Too Much To Do, Too Little Time Series

got stress?

Too much to do and too Little Time

Slide

Series intro

Are you facing any stress?

Do you feel like you can’t do all that is on your plate?

Do you wonder if there is enough to pay the bills this month?

Are you wondering if you will ever seem to get a break to breathe?

Well, you are not alone.

Stress is something that seems to be just part of the American life.

According to a national health interview survey

75% of the general population experiences at least "some stress"

(Healthy People 2000, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services) (http://www.stresscure.com/hrn/facts.html)

There are lots of people out there suffering from stress.

Maybe you are dealing with stress. I know that I deal with stress.

I believe that most of us will have to deal with stress at some point, whether we are a Christian or not.

But I believe that suffering from stress is not supposed to be a way of life.

Instead, I believe it is an indicator that something is not right and something needs to change.

Peace

For those who trust in Christ, peace is supposed to be what we are experiencing as a normal part of life.

In the gospel of John, Jesus tells us, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” (John 14:27)

Fear often brings about stress

Fear of the unknown

Fear that you won’t be able to get everything done that you need to get done.

Jesus told the disciples about some of the things that would happen in the future to him so when they did happen, they would not be afraid, but instead experience peace.

He says in John 16:33, "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."

The Lord wants us to live in peace, not stress

He does not want to worry about the future or about what will happen or about things that we can’t control.

Worrying about those things leads to stress in our lives.

Turn with me to Matthew 6:25-27.

Slide

We are going to read this section of Scripture this morning, as well as take a look at Jesus’ own life and teaching so that we might better be able to live in a Christ like manner, free from the stresses of life.

Let’s read.

Matthew 6:25-27

25 "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?

Pray

“Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?”

Have you ever been so stressed that you felt like if you just had a few more hours during the week, or during the day, I would be able to get all that I have to do done?

A few more hours to study for that test

A few more hours to finish a work project

A few more hours to get things done around the house

A few more hours to finish a sermon (oh, wait, that’s me)

I am sure at points, each of us have felt this way and that is where I want to focus our attention this morning, because I think one of the primary causes of stress in our society is that we feel like we have

Too Much to do and Too Little Time

to do it

Slide

How do we deal with that?

It seems that we try to squeeze more hours into our day.

Now we can’t really add another hour to the day. We know the truth of what Jesus said.

Instead of adding an extra hour to the day, we try to take it from somewhere else.

I will get up earlier. I don’t need 6.5 hours of sleep, I can get by on 5.5 hours.

Or

I will multi task. Check email and phone messages on my way to work and return calls while I am coming home from work or in the car.

Then when we get home, we grab a fast food dinner with the family and eat in the car so we can get to our kid’s activities.

We DVR our favorite TV shows so we can fast forward through the commercials and cut down watching time to 22 minutes instead of 30 minutes.