Stress is like kryptonite (Superman’s nemesis), and it’s out to knock off your cape and reduce you to a heap of trembling, useless mush. What should you do? 1) Immerse your exhaustion. Try a bubble bath. Even simply standing in the shower can help ‘wash away’ fatigue and revive your body and brain. Feel the moment and focus on the water’s invigorating feeling on your skin; allow it to spread resilience to your spirit. You might think, ‘That doesn’t sound very spiritual.’ Job’s friend Zophar would disagree with you – he said to Job, who had more troubles than you will ever see: ‘You will forget your misery; it will be like water flowing away’ (Job 11:16 NLT). 2) Ask for help! Delegate responsibilities and chores if you can. When everyone does their portion, no one is left depleted. ‘Two people are better off than one, for they can help each other succeed. If one person falls, the other can reach out and help. But someone who falls alone is in real trouble’ (Ecclesiastes 4:9-10 NLT). 3) Give up too much perfectionism. Nobody’s perfect except Jesus, and you’re not Him. Let some things go. Tomorrow, give up a few more. Over time, those chores will stop nagging at you, and you’ll truly feel the stress in the pit of your stomach disintegrate. We’ll never be totally free from stress, but we can learn to cope with it and conquer it. Jesus said, ‘I have told you all this so that you may have peace in me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world’ (John 16:33 NLT).
