Mental stress comes from trying to figure everything out, from worrying, from thinking about the same thing over and over without making any progress toward a solution and from allowing the mind to run on and on by dwelling on little deceptive thoughts inspired by the devil. It can also result from concentrating intently on something for a long period of time.

For example, our son David works for my husband Dave and me in our ministry. In the past, he worked on computers and designed flyers; his job was primarily mental.

One time he commented that when he got home in the evening after a long day's work, he felt as though there was a film over his eyes and fog over his brain. For a while he felt as if he couldn't think right.

Was his body telling him he was working too hard?

No, not necessarily. It simply meant his body was sending him the message, "I am moving in to overload now; let me rest."

When our bodies are giving us the message to rest, instead we often push and push into greater overload. However, many times if we would just sit down, get quiet and do something peaceful for even fifteen minutes, we would feel refreshed.

Our bodies have an amazing ability to rebuild and renew themselves and return to normal pretty quickly.

But if we refuse to give our bodies the rest they are calling for, we are asking for trouble. Pushing our bodies into overload and continuing to push and push as if we are Superman (or "SuperChristian") will cause something to give, physically, sooner or later.

If I start to sit down in a chair and hear the legs crack, I had better take my weight off the chair fast so that I won't end up on the floor! However, many people end up in a state of exhausted collapse because they do not heed the telltale warning signs in their bodies just as severe as the legs cracking on that chair!

I hear young people say things like, "Oh, I can eat anything I want, go without much sleep for days, and it doesn't bother me a bit."

If you are a young person repeatedly pushing your body beyond its physical limits, you may continue on this way for quite a while and feel great. But you may, and probably will, severely damage yourself. All of a sudden, one day your body will say, "I can't do this anymore," and something in your body or mind will break down or become ill.

Pushing your body to the point of damage, by not supplying it with the rest and food God created it to have, is disobedience. Your body can become severely damaged as a result of this disobedience.

Of course, God is the Healer and He is merciful, but after years of disobeying Him, you may find it more difficult to receive your healing. Believe God for a lifetime of divine health while you're healthy, and add to your believing, obedience to God's laws of health. The Bible teaches us to eat properly, get good rest and not be lazy - to get physical exercise.

Source: Help Me, I'm Stressed by Joyce Meyer
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers