36 ways to reduce stress...in a chaotic world.....

I was going through some notes the other day and found an email a friend sent us April 7th, 2007...We had met Joe C. one year prior, in a Bible class we were attending. Unfortunately,  he passed away from cancer a year or so after he sent us this note, which I am about to share.

Christian ways to reduce stress:

"Never borrow from the future. If you worry about what may happen tomorrow and it doesn't  happen, you have worried in vain. Even if it does happen, you have to worry twice."

1. Pray
2. Go to bed on time
3. Get up on time so you can start the day un-rushed
4. Say NO to projects that won't fit into your time schedule or  that will compromise your mental health
5. Delegate tasks to capable others
6. Simplify and unclutter your life
7. Less is more (although one is often not enough, two are often too many)
8. Allow extra time to do things and to get to places
9. Pace yourself. Spread out big changes and difficult projects over time; don't lump the hard things all together
10. Take one day at a time
11. Separate worries from concerns. If a situation is a concern, find out what God would have you do and let go of the anxiety. If you can't do anything about the situation, forget it.
12. Live within your budget; don't use credit cards for ordinary purchases
13. Have backups; extra car key in your wallet, extra house key hidden somewhere, extra stamps etc..
14. K. M. S. (Keep mouth shut) This single piece of advice can prevent an enormous amount of trouble 
15. Do something for the Kid in You everyday
16. Carry a Bible or a good book with you to read while waiting in line 
17. Get enough rest
18. Eat right
19. Get organized so everything has its place
20. Listen to a CD while driving that can help improve your quality of life
21. Write down thoughts and inspirations
22. Every day, find time to be alone
23. Having problems? Talk to God on the spot. Try to nip small problems in the bud. 
24. Make friends with Godly people
25. Keep a folder of favorite scriptures on hand
26. Remember that the shortest bridge between despair and hope is often a good "Thank you Jesus"
27. Laugh
28. Laugh some more
29. Take your work seriously, but not yourself at all
30. Develop a forgiving attitude (most people are doing the best they can)
31. Be kind to unkind people (they probably need it the most)
32. Sit on your ego
33. Talk less, listen more (we have 2 ears and 1 mouth)
34. Slow down
35. Remind yourself that you are not the general  manager of the universe
36. Every night before bed, think of one thing you are grateful for that you have never been grateful for before. GOD HAS A WAY OF TURNING THINGS AROUND FOR YOU . "If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31)

Although you may have heard some of these before, it doesn't hurt to get a refresher course. Even if we apply just a few, it will make our life a little bit less stressful.

God Bless

The window from which we look.....

A young couple moved into a new neighborhood. The next morning while they were eating breakfast,
the young woman saw her neighbor hanging the wash outside.

"That laundry is not very clean", she said...."she doesn't know how to wash correctly.
Maybe she needs better laundry soap".

Her husband looked on but remained silent (smart man)..

This went on for a while. Every time her neighbor would hang her wash to dry,
the young woman would make the same comments.

About one month or so later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband: "Look, she has learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this".

To which her husband replied: "I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows".

And so it is with life...What we see when watching others, depends on the purity of the window through which we look! I am sure we have all been there at some time or another. Hopefully, this makes us stop and think before we want to judge or criticize somebody else.

Philippians 4:8 

"Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true..noble..right..pure...lovely...admirable-
if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things"