Friday, November
2, 2018
Praise the Lord! Let all that I am praise the Lord. I will praise the Lord as long as I live. I will sing praises to my God with my dying breath. Don’t put your confidence in powerful people; there is no help for you there. When they breathe their last, they return to the earth, and all their plans die with them. But joyful are those who have the God of Israel as their helper, whose hope is in the Lord their God. He made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. He keeps every promise forever. He gives justice to the oppressed and food to the hungry. The Lord frees the prisoners. The Lord opens the eyes of the blind. The Lord lifts up those who are weighed down. The Lord loves the godly. The Lord protects the foreigners among us. He cares for the orphans and widows, but he frustrates the plans of the wicked. The Lord will reign forever. He will be your God, O Jerusalem, throughout the generations. Praise the Lord! Psalm 146:1-10(NLT)
Said the friend: Don't move a muscle, I'll be right over;
I'll cook and clean for you and keep your kids out of your hair until your
husband, Sam gets home.
Said the harried mother, Sam? My husband's name isn't Sam!
Said the other, Oh, I'm sorry. I must have dialed the wrong number.
After a brief pause the tired Mom said: That's O.K., but.... you’re still coming over,
aren't you?[2]
People find themselves under the effects
of a load of stress these days. Of
course, it is no new thing; Adam and Eve had a pile of it to deal with, and
then their younger son was murdered by his own brother. Most stress is produced by breakdowns in
relationship; mini-disagreements or maxi, as in the case of Cain and Abel. But all conflict between humans produces
tension and the threat of being overwhelmed.
We look in all sorts of directions for
help, personal coping mechanisms, friends, neighbors, programs that promise
help or resources. There are self-help
books, retreats, gurus and, the prize-winner in all the competition to ease
your troubled mind: dropping-out. The opting-out
of tension dimension is filled with more choices: TV, adulterous affairs, drugs that numb your
ability to feel, and too many more to list.
I have heard the concept that tension can
be good or bad. Eustress is the good
kind; like the tension on the strings of a violin, tightened just enough to be
in perfect tune. This is like the
push-and-pull of a healthy relationship between co-workers who respect each
other’s contribution to a project. But,
if the roles, established authority patterns, or lines of communication get
confused, or just plain shattered, like a violin string pulled too tightly --- SNAP!
Our Psalmist was no stranger to stress; he
knew the effects of being weighed down like an overburdened pack animal. He knew the prison of empty promises and
false friendships. He understood the
loneliness of being a powerless outsider without hope. And so, this man said goodbye to counting on
the powerful of this earth to bring him any relief; he turned his heart
Heavenward. And, there he found hope,
joy, and the lift of a friend.
I’m not dissing the whole human race here;
we need to learn and practice knowing, understanding, and helping each other;
that’s a godly thing! But, my whole
point is to give trust slowly and carefully. If we entrust ourselves to anyone else’s
leading, just because they sound good when they talk, we will soon find that
trust violated (and maybe our pocket picked!).
Rather, trust freely and quickly in the
Lord; never a promise broken there!
For You Today
How’s it going in that stress
department? Are your stripes
unravelling? Here’s a gentle reminder
where to turn:
Trust in the Lord with all your heart; do not depend
on your own understanding.
Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take. Proverbs 3:5-6(NLT)
Go to VIDEO
[2] Stressed Mom image, Courtesy
of Pixabay.com
