Families are in need of more calm and less stress! The breathless pace we're living in is tearing families apart. Still, there is something that can be done about the stress you and your family experiences. A lot of stress can be removed if you make the tough choices necessary to gain control over your schedule.
Here are 5 choices you can make to help eliminate the stress in your life:
1. Create a Calm Environment at Home. Make your home a safe, calm haven from the madness going on in the outside world. Try not to overreact to circumstances of home life. Sure, many issues need to be addressed, but when you get angry or frustrated, overreactions are common and family stress levels rise. Look to cool down before you respond to such situations.
2. Refresh Your Spirit. Make time for God everyday. Reading a daily devotional each day is a great way to refresh your spirit in the presence of God. Encourage your family to do the same. Consider a regular family devotional time.
3. Renew Your Body. To eliminate stress, we need to be people who reflect balance in our physical lives. Everyone in your family needs plenty of rest, exercise, and a healthy diet.
4. Strengthen Family Relationships. Our families provide us with relational connections that will sustain us through both good times and bad. Strained or broken family relationships are naturally accompanied by stress. To eliminate stress, take the lead with your family to make sure your relationships become and stay healthy.
5. Roll with the Punches. No family is exempt from difficulties in life. Some are brief "moments" while others are "seasons." How we respond to the hard times is a determining factor of whether or not stress will wreak havoc with our family. Stay flexible when the tough times happen and your family will still be standing when those times have passed.
In the end, your family's stress levels have a lot to do with your own choices. You can choose to let busyness, over-commitment, and hard times take their toll on your family, or you can proactively make choices to lower the stress your family experiences. Begin today by making choices to ruthlessly eliminate stress in your home!
