Guest Post: 10 TIPS FOR FINDING CALM IN YOUR CHAOS (and a GIVEAWAY)

Exodus 33:14 says "My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.

Stress is a universal epidemic which has created desperation for peace in the hearts, minds, and souls of people everywhere. The problems of today’s world have created a sense of secret panic in the heart of every American, regarding jobs, homes, marriage, child rearing, financial security, and the future.

As a result, millions of people are forced to wake up every morning and face these stressors in their lives, feeling hopeless that life will improve, and inadequate and unequipped to make that happen. Although people have tried everything from massages to vacations and everything in between, many are overlooking the only real cure for stress – Jesus.

The inner peace that comes from the miracle of a changed heart, a renewed perspective on life, and a reenergized faith is the only kind of permanent peace available. Below you will find 10 tips for helping you tap into the peace-filled stress relief you have been searching for.

1. Recognize what is causing you the most stress and ask God to help you in those areas. Change the things you can change, but what you can’t change, turn over to God.

2. Reflect on what your definition of peace is. Is it based on your circumstances or your relationship with God? Ask God to help you relax because of who He is, not because life is conflict free.

3. Reclaim your identity. Make sure that the opinion you have of yourself lines up with what God’s Word says about you, and not the opinions of others or the trappings of comparison. Forgive those who have hurt you and embrace your worth and value in Christ.

4. Redirect your thoughts. Focus on becoming an optimist, putting pessimism behind you.

5. Rearrange your priorities and control your busyness. Ask God for guidance about what your priorities should be right now, and for the courage to make changes as He sees fit.

6. Refresh yourself by getting a portion of God’s Word every day, so that His peace can fill your heart. Also make time for yourself and do something that you enjoy.

7. Release your fears and worries to God, instead of letting them suffocate your joy and peace. Ask God for the strength to trust that He has it all under control.

8. Refocus on what’s really important in life. Don’t become consumed with sweating the small stuff.

9. Reinforce your faith by spending time in prayer, studying scripture, and fellowshipping with other believers. Equip yourself with spiritual armor so you will be prepared to stand strong when adversity strikes.

10. Recharge your life by humbling yourself before God, acknowledging your stress, and embracing the true rest that He offers.

To dig deeper into each of these 10 tips and learn how to apply them to your life, and to receive a daily challenge activity for each tip, sign up for Tracie’s free 10 DAY STRESS DETOX on her blog at www.traciewmiles.com.

If you would like a copy of Tracie's new book, Stressed Less Living, today is your lucky day.  I have 3 copies I will be giving away.  All you have to do is leave a comment below describing which tip above you need to use in your live to live a less stressed life.  I will choose 3 winners on Saturday, October 13. 

Guest Post: God Is Bigger Than You Think

Our problems and our stress can sometimes seem so much bigger than we can handle, especially when we are not only facing one giant problem, but many. You may be facing a major giant right now—being in a personal relationship that has suffered many blows, a marriage that is crumbling more and more every day, a spouse addicted to pornography, a friend or family member held hostage by substance abuse, an inability to find employment despite daily efforts for months, home foreclosure, difficult bosses, harassing credit and collection phone calls, tragic accidents, chronic or terminal illness, family problems, sexual abuse, or worse.


Sometimes even our greatest efforts to manage our stress can seem futile when our giants seem too huge to ever overcome. Instead of seeing progress, we feel like we are just beating our head against the wall, over and over, becoming more stressed-out as the reality sinks in that we cannot change the situations that are stressing us, no matter how badly we wish we could.

Ever been there? I know I have.

I used to wake up every morning and start thinking about all the stressful things that I had to face that day. I would try to give myself a pep talk to preempt negativity: Today I will not allow things, circumstances, or people to push me over the edge. No matter what, I commit to maintaining my temper, my poise, and my attitude. I will trust God to be my portion and walk in his ways.

However, within two hours that heart-felt commitment would become a distant memory as I jumped head first into the day and got sucked deeper and deeper into all of my problems. In fact, on some days, it actually seemed like life had a chokehold on me, and no matter what I did, I couldn’t pry its ugly fingers from around my weakened jugular.

By the grace of God alone, I feel so blessed to have discovered years ago that life does not have to be that way and that God never intended for it to be. He never intended for us to lead lives of despair, stress, and dread. He never meant for us to be so bogged down with worry and stress that we would dread getting up in the morning; although, this type of living became a reality when sin came into his perfect world. But God is still God. We cannot escape our life, but he is our escape from stress.

Overcoming your stress begins with recognizing the fact that no matter what problems are causing you stress and anxiety, God IS BIGGER. Yes, he is bigger than the issue you are thinking about right now. He is bigger than the hopelessness that seems to be engulfing your every breath. He is bigger than the greatest fears you hold in your heart. He is bigger than the unrelenting stress that plagues your heart as you try to juggle all the demands for your time and attention throughout the day. He is bigger than your biggest challenge, whatever it may be.

As we become more mature in faith, learning to trust that God is capable of all things, we will see God as bigger and bigger every time we encounter him. God is, and was, and always will be the same, but as we give him sovereignty over our hearts, our awe of him increases.

You see, each time he intervenes in our lives, we witness his power and our view of him grows. Once we allow ourselves to grasp how big God really is, we can learn to put aside worry and stress, and learn to rest in knowing that he can handle our problems—leaving no need for us to destroy ourselves stressing over them.

One of the biggest mistakes that Christians make is seeing the giants in our lives as so huge that we lose sight of the fact that God is bigger. But God’s desire is that with every new circumstance we face, we see not only the giant, but an opportunity to discover what he is capable of handling, and just how big he really is. And to discover that in Him, we can be less stressed.

Tracie Miles is a national speaker with Proverbs 31 Ministries, and the author of Stressed-less Living: Finding God’s Peace In Your Chaotic World. She is a contributing author to the Proverbs 31 Encouragement For Today devotions, and the P31 Woman Magazine. She considers herself the poster child for stress recovery, and has a passion to help others discover the peace that God can infuse into our lives, even when our circumstances are less-than-peaceful. She lives in North Carolina with her husband and three children.