Even though the Word of God doesn’t have the word “stress” in it, it does teach us how we can deal with it.
Synonyms for Stress
The fact is, there aren’t any Bible verses on stress, but there are a lot of synonyms for it. Synonyms like anxiety, worry, and fear, and those words that are in the Bible. Stress can accumulate from troubles at home, work, with family members, money, car, house/rentals, or a number of other things. It could be several of these things at the same time. Divorce, death, wrecked relationships, and things that are sometimes beyond our control can begin to control us. This can and does often create physical problems, emotional issues, and mental tension. Stress may show up in many different ways, depending on who it is. It may show up as anger, spontaneous crying, inaptitude at certain tasks, a loss of emotional control, loss of appetite or binging on food, making frequent mistakes, and having fits of rage. Sometimes it can push us too far and we can do something we’ll regret for the rest of our lives, but there’s help available. We can be strengthened by God’s Spirit, God’s Word, and God’s Son (Phil 4:13), so let’s turn to the Bible and read what God says about all the stress we’re facing.
[1]“for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Rom 8:28).
Commit it to God
Proverbs 16:3 comes right out and tells us to “Commit your work to the Lord, and your plans will be established.” That’s pretty straightforward. To commit to something means we stick with it, no matter how hard it gets. If we really believe God’s Word, we know “that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Rom 8:28). It doesn’t say we hope things will work out, or we pray it’ll all work out, but “we know” “all things work together for our good.” If you commit to Him, you know that “your plans will be established” and it will all work out “according to his purpose.” Obviously this doesn’t say that thing will immediately smooth out for us, but God does promise that it will all work out for our very best. That’s good enough for me.
Come to Christ
During my ministry over the years, I’ve frequently heard people crying out to Jesus. In prisons, nursing homes, and even in church. It might not look like they were praying, but they really were by crying out to the Lord. Sometimes, we’re so overwhelmed by circumstances that we’re at a loss for words. All we can do is cry out to Jesus. But that’s exactly what we need to do. Jesus says to you and He says to me, “Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light” (Matt 11:28-30). If we’re weary and heavy laden, it’s because we’re trying to carry about a burden around all by ourselves. We must learn to come to Jesus and unload every care and burden upon Him. He can take it. We weren’t designed to carry these loads by ourselves. We’re incapable of it, so “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God” (Phil 4:6). Don’t keep it to yourself; cry out to Jesus, come to Jesus, and place every single care in this life upon Him. When we take up His yoke, our load is light, so “Cast your burden on the Lord, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved” (Psalm 55:22).
Rest for the Weary
When I thought of this subheading, I thought of myself, because I get too overloaded at times and sometimes I feel I can’t go on much longer, but that’s when I cry out to Jesus and commit it to God in prayer. God promises that “He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint” (Isaiah 40:29-31). If even the “young men shall fall exhausted,” what about those of us who are not so young anymore? When we reach the point of mental, emotional, and spiritual exhaustion, it’s time to “wait for the Lord” so you can “renew [your] strength,” even though waiting is the last thing on your mind. If we would rest in Him and wait upon Him, we could “run and not be weary,” and “walk and not faint.” Incidentally, eagle’s wings are the strongest wings of any of the species of birds, so God is saying, “Lean on Me.”
Vessels of Clay
[2]“we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.” (2 Cor 4:7).
The Master Potter, God Himself, is presently shaping us and molding us into the image of Christ, but it’s painful at times. It takes pressure to push and form the clay vessel into a certain shape and size. That’s because God has a special purpose for each clay vessel He fashions…but it’s not always a fun process. The Apostle Paul wrote that “we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us. We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed” (2 Cor 4:7-9). It may seem that we get close to destruction, as far as our life is concerned, but these things are passing away. That’s why the funeral homes don’t generally put pockets in the clothing of the deceased. They can’t take anything with them. But, those things that remain are eternal, and these present afflictions are remaking us and fashioning us after the image of the Son of God, so even thought “the righteous falls seven times and rises again…the wicked stumble in times of calamity” (Prov 24:16). When stress leads to distress, we don’t have to regress…we can be blessed. We will not be destroyed. The Lord gives and the Lord takes away, so all we can do is say, “Blessed be the Lord” (Job 1:21). We leave the same way we came in…with nothing, but what we do for Christ will remain forever.
Conclusion
If you have not yet repented and trusted in Christ, you cannot even have the peace of God yet(Rom 5:1). There is a wall of separation greater than the veil in the Temple. You are separated from a Holy God by your sins, but in Christ, you can become a new creation in Christ (2 Cor 5:`17), and be reconciled to God because of Christ’s righteousness (Mark 10:45; 2 Cor 5:21). If you’ve not yet been born again (John 3:3-7), make this the day of your day of salvation (2 Cor 6:2). If you do not, and you were to die today or tonight, or Christ were to return today or tonight, your judgment will be swift and furious (Rev 20:12-15). That’s unnecessary. I plead with you to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ today and be saved (Rom 10:9-13). And do it while it’s still “today” (2 Cor 6:2).
Here is some related reading for you: Bible Verses for Stress: 20 Helpful Scriptures [3]
Resource – Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version® (ESV®), Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.