Peace Under Pressure – 2

Did you ever think about this: if you don’t feel pressured, you aren’t? Pressure is a state of mind. If you don’t think you’re under pressure, you’re really not, regardless of what’s on your plate to do.

One of the most important concepts we can grasp in our Christian life is that we are what we think. Everything begins with our thought life, and that includes whether or not we feel pressured. I start to feel stressed when I allow myself to think about all there is to do, when I start to worry about next week’s deadlines, when I ponder long the “To Do” list that stares me in the face. “How will I ever get all this done?” I think. Then I convince myself there’s no way. And now the panic starts to rise, because I’m thinking about all I must do instead of just doing something.

Remind yourself often that you can only do one thing at a time, decide what has the highest priority at this moment, and do it. Allowing those thoughts to hang around and bombard you with “Hurry up, you’ve got a lot to do,” or “You’re never going to get everything done at this rate,” just pours the pressure on yourself and keeps you from working at maximum efficiency.

The good news is that pressure and peace are not exclusive. You don’t have to give up peace and calmness just because there’s some pressure on you. And peace is not passivity. Peace doesn’t mean you’re lying down in gardens, with bubbling brooks and birds singing. Peace doesn’t mean the absence of emails or texts or meals to cook or reports to finish. Peace is a state of mind; it begins with our thoughts. And our minds can be at rest in the midst of incredible activity.

One good suggestion to stay peaceful in pressurized environments is to talk to yourself correctly. What do you say or think when you’re under pressure? “I’ll never get this done.” Or “I can’t do all this.” Why do you feed all that negative stuff into your head? Say instead, “Lord, by your grace I will survive this. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” You will be amazed at how much easier it is to handle stress when you talk to yourself in biblical ways, not in negative ways.