Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope

Shauna: This is Shauna on Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope. Here's our friend Joni with a word about living with pressure.

Joni Eareckson Tada: Actually, we could say a lot of words about living with pressure, right? I mean, so many Christians struggle with it. But not all of it comes from an overloaded schedule. Not all pressure and stress comes from overcommitting ourselves. That stuff can be addressed and an overcrowded appointment calendar can be avoided, but what about the stuff that you cannot avoid?

Sometimes we get stressed to the max by things in life that are completely out of our control. And I understand that kind of stress, because my quadriplegia is at the root of it all. My disability with all its complications and demands are often the source of my stress. Now, if it were just quadriplegia, I might do okay.

But often added to it is maybe a pressure sore or a lung infection that I have to deal with, or a seat cushion that needs repair, or wheelchair batteries that go on the blink, or the mechanical lift on my van breaks down. And sometimes it's a problem with my voice activation software which causes delay. Sometimes my husband feels stress from caregiving.

And frankly, even an ordinary dinner invitation from a friend, it can really stress me and Ken out. Taking our portable ramps to the home of our friend, getting in their inaccessible house, fitting under a table, finding someone to come over later that night to help me lay down. Now, please know, I'm not complaining. Really, I'm not. For me, it's just life.

But I don't want to avoid my life. I just want to be able to manage it with a little less stress. Maybe you feel the same. And if so, let me tell you where I get my inspiration. Remember in the Garden of Gethsemane when Jesus fell to his knees and he prayed? He was faced with overwhelming circumstances, a cruel death on the cross.

And he agonized. He stressed over this. He fell on the ground and prayed, "Oh, Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me." Now, Jesus was asking to not have to face the cross, to not have to bear it. He was asking his father if maybe there might be some other way. But then, in the next breath, he also prayed, "Yet not as I will, but as you will."

Jesus was quick to tell the Father that he was ready to accept anything from his hand, even an agonizing death on a terrible cross. Moments later, when the soldiers came to arrest him, Jesus did not resist. And when Peter drew his sword to fight them off, the Lord said to him, "Put that sword away. Shall I not drink the cup the Father has given me?"

Did you get that? Jesus' mindset was no longer to possibly sidestep the cross if possible. No, now he was ready to unflinchingly embrace the cross. And oh, does that speak to me, and I hope it speaks to you. Because if you're faced with stress in life that you just can't avoid, by all means, pray that if it is God's will, he might remove it.

But once you have prayed, leave the trial with him and be willing to take up your cross and follow Jesus down the hard path. He overcame his cross so that you might have the power to overcome your burdens.

Guest (Male): Listening friend, if you need help doing this, please, I encourage you right now to visit us at joniradio.org where you'll find great insights and practical advice to help you face the stressful things in life that simply can't be avoided.

And remember, don't avoid the hard things. Embrace them. That's the example our Lord Jesus gave to you and to me, and it's the path to true Christian contentment.