1) Stress is a natural part of our lives. It comes from many sources. Stress is triggered by fear. Often we are afraid of failure, of meeting expectations, or of bad things happening to us.
* What are some things that stress you out? Why are they so stressful?
* Does the stress pressure come from yourself, or from other people?
* What sort of effects do you suffer from stress?
* Does your stress usually last a long time, or a short time?
2) In the following reading, Moses has just died, and all the Israelite people are now looking to Joshua to lead them out of the desert into the promised land. There are literally hundreds of thousands of them ready to follow Joshua into battle.
Read: Joshua 1:1-9
After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, the LORD said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses' aide: "Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. I will give you every place where you set your foot, as I promised Moses. Your territory will extend from the desert to Lebanon, and from the great river, the Euphrates—all the Hittite country—to the Great Sea on the west. No one will be able to stand up against you all the days of your life. As I was with Moses, so I will be with you; I will never leave you nor forsake you.* What sorts of things do you think were on Joshua's mind that would be stressing him out?
"Be strong and courageous, because you will lead these people to inherit the land I swore to their forefathers to give them. Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Do not let this Book of the Law depart from your mouth; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go."
* What does God tell Joshua to do?
* Do you think Joshua took comfort in what God tells him?
3) It's easy to give advice for dealing with stress. Some of the things we hear are "Just don't worry" or "Pray and God will help you" or even "Well you just need to deal with it". However these little catch phrases don't always help. If we don't find a way to deal with stress it can lead to anxiety, depression and other serious physical and mental problems.
* How does the reading about Joshua help or not help you to deal with stress?
* What sort of things do you do to de-stress? How do they help?
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