Thursday, December 4, 2008

Surviving the Holidays part 3

We have been talking about surviving the holidays. Stress is a big part of this time of year. How do we handle the added stress that comes along with the Holiday Season?

We are looking at 4 principles for handling stress. These are principles we can see in Jesus's life.

The first principle was the principle of identification, the second was the principle of prioritization. Today lets look at the third principle, the principle of relaxation.

When we look at Jesus's life we see that He knew how to come away from the crowds and the pressures, and to spend time resting. In Mark 6:31 we read "Crowds of people were coming and going so that Jesus and his followers did not even have time to eat. He said to them "Come away by yourselves, and we will get to a lonely place and get some rest."

Sometimes you just have to stop. You have to come away and get to a lonely place and rest. I like what I heard someone say one time "If you don't come apart, you'll come apart."

The holiday's are an extremely busy time of year. Parties, and shopping, and family visits, and traveling and everything else that comes along with this time of year. If we don't learn to also relax, we can end up all stressed out.

What are you doing to allow yourself to rest? Are you taking a regular time of rest and relaxation in your busy schedule. The Bible commands us "to remember the sabbath day and keep in holy". Even God rested on the 7th day. Don't forget to stop long enough to rest during this busy season.

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