The Lord gives strength to his people; the Lord blesses his people with peace. Psalm 29:11 (New International Version, NIV)

Have you felt stressed out? Is your mind unable to concentrate or focus like it should? Before you reach for some sort of medication or a fudge brownie to de-stress, let’s try to identify and fix some things that may be contributing to the problem.

My people will live in peaceful dwelling places, in secure homes, in undisturbed places of rest. Isaiah 32:18 (New International Version, NIV)

The first thing we’re going to consider is your physical environment. Is your house in a state of disorganization? Is there clutter everywhere? Our surroundings affect our mood and mental wellbeing, and if it’s chaotic everywhere you look, it can make you feel the same way. The solution to this problem is not complicated, but it does take some work to sort and organize stuff and keep things neat. The stores are full of containers for storage and solutions for keeping our lives orderly. Even dollar stores carry a number of totes and other items to help us get the mess under control. And if we dedicate 15-20 minutes everyday to keeping things picked up and tidy, we’ve got the problem licked. And we will find that we feel better too.

So teach us to number our days, That we may gain a heart of wisdom. Psalm 90:12 (NKJV)

The next thing we’re going to look at is the way we use our time. Do we spend our free time on the internet, our phones, social media, or watching television? While these have a certain usefulness, when we use our time to watch how other people are living their lives, it can make us dissatisfied with our own. For example, most people post the best moments of their lives on Facebook. When we look at those posts and compare them to our ordinary lives, we think their life is so much better than ours. The truth is they have the same issues and problems we do- they just don’t share them with the online community. To address this source of stress, make a firm commitment to unplug for a significant part of your day. Instead read, listen to worship music, find a hobby, do something that will bring satisfaction and enjoyment. And while you’re at it- pick up the Bible and spend some of your time with God. That will produce more peace than anything else you could do.

Be friends with those who are wise, and you will become wise. Choose fools to be your friends, and you will have trouble. Proverbs 13:20 (Easy-to-Read Version, ERV)

The last thing we’re going to discuss is the people we spend time with. Take an honest look at the people you hang out with. If you’re married and maybe you have kids, likely most of your time is spent with your family, but I’m talking about the other people you surround yourself with. Who are your friends and the people you do things with? First of all, do they have the same spiritual commitment that you do? If you want to focus on godly things and they are trying to pull you away from that, that’s a problem. Do they build you up or make you feel insecure? Does their presence draw things out of you that are positive and godly or do they bring out the worst? And here’s a biggie- is their life a constant source of drama? It is so important that our inner circle is filled with people who share our beliefs, who have our backs, support our dreams and who promote a sense of peace. Our relationships have a lot to do with our stress levels, so we may need to release some relationships in order to make room for better ones.

There are a number of other things that can affect our mental and emotional health, but if we start by addressing these three areas, I am convinced that a good number of us would see a marked improvement in how we feel about our lives. Yes, each of these areas will take work to fix, and it may be uncomfortable for a while, but in the end, it will go a long way in de-stressing our lives.