Under a Lot of Stress?

God led His people out like sheep, He took His flock SAFELY through the wilderness. God took GOOD CARE of them; they had NOTHING to fear. Psalm 78:52,53

I know ... you’re under a LOT of stress, you’re frustrated, worried, afraid and confused … but FEAR NOT and HOLD ON.

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28 -30, ‘Come to Me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you. Let Me teach you, because I am humble and gentle, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke fits perfectly, and the burden I give you is light.’

Stress tends to visit us when we're tired, when we're sick, when we're driving through a crowded metropolis, when we're late for an important meeting, or if we've taken on too many responsibilities. When circumstances are out of our control, we feel stress. When our basic needs are not being met and our safety is threatened, we tend to get anxious. God promises in His Word that He will care for us. When we come to Him for help, He helps. Sometimes it’s a process that takes place for Him to align us and our schedule with His will. Other times, He seems to swoop in … suddenly.

I have declared the former things from the beginning; and they went forth out of My mouth, and I proclaimed them; I did them suddenly, and they came to pass. Isaiah 48:3

Don't you worry about a thing. God IS gonna appear on the scene SUDDENLY on your behalf, for HELP IS ON THE WAY.

Have the cares and problems of life burdened you with stress and anxiety, robbing you of peace? Pray the prayer below in faith, believing.

Father, I need You now because I am full of stress and anxiety. Thank You that the promises in Your Word bring comfort. I ask You to come and take My heavy burdens. I take each burden, one by one, and lay them at Your feet. Please carry them for me so that I don't have to. Replace them with Your humble and gentle yoke so that I will find rest for my soul. I receive Your gift of peace of mind and heart. Thank You that I can lie down tonight in peace and sleep. I know that you, Lord, will keep me safe. I am not afraid because You are always with me. Please keep me daily, Lord, in Your perfect peace. In Jesus’ name, amen.

 




 

Pain is Part of Growing

 

No trial has overtaken you that is not faced by others. And God is faithful: He will not let you be tried beyond what you are able to bear/beyond your strength, but with the trial will also provide a way out so that you may be able to endure it. 1 Corinthians 10:13

No matter how hard life gets, there is STILL always something to be thankful for ... thank God, for He is worthy. Wake up each day thankful for your life, because someone somewhere else is desperately fighting for theirs. Happiness is not the absence of problems, but the ability to deal with them.

Sometimes doors close because it is time to move forward. And that's a good thing because we often will not move unless circumstances force us to. Sometimes, life hits us over the head with situations that we never saw coming. Ouch. What in the world are we gonna do? Life just seems to spin so out of control at times, us helpless as to the way things will be when the dust settles.

When times are tough, remind yourself that no pain comes without a purpose. Move on from what/who hurt you, but never forget what it taught you. Just because you are struggling does not mean you are failing. Every great success requires some type of struggle to get there. Some problems and circumstances will never make sense to us, or why God allows them and doesn't stop the suffering and pain.

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. Romans 8:18

There are two kinds of pain: pain that hurts and pain that changes you. When you roll with life, instead of resisting it, both kinds help you grow. There's an awakening and release in your spirit when the light comes on that IT'S NOT ALL YOUR FAULT and NOTHING you could have done would have changed your circumstances or what you or loved ones are going through. Thank God that Jesus is on the right hand of the Father, continually interceding on our behalf. He prays for us just like He did for Peter in the book of Luke:

Simon, Simon, behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers. Luke 22:31,32

We must come to the Lord during those times when we need Him and let Him pour in us His grace, love and peace. Cast your burdens upon the Lord (roll and repose each care) and He WILL sustain you (Psalm 55:22), for His shoulders can carry the weight that tries to pull us down and drain us of all that we have. That's the secret to the trials ... that even though we CAN'T handle all that He allows to be put on us, we CAN bear it and make it through when we give all the troubles and pains and sorrows to Him, for HIM to carry instead of US. When we allow the Lord to minister to us, His touch is so soothing. We can feel Him helping us to feel better. These strokes of love are causing us to be healed and to grow to be more like Him.

Father, the journey sometimes seems too hard to handle. Life just flat hurts and seems so unfair. Help us to allow the Holy Spirit to deal with us so that the process will be easier. In spite of all the trials/growing pains, thank You God that there is a way out. You are the Way out, Jesus and You promised that You would make a way of escape through every trial. We don't want to be like the Israelites wandering in the desert for 40 years, going around the same mountain over and over again. Help us to learn and move on. Lead us, Lord. Teach us Holy Spirit. Help us to be obedient to Your voice and Your leading. We have problems that need solving. We have family that needs healing. We have bills that need paying. God, just fix it all and help us to remain faithful and believe. Help us to put feet to our faith and walk in love. Give us grace and peace through it all. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Just Say 'No' to Reasoning

With all your heart you must trust the Lord and not your own judgment or understanding. Always let Him lead you and He will clear the road for you to follow. Proverbs 3:5,6

The Word doesn't say you have to have everything figured out down to the last little minute detail. You struggling via self-effort and reasoning trying to figure out when God is going to do it, how He is going to do it, which way and why He is going to be leading you a certain way or if He is going to do it is not going to get you anywhere.

As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts. Isaiah 55:8

You are not supposed to know everything. That is one of the reasons why you need God. If you stop trying to figure everything out, you will not be confused. It is okay to think about something to try to determine what to do, but if you start feeling confused, you have gone too far.

You are to trust and have faith that God's ways are better and that He knows what He is doing - He DOES NOT need your help. Pray and ask Him for wisdom and that He help you make right, godly, decisions. Choose to trust the Lord and line up your will with His. Take the steps that He gives you and trust Him to give you the answers that you need for the steps that you have to take.

Father, help us to trust You, with child-like faith ... faith that hasn't been watered down by the disappointments of life. Help us to believe in You and all You do, regardless of what's happened in the past and whether we understand it all or not. Give us peace in our minds. Help us to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit and not just do whatever we want to. In Jesus' name, amen.

God's Rest ... Got It?

Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened, and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your souls.] Matthew 11:28

God is already working IN You, THROUGH You, and FOR You, to bring you to a place where everything is provided for. You responsibility is to rest and receive it. God’s rest isn’t sitting in a chair or lying down on your couch - it’s a matter of the heart and a way of life, given to us because of the finished work of Jesus Christ.

TRUE REST is believing that God is always working on your behalf. TRUE REST is believing that God will never leave, forsake or fail you. TRUE REST is believing that God delights in promoting, blessing and favoring you.

When you believe that God is doing all these things for you and so much more, then you can stop ‘doing’ things in your own strength and you can live with ongoing peace, knowing He will freely give you all things.

That doesn’t mean you need to stop going to work or stop taking care of your family (though yes, we ALL need breaks and time away). What it means is there can be rest IN work, not necessarily rest FROM work. When we walk in the rest of God, it means that we are continually committing our burdens, responsibilities, workflows, schedules, relationships, family needs, problems … everything in our lives to the Lord.

When you do this, it allows you to experience genuine peace in whatever you are involved in. You are continually trusting and believing that God will always give you a better outcome in your circumstances than you can do on your own.

There remains therefore a rest for the people of God. For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His. Let us be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience. Hebrews 4:9-11

Those who rest … are trusting and believing.

Father, I pray that you help us to walk in Your rest and to continually commit our burdens, responsibilities, schedules, relationships, problems, family needs … everything in our lives to You. Thank You that we will find peace and rest in doing so. In Jesus’ name, amen.




Related AFTA Blogs:

Got Rest? 
The Enemy of Busyness
You Deserve a Break Today

What's Up with That?

I’ve told you these things (so that you should not be offended; taken unawares and falter, or be caused to stumble and fall away; I told you to keep you from being scandalized and repelled) to prepare you for rough times ahead. They are going to throw you out of the meeting places. There will even come a time when anyone who kills you will think he’s doing God a favor. They will do these things because they never really understood the Father. I’ve told you these things so that when the time comes and they start in on you, you’ll be well-warned and ready for them. I have told you these things, so that IN ME you may have perfect peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration (you will continue to experience difficulties); but be of good cheer (take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted). For I have (already) overcome the world. I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you. John 16:1-4, 31-33

 

Feel like no one understands you? Feel like you have been mistreated? Feel like you have been rejected? Yeah, me too. So ... what's up with that?

 

There's a reason why you are going/went through what you are going/went through ...

 

HOLD ON.

 

There's a plan in the works that you can't see yet ...

 

TRUST THE PROCESS.

 

We may not always understand, but we gotta and we're gonna ...

 

KEEP TRUSTING.

 

The calling that's been placed on your life attracts attacks. Don't look at it as trouble, look at it as confirmation that you're going the right way and doing the right things ...

 

KEEP GOING.

 

Others may reject, offend, hurt, abuse and/or leave you. But Your heavenly Father will never leave you or forsake you like you're used to being left and mistreated, no matter what. You are ...

 

ACCEPTED IN THE BELOVED, JUST AS YOU ARE AND DESPITE WHAT OTHERS THINK OF YOU.

 

Peace I leave with you; My own peace I now give and bequeath to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. Stop allowing yourselves to be agitated and disturbed; and do not permit yourselves to be fearful and intimidated and cowardly and unsettled. John 14:27

 

PEACE BE STILL.

 

See, I'm doing a new thing. Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland. Isaiah 43:19

 

HOLD ON TO YOUR HAT, YOU AIN'T SEEN NOTHIN' YET.

 

You CAN do this, KEEP GOING. One day at a time. One step at a time, if you have to.

 

So, what's up with that? What's going on? Clueless. But God knows. And He has our best interests at heart. He cares about every little detail of our lives. That's ...

 

WHAT'S UP WITH THAT.

 

Dear God, dear heavenly Father, You have SO MUCH MORE to offer us than this world. This is just a temporary place, it's not our home. Help us to have hope in You and trust in You and lean not on our understanding, while You work Your will and work all things for good, according to YOUR plan. Your ways are different, we don't always understand what You're doing, but please give us grace and faith to trust You and follow You. May we ALWAYS lean on Your faithful, loving strong shoulder of support. We love You, Lord. In Jesus' name, amen.

see also: Hands Off    He Don't Wanna Harm Us

 

God ALWAYS Keeps His Promises

You know with all your heart and soul that NOT ONE of all the good promises the Lord your God gave you has failed. EVERY promise has been fulfilled; NOT ONE has failed. Joshua 23:14

 

When the bottom falls out, when it looks like you have hit an all-time low, hold on to hope. You do not know what God has around the corner. He WILL make a way, where there seems to be no way. If you are believing to see the promises of God come to fruition in your life  DO NOT give up. God IS a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.

 

You can never please God without faith, without depending on Him. Anyone who wants to come to God must believe that there is a God and that He rewards [cares enough to respond to] those who sincerely [earnestly and diligently] look for Him. Hebrews 11:6

 

There's only one Man you can trust a 100% all of the time, someone who will never fail you - our Lord Jesus Christ.

 

Whatever breakthrough you are waiting for, pin your hope on the Lord, His love and His wonderful promises for you found in His Word. Believe that God is for you and wants you to experience breakthroughs and divine success.

Days of joy, peace and victory ARE headed your way.

Father, I pray that you touch, minister to and bless us, Your children, with whatever our needs are. Fill us with Your mighty power. Reveal the promises made to us from Your Word and help us to hang in there awaiting their fruition. In Jesus' name, amen.

 

 

 

see also: Down, But Never Out and Waiting is Hard

 

He Don't Wanna Harm Us

 

'I KNOW the plans I have for you,' declares the Lord,' plans to prosper you and NOT TO HARM YOU, plans to give you hope and a future.' Jeremiah 29:11

I KNOW You know what's best for me, even though I may not like everything You allow into my life, Lord.

Your Father knows what you need before you ask Him. Matthew 6:8.

I KNOW that You will work everything out for my good Lord, even though I don’t see how right now.

We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

I KNOW that You take care of the things that I commit to You ... and leave with You ... instead of picking things back up when I get overwhelmed, scared, or just flat don't get it.

Commit everything you do to the Lord. Trust Him, and He will help you. Psalm 37:5

I KNOW that it’s not MY plan that works, it's YOURS, Father God.

'My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways,' declares the Lord. 'As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are My ways higher than your ways and My thoughts than your thoughts.' Isaiah 55:8,9

I KNOW I just gotta bring it all to You in prayer, Lord and trust You enough to leave it with You. You know, all the junk that I worry about. That I stress about. That I mull over in my head. I don't have to have it all figured out. What I’m going through now is nothing compared to the glory that will be revealed in me and for me.

I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us and for us. Romans 8:18

I KNOW You don't wanna harm me Lord, You love me and want what's best for me.

Be still … and KNOW.

Father, help me ... help us all ... to trust You and not lean on our own understanding. I pray for wisdom and guidance as well as grace to follow Your leading, Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name, amen.




see also: The Man with the Plan