Odd Perspectives

stress?

What a weighty topic I say - stress! Urgh, I am not a serious writer like all the other three Serious And Weighty Contributors of this venerable blogsite. I shall try, then to talk non-nonsensical-ly and weightily on stress..

What's stress? As Roger has intimated, stress is mainly a function of time, with much stress arising from the perceived inability to cope with a portion of work within a portion of time. Stress may also arise due to an uncertainty of one's own ability in any area; for example, to perform a task up to expectations, whether imposed by yourself or others. Stress, so often, is layered onto a situation simply based on what we perceive alone - ie. the facts and not the truth - when we would do so much better without it.

It is, of course, imperative to have a sense of urgency and set a certain standard or benchmark to achieve for a task to be done well; of course, to rephrase and borrow from an oft-abused metaphor - no one can ever attain the stars unless he or she first aims for the moon. So some stress, at least, is necessary; it is, however, when this 'healthy' stress crosses the line into paranoia, perfectionism and nitpicking that we need to start re-examining our ideals. We are all, after all, works in progress - our capacities are stretched by stress, but it's inevitable that we will, at times along our walk, fail. This brings to mind the separate choices of Judas and Peter; both having failed Jesus, must have been under tremendous stress. I can picture what went on in Judas' mind: i've failed, made the wrong choices - everything's ruined - there is no way i can make up for my betrayal. - imagine the eyes of the others on me - how dare i - how could i - there is no way i can improve. - it would be better to end everything now, for i have made the greatest mistake of my life. The stress brought on by his perception of how others would view him as a perpetrator of the crucifixion caused him to end his own life when with his potential and walk with Jesus, he could have made a difference to the world. Peter, on the other hand, might have started out on the same lines of thought; but somewhere along the way, a change in mindset occured: that he could make a difference, make some kind of atonement, and he rose up to the challenge. Had Peter been the shy, retiring sort who would have been too 'stressed out' by the responsibility, our church would be very much the poorer today for it.

At this juncture, an epiphany has occured: Some, if not a large part of the stresses that surround us every day, can be alleviated by a laying down of pride. Because it is now 3.20am and I need to get up at 5.45am, I cannot find the words to elaborate on this concept; rest assured I will, though, and soon. Thus, abruptly, ends my Really Serious Post in Attempting-To-Be-Grammatically-Correct-English. Hope you've enjoyed your virtual walk through my literary pontifications; good night, world!

posted by joyinthelord @ 2:39 AM