There is Less Stress When You Get the Beginning Right

There is Less Stress When You Get the Beginning Right

The Torah reads, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Genesis 1:1.

It is a simple yet profound statement. I think fully understanding this statement can remove a lot of our unnecessary stress. One of the reasons so many of us are plagued with worry about work, education, and other daily concerns is because we begin with ourselves as the focus and solution to our needs instead of God. Instead of understanding that it is God that is ultimately responsible for providing everything we assume we are or at least act like it.

No one was created to be their own Creator. This doesn’t mean we shouldn’t take responsibility for doing the best we can with the options we have in life. “Whatever you are capable of doing, do with all your might because there’s no work, thought, knowledge, or wisdom in the grave, which is where you are headed.” Ecclesiastes 9:10n “The desires of the lazy will kill them, because their hands refuse to do anything.” Proverbs 21:25. We do have power to create different situations for ourselves based on choices we make and are encouraged to be wise, but we are not to depend on ourselves as the ultimate source or solution for all of our needs. God is our provider, and without God we can do nothing. While we go about our lives if we remember that the real source of all that we have and will need is God we won’t carry such a heavy burden.

Trying to fulfill the role of the ultimate provider, which only God should have, is not good for our mental health. But we can also make a similar mistake by holding others to expectations that only God can meet, which can destroy relationships. No human should be seen as the source of your heaven or earth. No one can live up to the role of provider the same way God can; to think so is only setting yourself up for disappointment, and is unfair to the other person. While we are to do the best we can for ourselves and others we need to remember that God alone is the one who can make everything work and lean on the Creator to create our lives in the way God deems best instead of depending solely on ourselves or anyone else.

So whatever you need to do, place God’s ability, not yours, at the beginning of your thought process. Don’t think of God simply as a last resort and to turn to Him in prayer when everything else stops working. Let God create your life instead of trying to create everything yourself. If you understand it is God that gives you the ability to do something you can also trust God to help you use it in the correct manner and take care of the circumstances in which you need to use it if you ask. Remembering God at the beginning of your day and at the start of any difficulty stops you from putting undo pressure on yourself (or others) to perform throughout the day and makes things much better. When we stop acting as if we have to take on the role of God in our own lives we can be free to live without all of that unnecessarily stress.

Related Articles

More From Articles

Samson's Mistakes

Have you ever heard someone say, ‘Everything works together for good’?
Samson's Mistakes

Samson & Delilah

At a time when Israel was not following GOD and they were under the rulership of the…
Samson & Delilah

Altar of Incense

One of the three pieces of furniture in the Holy Place of God's sanctuary is the Altar of…
Altar of Incense

Women to Women, Men to Men

Moreover, the king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was called Shifrah and…
Women to Women, Men to Men

Ark of the Covenant

In the sanctuary that was given to Moses, God's presence was made manifest to the people.
Ark of the Covenant

Belshazzar's Party Crasher

“King Belshazzar gave a great banquet for a thousand of his nobles and drank wine with them.
Belshazzar's Party Crasher

Technically....I'm Still Wrong

“And Abraham journeyed from there to the South, and dwelt between Kadesh and Shur, and stayed…
Technically....I'm Still Wrong

Nathan Saved Bathsheba's Life

Adonijah is a person that not many seem familiar with. He was actually the fourth son of David…
Nathan Saved Bathsheba's Life
Illustration: Job, covered with boils, sits listening to his friends.

What Does it Cost to be Faithful?

The ancient story of Job in the Bible has encouraged many men and women throughout the ages.…
What Does it Cost to be Faithful?

Traded for Taste

“Now Jacob cooked a stew; and Esau came in from the field, and he was weary. And Esau said to…
Traded for Taste

Israel's New Name

Do you know where the name Israel comes from? It originated in a most remarkable manner.…
Israel's New Name

If God is Love

Many people seem to struggle with reconciling these two verses: “The LORD is compassionate and…
If God is Love

Torah-Cursed Blessings

The Jewish Bible gives us a serious warning, "'And now, O priests, this commandment is for you.…
Torah-Cursed Blessings
Creation

Adam

On the 6th day of earth's creation God said, "Let us make man in our image after our likeness."…
Adam

Torah-Judah and Tamar

“After a long time Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had recovered from his…
Torah-Judah and Tamar

Publish the Menu module to "offcanvas" position. Here you can publish other modules as well.
Learn More.


donation