Wisdom-Trek / Creating a Legacy

Welcome to Day 54 of our Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom.

Dealing With Stress

Thank you for joining us for our 7 day a week, 7 minutes of wisdom podcast. This is Day 54 of our Trek. As we consider the daily nuggets of wisdom, one result that we should see in our lives as we grow in wisdom is learning how to manage stress more effectively. Today and tomorrow we will look at some of the causes, benefits, and dangers of stress.

We are recording our podcast from our studio at The Big House in Marietta, Ohio. It is good that we are going to look at stress for the next couple of days. Our client workload this week has had many more interruptions and challenges than we had anticipated.

I am certainly not immune to stress although my stress is usually not visible externally. I do find that as I grow in wisdom and maturity that I am better able to manage stress.  I am trying to understand and put into practice the ability to relax when I have a situation that is not within my control. This practice then frees up my energies to focus on those situations that are within my control. My problem is delineating when it is under my control and when it is not, as I tend want to control everything. Another aspect of stress that is hard to come to grips with is that stress is usually caused by our own selfishness. Life is not going as we expect, and we don’t like it.

One good way to look at stress is to ask yourself, "Will this really matter next week, next month, next year or ten years from now?" Another question that we need to consider is…

As we looked at a couple of days ago, there are no guarantees in life. I understand that planning and preparation are important. But, let us strive to focus on those areas that are most important, like gaining wisdom and insight while creating your living legacy each day. Or, as Bob Marley put it, "Don’t worry. Be happy."

So, on our trek of life today and tomorrow, let’s look at some of the causes of and cures for stress. Just as it can be stressful on a hike when we become lost or when we spot mountain lions or bears, many issues can cause us stress.

Stress can also be caused by carrying small burdens for too long. Let’s use the analogy of a glass of water, which weighs slightly more than ½ pound. Do you think you could hold that glass of water out with your arm extended to the side? Most of us could easily do that.

The absolute weight doesn't matter. It depends on how long you try to hold it. If you hold it for a minute, that's not a problem. If you hold it for an hour, you’ll have an ache in your right arm. If you hold it for a day, you'll have to call an ambulance. In each case, it's the same weight, but the longer you hold it, the heavier it becomes. That's the way it is with stress management. If you carry your burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, you won't be able to carry on.

As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again. When you're refreshed, you can carry on with the burden.

So, before you settle in for tonight, put the burden of work or the day’s activities down. Don't carry it at home. You can pick it up tomorrow. Whatever burdens you're carrying now, let them down for a moment if you can.

It is well known that too much stress is a "killer." Writing in Eternity magazine some time ago Fred Stansberry warns about "stress-related diseases such as cancer, arthritis, heart and respiratory diseases, migraines, allergies and a host of other psychological and physiological dysfunctions which are increasing at an alarming rate in our Western culture."