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Keep God in view. When we're stressed, it's easy to lose sight of our faith. When that happens, we feel overwhelmed and forget that God has everything under control. "When we forget about God and attempt life on our own, our spiritual dehydration eventually shows." We can become angry and neglect the command to love our neighbor. Rather than try to deal with our stress apart from God and His Word, we can seek the Lord and find strength to sustain us in difficult times. Life is stressful—for most of us, there's no way around that fact. But we can prevent ourselves from being overcome by excessive stress by looking to God, remembering His Word, and counting on His grace to carry us through. If I had to pick one verse that shows Christ's perfect example of dealing with stress, it would be Jesus' words in the garden. "Father, if You are willing, remove this cup from Me. Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done" (Luke 22:42). Jesus acknowledged His stress and His desire to be relieved of it. But ultimately, He trusted that all things were in the hands of the Father, and He submitted Himself to the Father's perfect plan. How do we find joy in the midst of stress? The words of 1 Thessalonians 5:16–18 are instruc- tive: "Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." Note, it doesn't say to give thanks for all circumstances because not all things are good. Instead, it says to give thanks in all circumstances. So, amid any situa- tion, we can be thankful, joyful people. Our joy is not based on the shifting sands of our daily lives but on the unchanging, rock-solid foundation of Christ. Even when life is stressful, He is our joy. In a sense, all of Scripture is God beckoning us to always trust Him. "Many situations are handed to us without our asking. They are inherent stresses. We trust in God's plan to demonstrate His strength in our weakness." Scripture gives witness to God's faithfulness to His people. We can always count on Him. Many specific verses reinforce God's faithfulness and invite us to trust Him. Perhaps none speaks to us more powerfully than the Savior's own words: "Come to Me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28). You can respond sim- ilarly when under stress. You can enlist others to help carry your burden. You can seek God in prayer. You can entrust yourself to God's perfect will. In all of it, you can trust God, who sent His only Son to suffer in your place so that by faith you would be God's protected child. • LESSONS FROM THE GARDEN From Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane, we observe three constructive measures that apply to all types of stressful situations: 1. Jesus didn't try to carry the stress alone. He invited His closest friends—Peter, James, and John—to accompany Him. 2. Jesus prayed. Prayer calms our souls. It connects us to God, who promises, "My grace is sufficient for you, for My power is made perfect is weakness" (2 Corinthians 12:9). 3. Jesus entrusted Himself to His heav- enly Father's will. He asked for the cup of suffering to be removed. His request shows just how much angst He felt! While honestly admitting His feelings, Jesus submitted Himself to the Father's plan, praying, "Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done" (Luke 22:42). Christopher M. Kennedy, Grace under Pressure: Responding Faithfully to Stress (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 2022), 32, 45, 107. Read more about how we can respond in our faith to stress with Christopher Kennedy's book Grace under Pressure: Responding Faithfully to Stress. Find this title and others in this issue at cph.org. GRACE UNDER PRESSURE: RESPONDING FAITHFULLY TO STRESS Lutheran Life 13

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