There is a certain amount of stress that’s good for you.

If we didn’t have any stress in our lives we probably wouldn’t get anything done. We would resort to saying, “Oh maybe I’ll do that tomorrow” … and tomorrow would never come.

If there was no stress, we would procrastinate … and some of us would procrastinate more.

Stress keeps us on our toes; it moves and motivates us, makes us feel responsible, and gets us to the deadline. 

These are all good things; we need a little stress in our lives. When stress builds up in us too much, however, it’s not good.

This last week I went golfing with my family. We hardly ever golf together because some of us hardly ever golf.

My son, Mike, and I golf the most, and Lily golfs with me when we’re on vacation. Karlie hasn’t golfed in two years.

Mike had a week of vacation and thought it would be nice to get a game in with the family. We looked at a couple of courses that would be within driving distance for all of us.

We ended up choosing a course that would be better suited for Mike and I and not Lily and Karlie. We got a really good deal on it so we booked it. 

Shortly after the arrangements had been made, Lily told me not to get all stressed, because that would impact the rest of the family. 

I have to tell you, I tried not to stress about it. I even prayed about it. 

Back when I was learning to golf, I felt pressure to keep up, to not hold up other golfers, whether I was golfing with them or they were in the group behind me. 

So knowing that this course was a little long for my wife and daughter, and knowing we were playing early in the morning, by the time I got to the course I was already tense.

I was definitely not relaxed. 

Even before we teed off, I was concerned about how quickly the next group would catch up to us and if we would be holding them up. … and I felt this even though there was no group behind us! 

All I can say is my game didn’t get off to a fantastic start … and it was all downhill from there. 

I could not get myself to relax and simply enjoy some time with my family. I was tense and hit more bad shots in that game than I’ve hit all season long so far. 

I kept looking back for the group behind us. I felt responsible to watch where everyone’s shot ended up. I constantly kept telling Lily and Karlie what they might be doing wrong when they hit bad shots. 

The crazy thing was they all got better as the round went on but I got worse. And that group behind us never did catch up and have to wait for us.

Here’s the thing: We are told in scripture to give our burdens to the Lord … but stress is a difficult burden to let go of when you’re in the middle of it. So first stop and recognize the stress, what it is, where it’s coming from, and how it’s affecting you. Then tell the Lord you want to give Him that stress. Third, focus, embrace, enjoy, immerse yourself in the task at hand. Doing that will shift your emotions and allow you to let go of the stress. 

That’s Life!

Paul

Question: How has stress got the best of you? Leave your comments below.