The delivery of the mail today triggered a major stressor. Three large envelopes came through the mail drop that caused anxiety, stress, fear, and worry. I opened them and found that they are indeed paperwork for my Disability case. One was information for a hearing, one was for my Husband to fill out about me and the other for me to fill out on myself.
Last year around this time I received a letter in the mail saying the Department of Human Services was going to take away my Disability benefits. I went down to the Social Security Office to figure out what I needed to do to make an appeal. I got additional papers and got my letter date stamped. The next day I decided to go back to the Attorney that originally helped me get Disability. I can't believe its been almost one year of waiting.
Those feeling are real and I believe God gave us feelings and it is okay to feel them. It is also okay to tell God how we are feeling. He already knows what we are thinking and feeling so you might as well tell him exactly how you feel. We are also promised that God will give us His peace in exchange.
But what do we do next?
We have a choice to make. We can hold on to those feelings and let worry take over or we can release them to God and trust Him to see us through the situation. This doesn't mean we just sit back and do nothing. It means we do everything in our power and then turn it over to God and trust Him with the outcome. When my mind gets caught in a rabbit hole of worry I say over and over in my mind:
"I trust you Lord, I trust you Lord..."
These simple words are really helpful to combat worry.
I came across this encouraging quote from Ann Voskamp, "Be a Prayer Warrior not a panicked worrier." Prayer is a powerful tool we can use daily. Any time. Any place. We can talk to God.
Have you thought about ways to relieve stress?
Here is 10 ways to help combat stressors:
1. Pray- Talk to God, tell him how you feel, complain to Him and cry out to Him.
2. Breathe - Try taking deep belly breathes
3. Journal- Getting thoughts on paper is a good way to process what we are feeling.
4. Do everything in your power to take care of the situation. Is there anything you can do to help with what you are going through?
5. Turn it over to God and Trust Him for the outcome- Have you gave it to God? Believe that He is reliable and able to take care of you.
6. Look up encouraging Bible verses- See what God's word says about the issue.
7. Talk to a trusted friend- Ask for prayer for the situation.
8. Be thankful!- Keep a thankful list, write down all the things you are grateful for even in the midst of a stressful situation.
9. Exercise and eat good food- We all know that we feel better after physical activity.
10. Do something you enjoy!
What are the stressors in your life? Have you found ways to relieve stress? If you haven't thought about it much in the past maybe you could try one of these ideas. Please leave in the comments any other ideas you may have, I would love to hear them.
In every situation I hope you find encouragement and peace to make it through life's stressors.
Love and Prayers ❤
-Amber
sources:
Voskamp, Ann. https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1696907660321401&substory_index=0&id=324577877554393. August 18, 2017
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