Stressed Out

A lot of us use the term "stressed out" when we feel pressure to do something out of our comfort zone. It's probably not possible to live one day without dealing with our own or hearing about another person's "stress". But, did you know that the word "stress", used as a syndrome or symptom of behavior didn't come about until the 1930's.
A man named Selye coined the the use of the word. He lectured about distress (bad stress) and eustress (good stress), for the rest of his life. Most scientists, at the time, thought his theories weren't soundly researched. There was, they said, no way to scientifically measure "stress". Poor Selye. He must have felt a whole lot of "stress"!
If I were going to define modern stress, I would use one word.....worry. Stress, I firmly believe, occurs when we worry about the future or worry about the past. It's there when we worry about our health, our children, our finances, our spouses and our retirement funds. We get stressed when we look back and worry about we have said or done, days or even years ago. We find it vewry hard to live in the present. We cannot predict the future or change the past. When we live in the present, we eliminate a whole bunch of stress, and our lives seem so much better.
When I get to worrying too much, I refer to two resources.... my mother and the Bible. Mom always said, "Nancy, quit being such a worrier. Whatever you are worried about won't make any difference 100 years from now!"
And the Bible says, in Philippians 4:6-7, to stop worrying and start praying. All things are possible with prayer. 

Oh Lord. Why do we worry? Where is our Faith? You have promised us everlasting life. What else is there? Help us to make wise decisions and to live life abundantly, praising your Name forever.