First Take

The world is a stressful place: war, inflation, a global pandemic, the stresses of regular life. It’s a lot! We might feel overwhelmed.

I read some good advice about coping. We need to focus on what’s under our control: our health, livelihood, relationships and hope. How do we protect our hope? By remembering problems are usually temporary. Even if they don’t go away, a positive attitude might help us think of ways to deal with our situation.

We need to take one day at a time. The Bible says: “Never be anxious about the next day, for the next day will have its own anxieties.” The article I read noted that worrying about negative things that might happen will only add to our stress.

We should look for ways that we can help family and friends. Doing things for others will help keep our problems in perspective.

Personally, what helps me is knowing that life won’t always be so tough and God will “wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore.” (Revelation 21:4)