Anti-Stress Divine Prescription (ASDP) Intervention

We all have seasons when the work-load gets almost unbearable. Well, mine just did this week. I was over my head with papers to mark for my three classes. On top of that, I was scheduled to conduct a 3-hour leadership session for prefects in an outstation locale at the end of the work week. Then, finally, I was also scheduled for a 6-hour leadership training session for UNHCR on Saturday. Needless to say, the very anticipation of all these work responsibilities were sufficient to raise my stress level.

Using an imaginary scale, with 1 being the lowest level of stress, and 10 the highest, I reckoned myself at 7.

What to do? What type of anti-stress intervention did I use? I am so glad that I had access to the ASDP intervention; the Anti-Stress Divine Prescription.

How does this work?

You absolutely have to recognize that God is in complete charge of His universe, and especially interested in His human created beings in their world. Yes, if you do not buy into the Judeo-Christian worldview, this point and the following will be pure gibberish to you, and you should stop reading.

So how does Divine sovereignty work? (By the way, Divine sovereignty is the phrase used by theologians and scholars to teach about God's absolute rule over His creation, both seen and unseen)

Actually, it's quite simple. In fact, it is so simple that Jesus, God's Son, simply said that to enter God's kingdom, you really have to recognize that all your smart-alecness is nothing, and less than nothing compared to God's prescription, and the smartest thing to do is to quickly say, 'God, I surrender!', and to really, really mean it.

And I did that. In fact, I have been doing that continuously. And in the case of my unbearable work-load, I was just chatting this morning with my daughter, whilst on the road to work, that only upon total surrender to the Divine Operator would we then be able to have relieve from our stress. And sure enough, as I surrendered to Him in prayer, I was wonderfully pleased to receive an email from my colleague from the Customer Marketing Department, that the leadership training outstation had been cancelled.

So much for Stress Innoculation Training, Cognitive Therapy methods, Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy, and Reality Therapy interventions!

The best method was again to go to the cross of God's Son, and recognize my utter weakness was also laid upon His Son, and through the cross and resurrection, an astounding exchange took place. He took everything weak about me upon Himself, and by His death took it away, and gave me His reward of perfect obedience and righteousness, which through His resurrection, gave me, via mediation of His Spirit, all the strength and ability (His actually!), to surrender to His workings, and then, know, when it does become unbearable, He will make a way for us, through the difficulties.

What a Savior!