You Can Conquer Tension

Dr. John A. Schindler once wrote: “Despite recent advances in medical research, the most widespread diseases of all continues to rage unchecked. Its name: Emotionally Induced Illness, EII for short.

We can find many reasons for the tensions that beset us: world unrest and insecurity, the rising costs of living, the pressures of competition, and so forth.

Fundamental in practical Christianity is the simple realization that it is not what happens around or to us that makes life what it is, but what happens within us. If we stand steadfast in the realisation, “Though the earth do change,

I shall not be moved,” then we shall have the peace and poise to go through life’s many and varied experiences.

One of the big problems today concerns communication and man’s desire to be informed. We are the bestinformed people in the world, but this is a rather dubious distinction. The newspapers and newscasters often present their information in a sensational way. Radio, television, picture magazines, and motion pictures continually assail our minds with wars and rumours of war, with all the horrors and perils and afflictions of the human race, until our minds are filled with fear.

The answer to this problem of communication seems to be that we must insist on thinking for ourselves. Much of the news is hearsay and “they say” information. The key is in what you say to yourself. It is good to be informed, but better to be “transformed by the renewing of your mind.” One positive thought will disarm any negative effect of the day’s news upon your mind and heart. One moment of prayer will relax your tense reactions and enable you to be a stabilizing influence on those about you.

Another cause of tension is the unfocused mind, whose attention flits from one thing to another like a butterfly on the wing. When we eat, we think of all the things we have to do next, and unconsciously rush through the meal. We do not regularly pause before meals, as our forefathers did, to say grace. And when the mind is restless at mealtime, nervous indigestion may result.

We often try to do several things at once, such as reading while listening to radio or watching television. A professor of psychology, asked if this was bad, answered: “Of course it is. Divided attention never brings the best results. The simultaneous presence in the mind of ideas that may be contradictory can lead to chronic indecision, uncertain physical habits, and even a serious form of mental disease.”

Concentration is equally important in work, in play, and in prayer. Paul said, “This one thing I do,” which was but another way of saying, “I keep my mind focused at all times.”

Scattered attention is the cause of much tension. Many a successful person, asked how he is able to accomplish so much, has replied in effect, “By doing one thing at a time.”

A common habit that contributes to tension is talking too much. When we have nothing to say that should be said, it is well to be silent.

Each of us should have quiet times in his day when he can engage in silence and solitude. We fritter away an enormous amount of time and energy in idle chatter and in giving expression to useless thoughts. This contributes to confusion and tension.

Perhaps the greatest offender in the creation of human tension is the strain of keeping up with the frantic pace of life. So many things to do, so far to travel, so little time! Even when we have a moment’s break, we anxiously rush through inconsequential things out of sheer habit. We need to get off the “scurry-goround” and organize our lives so that we can attain a relaxed and easy pace.

What we need is this spiritual realization: “I relax and let go for I know that God is in charge of my life and all my affairs. I know that I have the time, the inspiration, and the strength to accomplish all the things that should be done by me.”

There is one sure way of correcting our tendencies to tension: We cannot pray, in the highest sense, unless we relax, and we cannot relax unless we believe that “underneath are the everlasting arms.”

Some persons say: “Oh, I can never relax. I’m just a nervous type; I’m always tense.” But that makes about as much sense as saying, “I can never play the piano; I was born without any skill in music.” The person who plays the piano well is the person who disciplined himself to practice and study diligently. So, it is with relaxation: practice makes perfect!

There is one excellent method of relaxation that is also a wonderful asset in prayer: take some time in the quiet of the evening at home to stretch out on the floor. Take a few deep breaths and consciously think of breathing in the breath of life and breathing out all impurity, all worry, all strain. Speak to the body, saying, “Relax and let go.” Feel all taut muscles relax completely. Feel your eyes and forehead relax and free themselves of all tension, stress, and strain.

As you lie there relaxed and receptive, visualize a compass needle that has been influenced away from its northward position and mentally picture it floating gracefully back to its normal place. Then think of yourself being realigned with the spiritual source of creativity and power and life. Rest for a few moments in the joyous realization that in this realignment you are healed, blessed, renewed. You are free.

Then be up and going! This relaxation can be accomplished in as little as five minutes, with practice. If you do this at least once each day you will live in a consciousness that is impervious to the pressures and tensions of the world. You constantly will be conscious of something at the centre of your being that will keep you in perfect peace and poise, “though the world is upside down.”

The Secret Of Happiness

One day a big dog saw a little dog chasing his tail round and round.

‘‘What are you trying to do?” he asked.

“I’m looking for happiness,” answered the little dog. “Someone told me that happiness is in my tail, and when I catch it, I will have it. So, I’m chasing my tail ’til I get it.”

“I’m looking for happiness too,” said the big dog. “I’ve been told the same thing. But I’ve discovered that everytime I chase my tail it runs away from me. So, I go about doing what I should do, and I find then that it comes after me.”

So many of us are tempted to run around in circles, seeking happiness. We mistake pleasure for happiness. While pleasure is self-indulgence and self-satisfaction, we find happiness in fulfilling our responsibilities, in helping others. Briefly, happiness follows giving — not taking.

A Giving Tree

There is an old tale about an unusual tree that grew outside the gates of a desert city. It was an ancient tree, a landmark, as a matter of fact. It seemed to have been touched by the finger of God, for it bore fruit perpetually. Despite its old age, its limbs were constantly laden with fruit. Hundreds of passers-by refreshed themselves from the tree, as it never failed to give freely of its fruit.

But then a greedy merchant purchased the property on which the tree grew. He saw hundreds of travellers picking the fruit from his tree, so he built a high fence around it. Travellers pleaded and pleaded with the new owner, “Share the fruit with us.”

The miserly merchant scoffed, “It’s my tree, my fruit, and bought with my money.”

And then an astonishing thing happened — suddenly, the ancient tree died! What could have happened? The law of giving, as predictable as the law of gravity, expresses the immutable principle: when giving stops, bearing fruit ceases, and death follows inevitably.

WHAT IS THE MEANING OF LIFE?

A Greek philosopher and teacher ended a lecture asking, “Are there any questions?” In the audience was Robert Fulghum who asked, “Dr. Papaderos, what is the meaning of life?”

Papaderos taking his wallet out of his hip pocket, fished into it and brought out a very small, round mirror, about the size of a quarter. Then he said, ‘When I was a small child, during the war, we were very poor and we lived in a remote village. One day, on the road, I found several broken pieces of a mirror from a wrecked German motorcycle. I tried to find all the pieces and put them together, but it was not possible, so I kept only the largest piece. This one. And by scratching it on a stone I made it round. I began to play with it as a toy and became fascinated by the fact that I could reflect light into dark places where the sun would never shine — in deep holes and crevices and dark closets. It became a game for me to get light into the most inaccessible places I could find. I kept the little mirror, and as I went about my growing up, I would take it out in idle moments and continue the challenge of the game. As I became a man, I grew to understand that this was not just a child’s game but a metaphor for what I might do with my life. I came to understand that I am not the light or the source of light. But light — truth, understanding, knowledge — is there, and it will only shine in many dark places if I reflect it.

‘I am a fragment of a mirror whose whole design and shape I do not know. Nevertheless, with what I have, I can reflect light into the dark places of this world — into the black places in the hearts of men — and change some things in some people. Perhaps others may see and do likewise. This is what I am about. This is the meaning of my life.’

Every Part Is Important

One day a young girl came home from school crying because she had been given only a small part in the school play, while her playmate got the leading role. After drying the girl’s eyes, her mother took off her watch and put it in her daughter’s hand. “What do you see?” the mother asked.

“A gold band, a watch face and two hands,” the girl answered.

Opening the back of the watch, the mother again asked, “Now, what do you see?”

The daughter looked closely at the internal watch mechanism and saw many tiny little wheels, springs and other tiny pieces. “This watch would be useless,” the mother explained, “without every part — even the tiny ones you can hardly see.”

The young girl always remembered her mother’s lesson, and that helped her all through her growing up years to see the importance of even small duties we’re asked to perform.

Rescued

A little girl whose parents had died lived with her grandmother and slept in an upstairs bedroom.

One night there was a fire in the house and the grandmother perished while trying to rescue the child. The fire spread quickly, and the first floor of the house was soon engulfed in flames.

Neighbours called the fire department, then stood helplessly by, unable to enter the house because flames blocked all the entrances. The little girl appeared at an upstairs window, crying for help, just as word spread among the crowd that firefighters would be delayed a few minutes because they were all at another fire.

Suddenly, a man appeared with a ladder, put it up against the side of the house and disappeared inside. When he reappeared, he had the little girl in his arms. He delivered the child to the waiting arms below, then disappeared into the night.

An investigation revealed that the child had no living relatives, and weeks later a meeting was held in the town hall to determine who would take the child into their home and bring her up.

A teacher said she would like to raise the child. She pointed out that she could ensure a good education. A farmer offered her an upbringing on his farm. He pointed out that living on a farm was healthy and satisfying. Others spoke, giving their reasons why it was to the child’s advantage to live with them.

Finally, the town’s richest resident arose and said, “I can give this child all the advantages that you have mentioned here, plus money and everything that money can buy.”

Throughout all this, the child remained silent, her eyes on the floor.

“Does anyone else want to speak?” asked the meeting chairman. A man came forward from the back of the hall. His gait was slow and he seemed in pain. When he got to the front of the room, he stood directly before the little girl and held out his arms. The crowd gasped. His hand and arms were terribly scarred.

The child cried out, “This is the man who rescued me!” With a leap, she threw her arms around the man’s neck, holding on for dear life, just as she had that fateful night. She buried her face in his shoulder and sobbed for a few moments. Then she looked up and smiled at him.

“This meeting is adjourned,” said the chairman. 

Two teen-age boys went into a farmer’s orchard to pick some apples. Suddenly, the farmer’s wife spotted them and called out from the window: “You boys, there! Stop picking those apples!” But the boys went right on.

“It’s all right,” one of them called. “I’m a minister’s son.” ***

A light passenger car driven by a farmer collided with a heavily loaded freight truck. All the occupants of the car were shaken up, and the farmer’s wife had her thumb cut off.

A few hours after she was discharged from the hospital, the claims adjuster for the trucking company called at her home.

She suggested a settlement figure and the adjuster turned purple with rage.

“Madam,” he exploded, “can’t you see that your claim for fifty thousand dollars for a single digit is ridiculous.”

“Maybe you think so,” she explained, “but that was no ordinary thumb. It was the one I kept my husband under!” ***

The man came home, bringing with him a new wife, some forty years his junior. He introduced her to his servants and afterward asked the oldest one of his employees what he thought of his new mistress. The man said, “She’s a beautiful young lady, boss, but I hate to see a man start out on a day’s work so late in the afternoon.” ***

“To tell you the truth, Doctor,” said a hard-working housewife, “I’ve always wanted to have a nervous breakdown. But every time I was about to get around to it, it was time to fix somebody a meal!” ***

A young lad was being taught the value of money, and to curb his spending, his parents had him keep a detailed account of how he spent his allowance.

One day he said: “You know, since I have to write down everything I spend, I really stop to think before I buy some things.” The parents congratulated themselves on the lesson he had learned when the boy continued: “! just never buy anything that’s hard to spell.” ***

The worried mother waited until after her child’s violin lesson and approached the boy’s teacher.

“Professor, how is Willie making out in his lessons?”

“Fine, fine!” boomed the teacher. “His progress on the violin is very good. He’s playing some very nice tunes now.”

“Oh,” beamed the mother, “do you really think so? His father and I were afraid we were merely getting used to it!” ***

Remember there is a “MAN” in SalesMANship and that man is YOU. There is a “SHIP” in SalesmanSHIP and that ship will go where you command it to go. You are the captain. You chart your own course. You issue all orders—to yourself. ***

A farmer’s hired man, a bachelor of fifty-five, asked whether he could borrow the car on October 22, a date then about a month away.

“Sure, I guess so,” the farmer agreed. “What’s going on?”

“I’m getting’ married on that day,” said Abel.

“Fine!” the farmer commented enthusiastically. “Who’s the lucky girl?”

“Well, I ain’t picked her out yet,” Abel confessed. “I wanted to be sure of getting the car first.” ***

In a remote section of the country, an elderly native died. Word of his passing reached the county seat. The coroner, a tall, strapping young fellow, got in his car and drove out to the deceased’s home.

“Did Sam Williams live here?” he asked the weeping young widow who opened the door.

“Yes,” replied the woman between sobs.

“Well,” said the coroner, “I’ve come for the remains.”

The woman’s crying died down as she slowly sized up the handsome young fellow standing in the doorway. “Well,” she explained, “I am the remains — but you’ll have to wait until I pack my clothes.”