‘“Who are you?” they demanded. Jesus replied, “The One I have always claimed to be.”’ John 8:25 NLT

Jesus was constantly under pressure. There were gruelling demands on His time. He rarely had personal privacy, and He was constantly interrupted. People repeatedly misunderstood, criticised, and ridiculed Him. He was under enormous stress, yet He remained at peace under pressure. How did he do it? He based His life on eight sound principles of stress management. So for the next week let’s look at them and see what we can learn.

Know who you are. ‘“Who are you?” they demanded. Jesus replied, “The One I have always claimed to be.”’ If you don’t know who you are, others might try to tell you who they think you are. If you don’t know who you are, you’ll subconsciously let other people pressure you into believing you’re somebody you’re not. A lot of stress comes from our hiding behind masks, living double lives, being unreal with others, and trying to be somebody we’re not. Insecurity always produces pressure in our lives; when we’re insecure we feel coerced into performing and conforming. We set unrealistic standards for ourselves, and even though we work, work, work, we still can’t meet them.

So what should you do? You must know who you are, and Whose you are! You’re a redeemed child of God, put on this earth not by accident but for a purpose. You are deeply loved and fully accepted by God. He has a plan for your life; therefore you are significant. To overcome stress you must know who you are, and until you deal decisively with this issue you’ll be plagued by it.

SoulFood: 2 Cor 5–8, Matt 25:14–21, Ps 78:65–72, Pro 20:26–30

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