0per week as holy and using that day to\u00a0rest, refocus, renew and re-energize is\u00a0God’s gift to us. God created the Sabbath\u00a0for us, and by keeping the Sabbath we\u00a0are able to re-create ourselves for Him.<\/p>\n

Are you on the road to success? Are\u00a0you obeying the Fourth Commandment?\u00a0Is it the habit of your life to be totally dependent on God?<\/p>\n

Article adapted from Contact<\/em>magazine, May 2002.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Part five of an eleven-part series on \u201cHabits of Highly Successful People\u201d Habit #4 \u2013 A Successful Person Recognizes His Total Dependence on God By Kevin Riggs I live my life over-scheduled and\u00a0I under-rested. I feel like the rabbit\u00a0I in Alice in Wonderland who, while running sporadically, says, “I’m late. I’m late, for a very important\u00a0date. I’m late. I’m late. I’m late.” If I\u00a0keep up this pace, it will result in emotional stress and physical exhaustion\u2014but I can’t help it. I need to stay busy. Is the busy lifestyle what Jesus\u00a0meant by the abundant life? \u00a0Is winning\u00a0the rat race what success is all\u00a0about? Is this how God intended me\u00a0to spend my time? God said, “Remember the Sabbath\u00a0day, to keep it holy.” To “remember”\u00a0means “to observe without lapse” or “to\u00a0hold as a present and continuing priority.”\u00a0The word “Sabbath” literally means\u00a0“rest” and the meaning behind “holy” is\u00a0“to set apart and teat as sacred.” The principle behind this command\u00a0is that God wants me to make\u00a0it a top priority to set apart one day\u00a0out of seven for Him. Myths Concerning Time The problems I face don’t compare\u00a0to the stress and dangers the Israelites\u00a0were living under. They were in the\u00a0wilderness trying to survive. Every day\u00a0was […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-pastors"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4463","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4463"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4463\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":4464,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4463\/revisions\/4464"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4463"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4463"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/nafwb.org\/site\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4463"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}