I have a lot of stress. What can I do?

You asked a great Apple Box question: “I seem to be having a lot of stress. What can I do?” It is a big and important question and I hope this Apple Box answer begins to address it. Remember, you can ALWAYS ask follow-up questions!

A friend once told me, “If you don’t feel stress, you just fall down!” He was right, you know, because some stress is just plain necessary in life. No stress in my muscles and I fall to the floor in a puddle; no stress in my conscience and I make poor moral choices; no stress during a math test means I am not using my brain – you get the picture … we have to decide whether the stress we are experiencing is “good” stress – like the stuff above – or “bad” stress – like the stress caused when you are bullied or the stress that causes you to feel super mad, sad, scared or shamed.

Since I don’t know exactly what kind of stress you are dealing with, here is some general & biblical advice for dealing with “bad” stress. 

After you read this, I encourage you to speak to someone you trust about your stress. It is a good first step to ask the Apple Box. Next, actually SPEAK with someone. For example, perhaps choose your dad or your mom. You could ask to speak with them. 

Then you choose a comfortable place (maybe the dinner table after dinner, or in your room before bed, or under your favorite tree in your yard – someplace you like). My daughter and I always went to the same comfortable place to talk about difficulties, problems and stresses, and it made it easier to chat.

Then ask them to listen but without giving you advice. (This helps you explain everything you want to explain. And you have to ask them just to listen because people who love you naturally want to help you and give advice – and that’s ok, but they first have to completely listen so they know your whole story. Does that make sense?)

Finally, ask them to share an experience from their own life. This will help you to know that they understand a little bit better what you are experiencing (even though what you feel is still different) and also that you are not alone in feeling stressed (in fact, I’m pretty sure every human being feels super stressed at one point or another.

When I have been stressed I have gone to Scripture for help. There are certainly many verses which can offer you comfort, but truly my favorite is Psalm 23 (the whole thing!) I would also encourage you to read Jeremiah 29:11-13. I have found comfort from stress in both of these verses many times. They help me understand that I am loved, and valued, that I belong and am important, and that I am not alone.

I hope this answers your question. Let me know how it goes, ok? God bless you!

Where is God?

This is a super fantastic question, "Where is God?"

Since God is Spirit and not physical, we can’t use our physical senses to see, hear, smell, taste or touch him. So how do we know where he is?

Let’s go to the Bible and see what it says …

In the book of Jeremiah God said, “Am I only a God nearby, and not a God far away? Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him? Do I not fill heaven and earth?” (Jeremiah 23:23, 24)

In Psalm 139 King David wrote, “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night – but even in darkness I cannot hide from you.” (Psalm 139:7-12a)

In Matthew 28:20 Jesus told us, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Bottom line, there is no place where God is not. I have to admit, this kind of thinking is waaaaayyyy beyond my brain capacity but we must try to understand that God is able to be present everywhere because he is Spirit. He is not confined to a physical existence. God is not limited by human categories, human experience, or human reason.

But – and this is the best part – knowing that God is present everywhere not only means that you don’t need to feel alone, it means you don’t need to feel afraid. No matter what you are facing, you face it with God at your side!

If God gave us great things in life, why does he take them away sometimes?

Wow!! That is an amazing question! And it is such a difficult question to answer because the answer can be so frustrating at times. It’s almost like when you’re mom or dad says, “Because I said so…that’s why!”

Let me first start by telling you about the character of God. As hard as it is for us to understand this, God is good all the time. God can do no evil. He’s not like some angry, evil person who delights in watching us suffer. God loves you and only wants what is best for you.

The Bible has many scriptures relating to God’s love for us; in fact, one of the greatest scripture verses is John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that he gave His one and only Son, and whoever shall believe in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” God gave us Jesus and what’s really amazing is this: “But God demonstrates His love for us in this: while we were still sinners he sent His son to die for use.” (Romans 5:8)

I quote these two verses to show you how much God loves you. One of my favorite Scripture passages is Jeremiah 29:11-13, which reads, “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Wow! The Lord of all creation loves us all so much that He wants us all to prosper and to be protected. He also wants to give you a hope and a future.

He also promises us that He will listen to us through prayer! We also know that He loves us deeply and because of that He “knit us in our mother’s womb” and we are “fearfully and wonderfully made.” (Psalm 139:13-14) We know that He thinks about us so much and so often that the sheer number would outnumber the grains of sand on a beach (Psalm 139:18).

So then the obvious question is why does He sometimes take away the great things in life? Honestly, I don’t know why. What I do know is that God has a plan that is much bigger than we can even imagine. There is no way for us to fully understand why God does some things because we tend to look at it from only our perspective.

Let’s look at the earthquake in Haiti, for example. It is so easy for us to ask, “Why did God kill all those people?” But, here’s the thing: God didn’t kill anyone. He allowed certain things to happen and He allowed some people to die, but He didn’t set out to kill them. I know it’s hard to understand but God doesn’t kill people, either out of anger or to punish them. He does allow it and He does have a reason for allowing it to happen … we just don’t know why or can understand God’s thinking. God is a “big picture” kind of God and we’re more the “in-the-moment” thinkers and reactors.

Remember though, there were some miracles that occurred down there too. I read a story about a child who was found alive after SEVEN days without food or water. How does that happen??? Even more amazing, they found a 69-year old woman alive after TEN days. How is that possible??? Ten days without food or water??? I can’t even go a day without eating or drinking something. One survivor, who was trapped under a collapsed building, talks about confessing his sins and giving his life to Jesus … only to be rescued within hours of that prayer. Another woman was pinned under a house in a kneeling position and was stuck in that position for FIVE days. She said that during the entire time, THE ENTIRE TIME, she was praying to Jesus. And when they found her and dug her out, she was able to walk into her husband’s arms.

There was an orphanage in a small town called Petion-Ville. Do you know that while every building around the orphanage collapsed, including a building that housed volunteers, the main orphanage did not collapse and every child survived? How do we explain that?

How do we explain any of those miracles? I’m sure there are many more but those are the ones I can remember. It’s because God also has a plan for each and every survivor. Do I know what his reasons are? Absolutely not! But, my faith in God is so strong that I know, without a shadow of a doubt, that it fulfilled God’s overall divine plan. One of my favorite Bible verses is a simple one and one that is easy to remember. It is Proverbs 3:5-6 and it says, “Trust in the Lord, your God, with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding but in all ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.”

We have to trust God’s will despite what we see as being so sad and so tragic. And know and put your faith in the fact that God is good.

Why do people do evil things?

Quite simply, it’s because of sin. When Adam and Eve disobeyed God and took a bite of that apple, it let sin and evil into this world. But, I need to be clear on this too … God gave us all free will to either choose sin or to choose righteousness. Some people are just truly evil for whatever reasons. They’ve turned their backs on God and decided to live lives that we can’t even understand. We look at truly bad people and say, “Wow, I’m glad I’m not him!” The sad part is we all sin to some degree. Even though we don’t mean to be evil, we sometimes do things that hurt the heart of God. For example, lying to your parents or friends, being angry at someone and hoping something bad will happen to them, cheating on a test, or maybe stealing some candy when no one is looking. The Bible tells us specifically:

“There is no one righteous; not even one.” (Romans 3:10)

“For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23)

It seems hopeless, doesn’t it? But, guess what? Here’s the Good News: Jesus Christ came to this earth and died on the cross for our sins. Our belief in that death and resurrection and the gift of grace that Jesus gives us through faith is what saves us from eternal punishment! Now, you have to ask yourself, do I really believe that? I am here to tell you without hesitation or shame that, yes, I believe that.

The reason that belief is so important is because if you don’t believe it or you question your faith, then that’s when fear creeps in. You begin to question things, especially when bad things happen! I have had many kids ask me, “How could God kill all those people in Haiti during that earthquake?” or, “Why does God let little children die?” Because we can’t make sense of it, we begin to falter in our faith, not trusting that God has a reason for it.

And when we doubt God, we allow fear to override our faith. I truly believe that it’s Satan trying to deceive us and to discourage us from trusting God completely. Satan knows that if he can create doubt in your mind, that’s when the fear can creep in. Satan is a master liar. He will do everything he can to make you doubt God’s abilities or love for you; he will even twist God’s word! Remember what he said to Eve in the Garden of Eden? Satan came as a serpent and convinced Eve to take a bite of the apple by saying to her, “Did God really say not to eat from any tree in the garden?” (Genesis 3:1) Then that darn serpent said, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good from evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5)

He tricked Eve and sin came into the world. Once sin entered the world, it allowed doubt to also enter our minds. When we doubt God’s abilities or love for us, we get scared. It’s not because we don’t believe in God, it’s because Satan makes us doubt that God is who He says He is and that God couldn’t possibly do all those things.

But, remember this…it’s all about faith. Know in your heart that God is who He says He is. Know that God is good all the time and that He cannot sin. Know that God loves you and that He has plans for you…plans to prosper you and not to harm you; plans to give you a hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11)

How does God respond to prayers?

Wow! First, we must accept that God hears and knows all prayers. We know this because God is omniscient, which is a very big word that simply means that God sees and hears and knows everything that happens on earth. The Holy Bible also affirms this repeatedly.

So, make no mistake, when you pray to God … He hears you! So, now that we know that He hears our prayers, does He respond to them? There are many instances in both the Old Testament and New Testament in which righteous men and women had their prayers answered (e.g., Numbers 11:2; Judges 13:8-9; 1 Samuel 1; 1 Chronicles 4:10; Acts 4:24-31; James 5:17-18).

Ahhhh…but wait a minute. Did you catch that? I described those people as “righteous.” That basically means you have right standing with God. The Bible is very specific about prayers. Look at James 5:16, which states, “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”

Jeremiah 29:12-13 says, “Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.”

So, now we know that God responds to prayers but only if you love God and seek a relationship with him. Now, here’s the kicker … sometimes God’s answer may not be the answer you want! Sometimes, because He knows what is best for you, the answer might be “no.” You may want something so bad but God may realize that you either couldn’t handle having it or you didn’t need it and so His answer is, no. That kinda stinks, doesn’t it? We imagine God’s always going to be there for us (which He is!) and that He’s going to give us everything we ask for. But I’ve searched the Bible from front to back and He never makes that promise! He only assures that He hears our prayers and that He will answer them … even if that answer is, no.

Now, let me clear on one more thing. The Bible is also very specific about the prayers of those who are not in right standing with God or who are in habitual sin. In John 9:31 it says, “We know that God does not listen to sinners. He listens to the godly man who does his will.” Proverbs 15:29 says, “The Lord is far from the wicked but hears the prayers of the righteous.” Psalm 66:18 clearly states, “If I had cherished sin in my heart, the Lord would not have listened.”

So, remember, if you want God to answer your prayers, you must acknowledge Him and love Him and have a relationship with Him.

If you know God is by your side, how can you still feel scared?

That is an awesome question!!! I actually love this question because I’ve had a lot of kids ask me this in person and it gives me the chance to ask a question back and that question is: Why are you scared?

I can promise you that it’s not because God isn’t there for you. He is always with you and thinks about you more times than there are grains of sand on a beach. He also knows every hair on your head and knows your every thought, hopes and dreams.

So, where does this fear come from then? Why do we get scared? And believe me, we all get scared at one time or another. Is it Satan trying to deceive us and to discourage us from trusting God completely? Satan does know that if he can create doubt in your mind, that’s when the fear can creep in. Satan is a master liar. He will do everything he can to make you doubt God’s love for you; he will even twist God’s Word! Remember what he said to Eve in the Garden of Eden? Satan came as a serpent and convinced Eve to take a bite of the apple by saying to her, “Did God really say not to eat from any tree in the garden?” (Genesis 3:1) Then that darn serpent said, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good from evil.” (Genesis 3:4-5)

He tricked Eve and sin came into our world. Once sin entered the world, it allowed doubt to also enter our minds. When we doubt God’s love for us, we get scared. It’s not because we don’t believe in God, it’s because Satan makes us doubt that God is who He says He is and that God couldn’t possibly do all those things.

But, remember this…it’s all about faith in God. Know in your heart that God is who He says He is. Know that God is good all the time and that He cannot sin. Know that God loves you and that He has plans for you…plans to prosper you and not to harm you; plans to give you a hope and a future. (Jeremiah 29:11)

And when things seem to be going bad, remember this: “TRUST in the Lord, your God, with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding but in all ways acknowledge Him and He will make your paths straight.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

What if we are not doing the right religion?

This is such a good question. The answer can be found in the Word of God. Any other religion could argue that THEIR “bible” contains the truth and they might ask, “Why do you think “YOURS” is the absolute truth?” I’ll just share with you a few pieces of Scripture so you can see what God says about Himself and His Word.

He both speaks directly and uses others as His mouthpiece. For instance, this is what the apostle Paul writes to Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:16: “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable (useful) for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; that the man (or woman or girl or boy!) of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work (New American Standard Bible).”

Here are some more:

“The law of the Lord is perfect, restoring the soul; the testimony (evidence) of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts (instructions) of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes (Psalm 19:7, 8)”

In verses 9-11, King David goes on to describe what it’s like to follow the Word of God:

“The fear (reverence, worship, respect) of the Lord is clean, enduring forever, the judgments of the Lord are true; they are righteous altogether. They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb. Moreover, by them Thy servant is warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”

Jesus prays for His disciples in chapter 17 of John. In verse 17 He says, “Sanctify them in the truth; Thy word is truth.”

There are so many scriptures in the Bible that confirm the fact that this truly is THE very word of God. We’re even told that He holds His Word above His name. One fun thing for you to do would be to look up “word” in a concordance (ask me if you don’t know this word) and check out some of the verses.

Again, it is important to believe that the Bible we read and reference is really true because it provides us with the very foundation of our faith. Another aspect of our faith has to do with the fact that Jesus is the only “religious” leader who rose from the dead. With all other beliefs, the spiritual leaders died, were buried and their graves still hold their bones.

Colossians 1:15 tells us that Jesus is the “image of the invisible God.” Hebrews 1:1-3 says, “God…..in these last days has spoken to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the world, and He is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature…” These are just a few of the verses that verify the fact that Jesus truly is God.

There are also many scriptures that confirm to my spirit that THIS God, the One who gave His life for us, is the One true God. This is important to believe because so many other religions will say that THEIR God or religious hero is the REAL one and ours is false.

Listen to what God says about Himself in Isaiah 45:5-7: “I am the Lord, and there is no other; besides Me there is no God. I am the Lord, and there is no other, the One forming light and creating darkness, causing well-being and creating calamity; I am the Lord who does all these.” That’s just one teeny weeny portion of all God says about Himself in Isaiah.

Isaiah is a GREAT book in the Bible. If ever you want your socks blown off about the reality of God, go ahead and read Isaiah 40-50. Some parts might be hard for you to understand because they contain prophecy, but other parts are clear as a bell!

You already know that when we ask Jesus to live in our hearts, He sets His Spirit in us. We’re told in John 16:13 that when “He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide [us] into all truth.” The Holy Spirit is the mouthpiece of Jesus. He speaks to our hearts and reminds us of all that Jesus desires of us. Listen to what Jesus says in John 10:1-5: “Truly, truly I say to you, he who does not enter by the door into the fold of the sheep, but climbs up some other way, he is a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is a shepherd of the sheep, to him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name, and leads them out. When he puts forth all his own (sheep), he goes before them, and the sheep follow him because they know his voice. And a stranger they simply will not follow, but will flee from him because they do not know the voice of strangers.” In this passage, Jesus is the Shepherd and WE are the sheep. When the Holy Spirit indwells us, we fully recognize the voice of our Shepherd. This mouthpiece of God is only given to those who confess that “Jesus is Lord.”

You know, I could go on and on—but at least what I’ll do is jot down a few verses for you to check out on your own and you can see how the Lord speaks to YOU on the topic (or topics):

--Jeremiah 31:33
--Jeremiah 10 (the whole chapter is full of good stuff)
--Jeremiah 23: 16-24
--1 Corinthians 1:18

How do we know what God's plan is for us?

Excellent question!!! There are many references in the Bible as to what God’s plans for us are but my two favorites are John 10:10 and Jeremiah 29:11-13.

John 10:10 simply reads, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” That is how the NIV states it; some Bibles say that God came to give you life and to give it to you abundantly. That shows how much He truly cares for you. His plan for you is to have a life that is full of His grace and mercy!

In fact, in 2 Peter 3:9, it is written, “The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” So, you see, God doesn’t want anyone to perish (eternal death) but he wants them to have eternal life with Him in Heaven!

Jeremiah 29:11-13 reads, “For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart.” Wow. The Lord of all creation loves us all so much that He wants us all to prosper and to be protected. He also wants to have a relationship with us through prayer! You see, if you seek God with all your heart He will never, ever abandon you or forsake you!

How can God be everywhere at once?

Great question,! Sometimes it’s so hard to understand God’s awesome abilities and powers. The problem is that us lowly, puny human beings try to create God in our image rather than the other way around!

But, let’s remember one thing…there is only one true God and we need to see Him as He is, which is omniscient (all-knowing), omnipotent (all-powerful) and omnipresent (being everywhere at the same time).

In answer to your question, God's omnipresence means that He is present everywhere all the time. Look at what the Bible says:

God said through Jeremiah, “Am I only a God far away? Can anyone hide in secret places so that I cannot see him? Do I not fill heaven and earth?” (Jeremiah 23:23,24)

In Psalm 139 David wrote, “I can never escape from your Spirit! I can never get away from your presence! If I go up to heaven, you are there; if I go down to the grave, you are there. If I ride the wings of the morning, if I dwell by the farthest oceans, even there your hand will guide me, and your strength will support me. I could ask the darkness to hide me and the light around me to become night— but even in darkness I cannot hide from you. To you the night shines as bright as day. Darkness and light are the same to you.” (Psalm 139:7-12)

In Matthew 28:20 Jesus told us, “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Bottom line, there is no place where God is not. God is not only present in all places but God is fully present in every place. I have to admit, this kind of thinking is wayyyy beyond my brain capacity! But we must try to understand that God is able to be "present everywhere" because He is Spirit. He is not confined to a three dimensional existence. God is infinite which means He has no beginning or end. God is not limited by human categories, human experience, or human reason.

But, and here’s the best part: knowing that God is omnipresent not only means that you don't need to feel alone, it means you don’t need to be afraid. No matter what you are facing, you face it with God at your side.