what's your worry?

I wasn't planning on writing a series of blogs, but I guess my mind has been travelling the same track for the past week or two, and I just want to share my thoughts with anyone who happens to be reading this.
I went to my last Brain and Behavior class today. We've covered a semester's worth of material in fourteen classes, and have the final exam tomorrow morning! Talk about overload! The last topic, what we discussed in about half an hour this morning, was on Stress and Health, and I want to just share some of my newfound knowledge with y'all (don't worry, I won't go into all the biological processes and other less-exciting details like that).

Stress:

• nonspecific response of the body to various demands. Stress is therefore subjective, to how the person perceives and responds to the demand placed upon him or her.

Benefits of short-term, acute stress:

• increased alertness
• boosts immune system
• concentration
• energy (as is evident during the last few hours of cramming right before an exam)

Negative results of long-term, chronic stress:

• depleted energy
• weakens immune system
• depressed or enhanced response to acute stress
• depression.

The environment which we Westerners have created for ourselves is actually detrimental to ourselves and our health, as it is filled with continuous stresses.

Stress and health are obviously connected. In order to avoid sickness, then, we need some effective ways of dealing with stress. Some things to focus on to stay well are:

• Personal appraisal: view the stressor as a challenge not a threat
• Personality type: Those who are easygoing, nondepressed, and optimistic often have a better time dealing with it than those who are hostile, depressed, and pessimistic
• Personal habits: It helps if you are nonsmoking, get regular exercise, and maintain good nutrition instead of smoking, being sedentary, and having poor nutrition
• Level of social support: This is the most important of all, as it is crucial to have close, enduring relationships when facing stress, which is counter to our individualistic culture, especially for men who are supposed to be 'tough' and 'lone rangers'

Another point which my professor, Dr. Looy, stressed, was to listen to your body's cues when it is getting sick, which will tell you to slow down and get lots of rest.

I just returned from a meeting which had stressed me whenever I saw it approaching on the calendar. My boss wanted to talk to me about the days I'd requested off this summer to traverse North America to attend a few weddings. I have heard nothing good about this boss, and lately word at the pool is that she's trying to weed out all weak staff as another pool will be closing down leaving many experienced guards in search of jobs. Needless to say, I was very intimidated by the prospect of meeting with her. As the meeting reared its seemingly ugly head nearer and nearer, comments people made and thoughts God gave reminded me to turn to Him. This could be an opportunity to get to know her a little better, and maybe even brighten her day a little. I'm not sure if it ended up doing just that, but as I got to the meeting, dripping wet from my walk in the rain, the Spirit just kept reminding me to listen not defend, and to enjoy the conversation. I'm not sure if I'll get all the days I'm hoping for off this summer, but it ended up being a good meeting of clarifying expectations, and we were even able to laugh a little together. That was just another experience which, in retrospect, teaches me the truth in Jesus' words when he said:

"So I tell you, don't worry about everyday life---whether you have enough food, drink, and clothes. Doesn't life consist of more than food and clothing? . . . . So don't worry about having enough food or drink or clothing. Why be like the pagans who are so deeply concerned about these things? Your heavenly Fahter already knows all your needs, and he will give you all you need from day to day if you live for him and make the Kingdom of God your primary concern. So don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring its own worries. Today's trouble is enough for today" (Matthew 6:25-34, NLT).

Enjoy the peace of God!

what's your hurry?

Now that the sun rises earlier and no longer finds me in the winter semester, I'm able to reflect on life a little bit more. During this past year (and beyond...) I have constantly had a long mental list of things which I've felt pressured to do. They range from things I'm excited to get doing, like painting, to things which I dread the thought of. In fact, right now I really should be doing something from that list. Why do I share all this with you? I know you probably all suffer from the same lists and agendas which you're anxious to get back to. I'm writing because last night I had an epiphany!

In my small group, we're studying, "An Ordinary Day With Jesus" by John Ortberg and Ruth Haley Barton. This is my second time doing the study, but sometimes things just don't stick the first time. So last night, when we looked at the "Pace of Life" chapter, it hit home again. There was a reading we meditated on from Luke 10. You probably know it, but it's so short that I'll share it with you now:

"As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet listening to what he said. But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, "Lord, don't you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!" "Martha, Martha," the Lord answered, "you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:38-42, NIV).

The part that first struck me from this passage was that Luke and the translators chose to use the words, "preparations that had to be made". I often feel like there are so many things which need to get done, and if they don't... well, I just don't want to imagine what could happen. It's when I feel stuck under this pressure that I get stressed and irritable. But, even though the world says things have to be done, my priority needs to be sitting at my Lord's feet. That doesn't necessarily mean tacking an hour-long quiet time or another small group onto my to-do list, though those would certainly be good things. Neither does it mean ignoring work and school duties because they don't seem spiritual. I think that even in the busiest part of a person's day it's possible to listen to and wait on the Lord.

Today I tried to slow down a little, and it was glorious! I was able to decide on a few key things which would be good to do, and I didn't expect to get the other things on my list accomplished. Having more realistic expectations allowed me to stop by a deserted park on my bike ride home from class, to eat an apple on the swings, while I soaked in the scent of spring and the warmth of the sun. Later, when I left home to catch the bus to go work out at the gym, I left my watch in my backpack instead of putting it on my wrist. I knew I would get to the gym and home again eventually and that watch-watching would not speed up the bus or LRT any. Instead of being anxious about the time going by, I was able to enjoy the time and read!

Something I read when I got home and was eating supper (which was around 8pm - maybe we do wear watches for a reason, but it didn't matter much tonight!) I read an article about a leader in the mission organization, Gospel for Asia. He, Simon John, said, "within the past two or three years, I have come to understand that nothing happens to me by accident, that everything that comes in my life has the plan of God in it. . . . And so nowadays, even if my planned schedule is interrupted, I don't get annoyed. Probably God wants me to go slower. Dr. K.P. often reminds us of this verse: "And the servant of the Lord must not strive" (2 Timothy 2:24)". At the end of the article, he references one of his favourite Bible verses, Isaiah 40:31: "It tells me there is an unusual strength available to those who wait upon the Lord. Sometimes I am in a hurry to get things done, but the Lord is asking me to have patience and wait. And when I have done my part, then He will do His part. And He does amazing things when we wait."

Let's not get so caught up in the things of this world that we forget why we are really on this earth.