Have you ever asked someone how he is doing and you get some lengthy, irrelevant, hard-to-understand answer?   I asked a friend, “How are you?”  This is a rough estimate of his response, “Too blessed to be stress, paddling up the river of faith with grace as my oar, trudging the road with Jesus as my light.”  What?  I sincerely wanted to know how he was doing.  It’s laughable the multitude of responses you can get to such a simple question.

I laugh at his responses.  They are never personal and always lengthy.  On the other hand, they always do reference his walk with Christ.  His one response got me thinking.  Too blessed to be stressed.  It’s another one of those saying that I refer to as “Christianese”.  That language that Christians speak that really make people new to the faith wonder if this is really for them.  Maybe that is how Jesus’ disciples felt when He spoke in parables.

Have I ever been too blessed to be stressed?  Absolutely!  When I became pregnant at almost 39, my doctor was concerned about my “advancing age” and thus ultrasounds were done every month.  They suggested genetic testing and such.  I was too blessed by the miracle that God had formed in my womb to worry about my age.  I was healthy and I was the most blessed woman on earth.

When my oldest daughter was hit by a car at the busiest intersection in our town, we later found out 3 people from our church were stopped at that light and all began instantly praying for the “girl on the bike”.  She walked away a little bruised, but nothing serious.  Too blessed to be stressed.

When my husband’s surgery did not go as planned and left him unable to work for 8 weeks, I was too blessed to be stressed.  See, while Mark was coming out of the anesthesia, I called one of our Pastors and asked him to send out a prayer request that we would not become discouraged and trust that God would provide for us.  We couldn’t afford to not have Mark’s paycheck.  I was too blessed to be stressed, as people brought meals, anonymous cards with money and gift cards showed up at our home and on my desk at work.

Unfortunately, more often than I care to admit, I find myself too stressed to be blessed.  Have you ever been there?  In my rush to drive somewhere, I miss the blessing of the sunrise/sunset.  In my stress to get household chores done, I miss the blessing of my 3 year-old dancing (through my dirt pile) as she sings How Great Thou Art.  As the economy changes, stress over money tends to make me forget all the years that God has blessed us with His faithful provisions.  I get stressed being stuck in a long line at the Supermarket and miss the blessing of speaking to the customers around me, the cashier.  Maybe God wanted me to minister to them and I missed the blessing.

We hear diagnosis from doctors, we get phone calls in the middle of the night, we pace the floor waiting for our teenager to return home, we ignore the pile of bills and we face a decision.   Am I going to be stressed or blessed?  Will I hit my knees or hit someone?  Will I cry out to Jesus or scream at the kids?

Jesus tells us to cast our cares upon Him because He cares for us. (1 Peter 5:7)    1 Thes. 5:18 tells us to give thanks in ALL things.  Not some things, not the good things, but in ALL things.

And let’s not forget the beatitudes:
Matthew 5: 3″Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted. 5 Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth. 6 Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled.  7 Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.  8 Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.  9 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. 10 Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  11 Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. 12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Blessed or Stressed?  It’s ultimately our decision.  God has given us His Word, His promises, His faithfulness, His Son, His everything.  Give Him your cares, your worries, your anxiety, your stress, your fears.  Give it ALL to Him.  Then stand back and expect a miracle.