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Overcoming Stress with Scripture & Science: A Guide for Stress Awareness · Your Hope-Filled Perspective with Dr. Michelle Bengtson podcast

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  Speaker 1: Life Audio.
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  Speaker 2: Whether you are battling chronic stress, emotional overload, burnout, or
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  Speaker 2: simply the pressures of everyday life, this is an episode
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  Speaker 2: you're going to want to listen to. Today, we are
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  Speaker 2: diving into overcoming stress with scripture and science. We'll explore
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  Speaker 2: what stress does to your brain and body, how to
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  Speaker 2: recognize when it's taking a toll, and, most importantly, God's
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  Speaker 2: proven blueprint for peace, renewal, and rest. If you're criving
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  Speaker 2: practical tools rooted in neuroscience and anchored in Biblical truth,
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  Speaker 2: this episode will speak directly to your heart. Welcome back
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  Speaker 2: to your hope filled perspective, where it's always our goal
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  Speaker 2: to restore hope, renew minds, and empower you to live
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  Speaker 2: in your God given identity. I'm your host, doctor Michelle
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  Speaker 2: bankson Board, certified clinical neuropsychologist, author, and your companion in
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  Speaker 2: the journey toward mental, emotional, and spiritual wellness. Today's episode
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  Speaker 2: is especially timely because April is Stress Awareness Month. And
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  Speaker 2: if there is one thing I've consistently seen in thirty
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  Speaker 2: five plus years as a neuropsychologist, it's this, stress is universal,
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  Speaker 2: but suffering doesn't have to be. Stress is universal, but
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  Speaker 2: suffering doesn't have to be. We will dive into overcoming
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  Speaker 2: stress with scripture and science. Right after this brieford from
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  Speaker 2: our sponsor welcome back in recognition of Stress Awareness Month,
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  Speaker 2: I want to remind you that stress doesn't simply come
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  Speaker 2: from big problems. Science shows that your brain can interpret noise, clutter,
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  Speaker 2: constant notifications, unresolved emotions, lack of sleep, and even chronic
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  Speaker 2: busyness the same way it interprets to But scripture assures
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  Speaker 2: us that God offers rest, peace, resilience, and wisdom when
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  Speaker 2: our nervous system feels freed. I'm going to walk you
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  Speaker 2: through simple biblical research back strategies so you can experience
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  Speaker 2: God's peace, not just theologically, but physiologically. Let's start by
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  Speaker 2: understanding what stress actually is. From a scientific perspective, stress
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  Speaker 2: is the body's natural response to perceived threat. Perceived threat
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  Speaker 2: can be real or imagined. God designed this system to
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  Speaker 2: help us survive. But what was meant to help us
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  Speaker 2: in short bursts often becomes harmful when it never turns off.
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  Speaker 2: Here's what happens in your brain. In your brain, there's
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  Speaker 2: a small structure called the amygdala. Well, when there's a
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  Speaker 2: perceived threat, the amygdala sounds the alarm something's wrong. So
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  Speaker 2: whether it's an overdue bill, or a harsh comment, or
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  Speaker 2: even a nightmare that wakes you up, your brain reacts
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  Speaker 2: as if there's a tiger in your living room. Now,
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  Speaker 2: another structure in the brain besides the amygdala that is
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  Speaker 2: impacted is the hypothalamus, and the hypothalamus when it perceives
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  Speaker 2: a threat, activates your stress hormones. So, as a result,
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  Speaker 2: two of your stress hormones, namely cortisol and adrenaline, surge.
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  Speaker 2: When that happens, your heart rate increases, your breathing changes,
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  Speaker 2: your muscles tense, your digestion slows, and your sleep becomes irregular.
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  Speaker 2: Now science has long referred to this as the fight,
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  Speaker 2: flight or freeze response. But here's what's interesting. That label
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  Speaker 2: is given to us by science, but long before that
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  Speaker 2: scripture actually describe this state, Long before medical journals ever
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  Speaker 2: did think of Psalm fifty five, verses four through five,
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  Speaker 2: which says, my heart is in anguish within me. The
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  Speaker 2: terrors of death have fallen upon me. Fear and trembling
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  Speaker 2: come upon me. Sound familiar. Stress affects more than feelings.
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  Speaker 2: It affects our attention and concentration, our memory, our decision making,
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  Speaker 2: definitely our mood, our overall physical health, and even our
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  Speaker 2: spiritual clarity. Chronic stress literally shrinks the brain regions involved
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  Speaker 2: in emotional regulation and clarity. But the good news they
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  Speaker 2: can also be strengthened. God built neuroplasticity into your biology,
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  Speaker 2: and that means change is possible, relief is possible, healing
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  Speaker 2: is possible.
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  Speaker 1: You're not.
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  Speaker 2: Now that we understand the basic definition of stress, let's
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  Speaker 2: talk about signs that you might be carrying more stress
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  Speaker 2: than you actually realize. Most people don't realize they're in
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  Speaker 2: a heightened state of stress until their body starts yelling.
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  Speaker 2: Here's some subtle but significant indicators you're dealing with stress, irritability,
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  Speaker 2: or impatience.
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  Speaker 1: Think about when that car in front of you.
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  Speaker 2: At the traffic light doesn't start moving right away when
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  Speaker 2: the light turns green. Or think about when you get
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  Speaker 2: frustrated because you're at the ever too popular self checkout
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  Speaker 2: lane and the register malfunctions on the item that you
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  Speaker 2: tried to scan.
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  Speaker 1: Think about snapping at.
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  Speaker 2: Your coworkers, your boss, your spouse, your children, even your friends.
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  Speaker 2: All indications of irritability or impatience and there's a route
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  Speaker 2: why they're coming out out, and it just might be
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  Speaker 2: unrecognized stress. Another indicator that you're dealing with stress is
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  Speaker 2: difficulty concentrating or making decisions. If you find yourself more
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  Speaker 2: scatterbrained than usual, if you find yourself losing track of
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  Speaker 2: what you're supposed to be doing, if you more frequently
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  Speaker 2: walk into a room and think why did I come
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  Speaker 2: in here? If you have trouble making decisions, what are
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  Speaker 2: we going to have for dinner? Should I go to
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  Speaker 2: that party or not? What gift should I get this
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  Speaker 2: person now in and of itself. Any of these decisions, Yeah,
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  Speaker 2: sometimes they make us pause and really think about it.
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  Speaker 2: But I'm talking about more difficulty than usual making decisions now.
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  Speaker 2: There are also some physical indicators that we're dealing with
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  Speaker 2: stress that many times we don't recognize them for what
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  Speaker 2: they are until they're really screaming. Physical indicators could include
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  Speaker 2: things like tension, headaches, or jaw clenching. If you wake
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  Speaker 2: up in the morning and your jaw or your neck
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  Speaker 2: is sore, you may have been clenching it in your sleep. Now,
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  Speaker 2: keep in mind, your brain doesn't sleep, and when we sleep,
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  Speaker 2: that's when our brain is trying to get rid of
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  Speaker 2: the toxins, and it's trying to eliminate the stressors that
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  Speaker 2: have flooded our body. But sometimes we're under so much
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  Speaker 2: stress that we carry it into our sleep. Digestive issues
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  Speaker 2: can also be an indicator of stress, not always, but frequently.
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  Speaker 2: Another indicator is racing thoughts. You just can't slow your
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  Speaker 2: mind down. And this goes back to difficulty sleeping. A
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  Speaker 2: lot of times we experience difficulty sleeping because we have
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  Speaker 2: these racing thoughts and they seem often to be more
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  Speaker 2: prominent when we're trying to sleep, and that's when we go,
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  Speaker 2: I just can't turn my mind off. Friend, that's probably
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  Speaker 2: an indicator that somewhere in your life you're dealing with
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  Speaker 2: some stress that needs to be addressed. Another indicator is
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  Speaker 2: is feeling wired but tired, like you've got this nervous energy,
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  Speaker 2: like you want to jump out of your skin, but
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  Speaker 2: simultaneously you feel tired or exhausted. That's another indicator that
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  Speaker 2: you might be carrying stress in some area that you're
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  Speaker 2: not recognizing or dealing with. We've already talked about trouble sleeping,
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  Speaker 2: and we've talked about how those racing thoughts can make
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  Speaker 2: it difficult to sleep, but trouble sleeping can also include
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  Speaker 2: sleeping too much not feeling rested when we wake up
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  Speaker 2: in the morning. That can be an indicator that we're
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  Speaker 2: dealing with some stress that we're not recognizing. Emotionally, we
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  Speaker 2: talked about irritability or impatience, and that can be a
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  Speaker 2: sign of unresolved stress. But on the other end of
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  Speaker 2: the spectrum, make note if you're experiencing emotional numbness, you
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  Speaker 2: just don't have the same degree of emotional reactivity that
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  Speaker 2: you normally would. It can show up in terms of
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  Speaker 2: decrease compassion, can show up in terms of not experiencing
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  Speaker 2: the same degree of joy that you're accustomed to. It
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  Speaker 2: can show up in terms of normally you might get
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  Speaker 2: a little frustrated, but you just have no feeling at all.
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  Speaker 2: That can be an indicator that you're dealing with some
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  Speaker 2: stress but not recognizing it, dealing with it in terms
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  Speaker 2: of your body is experiencing it, but you're not getting
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  Speaker 2: to the root and addressing it. Another indicator that there
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  Speaker 2: is stress going on. And this is probably one of
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  Speaker 2: my more consistent indicators personally, and that is.
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  Speaker 1: Being easily overwhelmed.
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  Speaker 2: I can handle a lot on my plate, and I'm
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  Speaker 2: a get or done kind of girl. But when I
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  Speaker 2: start feeling easily overwhelmed, and sometimes the holidays can do
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  Speaker 2: that to me, there's more on my plate, more that
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  Speaker 2: I feel responsible for. Sometimes I take on the responsibility
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  Speaker 2: of making sure everybody else is happy and having a
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  Speaker 2: good time. When I start to feel easily overwhelmed, it's
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  Speaker 2: an indicat I'm dealing with some stress and I need
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  Speaker 2: to address it in a better way. Maybe you have
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  Speaker 2: experienced that too, And here's another indicator that's important for
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  Speaker 2: us to talk about. But my step on a few toes,
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  Speaker 2: because this is one. When I bring it up, most
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  Speaker 2: people don't like to hear this one, and that is
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  Speaker 2: an over reliance on caffeine or sugar or even digital scrolling,
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  Speaker 2: going from meme to mean to meme on Facebook, or
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  Speaker 2: real to reel to reel on Instagram or TikTok, or
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  Speaker 2: numbing out in front of YouTube videos. Now, in and
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  Speaker 2: of itself, I'm not saying any of these things is bad.
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  Speaker 2: I'm just saying when we get to the point that
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  Speaker 2: we start relying on them more than what is considered healthy,
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  Speaker 2: it's an indicator we're probably using it to cope with
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  Speaker 2: stress that we might not even be recognizing. And then
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  Speaker 2: the last one that I really feel like I need
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  Speaker 2: to mention is that I often see people react to
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  Speaker 2: stress in terms of emotional reactivity when minor inconveniences feel catastrophic.
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  Speaker 2: We've all had those family members who come to the
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  Speaker 2: holiday meal and they walk in the door angry and
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  Speaker 2: upset because Walmart didn't have their favorite brand of X,
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  Speaker 2: Y and Z, or something gets spilled at the dinner table.
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  Speaker 2: It's a mistake, but they overreact and it becomes catastrophic.
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  Speaker 2: God's an indication that's somewhere there is stress residing in
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  Speaker 2: their heart, mind, or body that needs to be coped
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  Speaker 2: with more effectively, and we can't ignore that stress can
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  Speaker 2: take a toll on us spiritually. You might be struggling
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  Speaker 2: to feel God's presence. And not that we always get
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  Speaker 2: to feel God's presence, but if you're more accustomed to
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  Speaker 2: sensing His presence and you start to struggle in that area,
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  Speaker 2: could be because you're distracted by the stressors, or when
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  Speaker 2: Bible reading starts to feel dry, maybe you even find
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  Speaker 2: yourself pushing it away because it's not coming to life
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  Speaker 2: for you like it normally would, or your prayers start
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  Speaker 2: to feel rushed or distracted or just bare bones. Lord,
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  Speaker 2: help me get through today, Lord, help me find it
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  Speaker 2: a convenient parking spot. That can be an indicator that
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  Speaker 2: stress is taking a toll on your physical well being.
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  Speaker 2: Another indicator that it might be affecting you spiritually is
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  Speaker 2: that you feel ashamed for not being able to handle it.
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  Speaker 2: Whatever the it, stressor is a friend, let me say
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  Speaker 2: this lovingly. Stress is not a spiritual failure. Again, stress
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  Speaker 2: is not a spiritual failure. It's a signal. It's an
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  Speaker 2: invitation to lean into God's design for restoration. Friends, We're
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  Speaker 2: going to take a real quick break for a brief
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  Speaker 2: word from our sponsor, but I want you to stick
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  Speaker 2: with us. We'll be right back, and when we do,
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  Speaker 2: we'll talk about what the Bible says about stress and peace.
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  Speaker 2: We'll be right back. Welcome back to your hope filled perspective.
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  Speaker 2: Today we're talking about overcoming stress with scripture and science.
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  Speaker 2: We've talked about what is stress? What are some indicators
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  Speaker 2: that our heart, mind, or soul are experiencing stress?
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  Speaker 1: But perhaps we're not.
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  Speaker 2: Dealing with it the best we could. Now, I want
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  Speaker 2: to turn our attention to what does the Bible say
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  Speaker 2: about stress and peace? I want to find interesting is
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  Speaker 2: that scripture consistently acknowledges human stress and offers God's remedy.
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  Speaker 2: A few of the scriptures that come to mind are
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  Speaker 2: Psalm ninety four nineteen that says, when anxiety was great
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  Speaker 2: within me, your consolation brought me joy. Exodus thirty three fourteen.
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  Speaker 2: My presence will go with you, and I will give
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  Speaker 2: you rest. Isaiah twenty six to three. You keep him
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  Speaker 2: imperfect peace, whose mind is stayed on you? How about
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  Speaker 2: Proverbs twelve twenty five. Anxiety in a person's heart weighs
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  Speaker 2: it down, but a good word makes it glad. The
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  Speaker 2: other one that I thought it was Nam one seven.
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  Speaker 2: The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble.
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  Speaker 2: He cares for those who trust in him. Did you
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  Speaker 2: notice something? Every verse is relational. God doesn't offer stress
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  Speaker 2: management tips, He offers himself. The reason being is that
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  Speaker 2: peace isn't a principle. Peace is a person. Now, I
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  Speaker 2: want to talk for a few moments about simple neuroscience.
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  Speaker 1: Tools that calm the body.
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  Speaker 2: God created your brain and body with built in calm switches.
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  Speaker 2: So let's talk about a few that you can activate today.
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  Speaker 2: One is just simple deep diaphormatic breathing. What this does
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  Speaker 2: is it signals to your brain you're safe. You don't
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  Speaker 2: need to be on high alert. So try this with me.
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  Speaker 2: I want you to inhale for four seconds, hold for two,
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  Speaker 2: and exhale for six. Now, if you were trying to
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  Speaker 2: cope with stress any of those indicators that we talked about,
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  Speaker 2: I recommend you repeat this six to eight times. These
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  Speaker 2: long exhales help lower your cortisol and that helps you
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  Speaker 2: manage the stress. A second technique that I frequently suggested
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  Speaker 2: clients is the five four three two one grounding technique.
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  Speaker 1: This brings you back.
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  Speaker 2: Into the present moment because frequently our stress comes from
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  Speaker 2: things that haven't even happened yet. So the five four
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  Speaker 2: three two one grounding techniques. Some of you may have
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  Speaker 2: heard me talk about it before on the show, but
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  Speaker 2: that's because it's so effective for bringing us back to
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  Speaker 2: the present moment. The thing you do is you pause
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  Speaker 2: when you find yourself feeling stressed, when any of those
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  Speaker 2: indicators that we just mentioned become a parent, You engage
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  Speaker 2: your senses, You look around and acknowledge five things you see.
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  Speaker 2: Then four things you hear. And they might be as
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  Speaker 2: mild or mundane as the airflow through your heat or
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  Speaker 2: air conditioning register, or the garbage struck down the road,
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  Speaker 2: or the dog breathing on the couch. But you look
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  Speaker 2: for four things that you can hear. Then you acknowledge
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  Speaker 2: three things you can feel. This really helps because you
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  Speaker 2: really have to slow down, concentrate. It might be the
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  Speaker 2: ring on your finger, and the coldness of the floor
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  Speaker 2: on your feet, and the softness of your sweater. Three
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  Speaker 2: things you feel, then two things you smell, and one
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  Speaker 2: thing you taste. What this technique does is it calms
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  Speaker 2: your brain's limbic system and it increases your prefrontal cortex activity. Now,
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  Speaker 2: another neuroscience tip that I suggest when people acknowledge that
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  Speaker 2: they're dealing with stress is to name your emotions. This
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  Speaker 2: is a powerful scientific truth. We have to name it
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  Speaker 2: in order to tame it. So when you label your
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  Speaker 2: emotion like I'm feeling overwhelmed, you are a Migdala actually
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  Speaker 2: then turns down its alarm system because you've acknowledged it,
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  Speaker 2: you've named it. You're back in the present.
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  Speaker 3: Now.
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  Speaker 2: A fourth recommendation that I have is rhythmic movement. This
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  Speaker 2: could be walking, rocking, gentle stretching, it could be rebounding,
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  Speaker 2: just some kind of rhythmic movement if nobody around, even
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  Speaker 2: if someone is around, dance around your kitchen because it
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  Speaker 2: helps regulate your nervous system. So often when we're experiencing stress,
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  Speaker 2: we've talked about how the muscles titan will Sometimes we
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  Speaker 2: can get so tense that our shoulders raise up to
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  Speaker 2: our ears. Sometimes our fists will clench and we're not
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  Speaker 2: even aware of it. But when we engage in that
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  Speaker 2: rhythmic movement, its signals to the muscles, you can relax.
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  Speaker 2: And then a fifth thing that is backed by neuroscience
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  Speaker 2: is scripture meditation. Taking time, slow down, read the scriptures,
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  Speaker 2: think about what the Word of God is telling you.
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  Speaker 2: Because we know the Word of God is alive and active,
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  Speaker 2: right always talking to us. Take the time to look
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  Speaker 2: up what certain terms mean.
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  Speaker 1: To give you a broader.
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  Speaker 2: Perspective, ask the Holy Spirit for wisdom and insight. This
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  Speaker 2: isn't just spiritual, it's actually alsological because meditation strengthens the
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  Speaker 2: very brain networks that stress weakens. When your mind stays
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  Speaker 2: on him, your brain.
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  Speaker 1: Rewires towards peace.
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  Speaker 2: It goes back to that verse that I mentioned before
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  Speaker 2: the break, that I will keep my mind stayed on
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  Speaker 2: him and remain in perfect peace. That's the doctor Michelle paraphrase.
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  Speaker 2: We're going to take another real quick break for our
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  Speaker 2: word from our sponsor. But when we return, I want
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  Speaker 2: to talk about how do I integrate scripture with science
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  Speaker 2: for a truly transform life.
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  Speaker 1: We'll be right back.
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  Speaker 2: I want to turn our attention to integrating scripture and
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  Speaker 2: science for stress relief. So let's bring it all together.
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  Speaker 2: Because neuroscience gives us good tools, but scripture gives us truth,
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  Speaker 2: and God designed them to work together.
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  Speaker 1: Here's chyle.
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  Speaker 2: The first is to replace fear thoughts with scripture bathed truth.
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  Speaker 2: Science calls this cognitive reframing, what scripture calls it, according
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  Speaker 2: to Tewod Corinthians ten to five, taking our thoughts captive.
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  Speaker 2: So here's an example. When you have the fear thought
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  Speaker 2: I just can't do this, you replace it with a
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  Speaker 2: scriptural truth, such as Philippians four thirteen. I can do
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  Speaker 2: all things through Christ, who strengthens me. Now, second tip
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  Speaker 2: that I have is to practice breath prayers. These are
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  Speaker 2: not fancy, they're not woo woo What it is basically
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  Speaker 2: is pairing our deep breathing, which helps regulate our nervous
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  Speaker 2: system with short scriptures. So when you find yourself tense
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  Speaker 2: and dealing with stress, as you naturally inhale, think pray Lord,
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  Speaker 2: you are my peace, and then you exhale something like
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  Speaker 2: so I trust in you.
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  Speaker 1: Inhale you still.
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  Speaker 2: And know you are God, and exhale I trust you
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  Speaker 2: because you are God. What this does is it signals
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  Speaker 2: to your nervous system to slow down while anchoring your
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  Speaker 2: spirit in truth. Because when we get stressed, we don't
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  Speaker 2: pay attention to our thoughts as quickly and we're more
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  Speaker 2: likely to succumb to the lies of the enemy. And
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  Speaker 2: number three, I suggest creating micro moments of seilah. Neuroscience
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  Speaker 2: shows that short pauses throughout the day reduce the cumulative
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  Speaker 2: stress load. Now scripture calls this selah, which means taking
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  Speaker 2: a holy pause. So every few hours take a pause
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  Speaker 2: to deep breathe, prey, stretch, and reset your brain. My
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  Speaker 2: fourth recommendation is to build in rhythms of rest because
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  Speaker 2: stress is cumulative, but so is stress is see God
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  Speaker 2: created daily rhythms, weekly rhythms, seasonal rhythms, rest is holy,
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  Speaker 2: not optional. God rested on the seventh day. He built
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  Speaker 2: in a model of rest for us, and we can
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  Speaker 2: do this throughout the day as well as at the
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  Speaker 2: end of the day, as well as taking a day
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  Speaker 2: of rest consistent with the Sabbath, as well as blocking
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  Speaker 2: off other days in the month to renew as well
• 22:28
  Speaker 2: as rest, which helps us become more creative and more productive.
• 22:33
  Speaker 2: My fifth tip is to shift your internal narrative. You see,
• 22:38
  Speaker 2: stress says I must do more. God says my grace
• 22:42
  Speaker 2: is sufficient for you. Stress says I'm falling behind, but
• 22:46
  Speaker 2: God says I will strengthen and uphold you. Stress says
• 22:51
  Speaker 2: you're all alone in this, and God says I am
• 22:54
  Speaker 2: with you always. So when we shift our internal narrative,
• 22:59
  Speaker 2: conceit distant with what God has told us. It's a
• 23:03
  Speaker 2: way of regulating our stress consistent with the biblical truths Now,
• 23:08
  Speaker 2: as we get close to wrapping up this episode, I
• 23:12
  Speaker 2: thought I might take you through a guided scripture science
• 23:16
  Speaker 2: stress reset. So let me walk you through a short
• 23:19
  Speaker 2: reachset that you can do at anytime. So wherever you
• 23:23
  Speaker 2: are within the sound of my voice, I just want
• 23:26
  Speaker 2: you to sit comfortable, get comfortable where you're sitting, and
• 23:29
  Speaker 2: even take the time to intentionally just roll your shoulders back,
• 23:35
  Speaker 2: because when we get stressed, we tend to hunch them up,
• 23:37
  Speaker 2: our posture gets bad, our muscles tightened. So sit comfortably,
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: roll your shoulders back, take a slow inhale for four counts,
• 23:48
  Speaker 2: hold it for two, and exhale for six.
• 23:58
  Speaker 1: And repeat.
• 24:07
  Speaker 2: Now look around you and notice five things you see
• 24:16
  Speaker 2: and four things you hear, three things you feel, two
• 24:31
  Speaker 2: things you can smell, and one thing you can taste.
• 24:41
  Speaker 2: Now I want you to place your hand over your
• 24:45
  Speaker 2: heart and feel it beating. Let this be a reminder
• 24:52
  Speaker 2: to you that in your everyday chronic stress position, it's
• 24:59
  Speaker 2: God who's sys staining you. Now pray this gently. Lord,
• 25:08
  Speaker 2: Your peace guards my heart and mind in Christ Jesus,
• 25:13
  Speaker 2: and with it, speak a scripture out loud, something like
• 25:18
  Speaker 2: Isaiah twenty six to three. You keep me in perfect
• 25:22
  Speaker 2: peace as my mind stays on you. And now exhale
• 25:29
  Speaker 2: all the tension in your body, and as you do so,
• 25:34
  Speaker 2: imagine handing your burdens.
• 25:37
  Speaker 1: Back to God.
• 25:40
  Speaker 2: This is a scripture science cooperation in action. I want
• 25:45
  Speaker 2: to offer you some closing encouragement and prayer for you
• 25:48
  Speaker 2: as you finish out this Stress Awareness Month. I'm hoping
• 25:52
  Speaker 2: that through this episode you're becoming more aware of those
• 25:56
  Speaker 2: areas or things that are contributing to your humilated stress level,
• 26:01
  Speaker 2: that you can recognize them and hopefully have the tools
• 26:06
  Speaker 2: to cope with them. So as we wrap up today's
• 26:09
  Speaker 2: conversation about stress, I want you to hear this clearly.
• 26:13
  Speaker 2: Stress may be a reality of life, but peace is
• 26:17
  Speaker 2: the promise of God. You are not weak for feeling overwhelmed.
• 26:22
  Speaker 2: You are not failing. You are human, and God meets
• 26:26
  Speaker 2: you in your humanity. He offers rest, strength, renewal, presence,
• 26:33
  Speaker 2: and peace that surpasses are humanly understanding. God cares about
• 26:38
  Speaker 2: your nervous system, he cares about your body, he cares
• 26:42
  Speaker 2: about your mind, and he cares deeply about your heart.
• 26:45
  Speaker 2: As you walk through Stress Awareness Month, I want to
• 26:49
  Speaker 2: challenge you, don't just become aware of stress, become aware
• 26:53
  Speaker 2: of God right in the middle of it.
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: And as you do so, I'd love to pray for you. Father.
• 26:58
  Speaker 2: I lift up every listener today who's carrying heavy burdens,
• 27:02
  Speaker 2: silent stress, invisible pressure, because Lord, you see every detail,
• 27:07
  Speaker 2: you know every weight, and you promise perfect peace to
• 27:11
  Speaker 2: those who keep their minds fixed on you. Please strengthen
• 27:14
  Speaker 2: their tired bodies, calm their anxious thoughts, rewire their overwhelmed
• 27:19
  Speaker 2: minds and restore their weary hearts. Or cover them with
• 27:23
  Speaker 2: your presence and lead them into your rest. In Jesus name,
• 27:28
  Speaker 2: I pray Amen. Friends, thank you for joining me for
• 27:31
  Speaker 2: this special Stress Awareness Month episode of your Hope Filled Perspective.
• 27:35
  Speaker 2: If today's conversation encourage you, would you please consider sharing
• 27:38
  Speaker 2: with a friend who might also benefit from a biblically
• 27:41
  Speaker 2: based hope filled perspective for overcoming stress with science and scripture.
• 27:47
  Speaker 2: And don't forget to subscribe to the podcast so you
• 27:50
  Speaker 2: never miss an episode. I'll look forward to being with
• 27:53
  Speaker 2: you again next week for another hope filled conversation. In
• 27:57
  Speaker 2: the meantime, you know it's my prayer for you that
• 28:01
  Speaker 2: you have a hope filled week.
• 28:04
  Speaker 3: Are you or your group looking for a speaker for
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  Speaker 3: your next event or gathering? Nothing delights doctor Michelle Benkson
• 28:11
  Speaker 3: more than connecting with her audience and sharing from her
• 28:14
  Speaker 3: professional expertise in personal experience to champion others from their journey.
• 28:19
  Speaker 3: She has spoken on a wide variety of topics, including
• 28:23
  Speaker 3: hope prevails living the abundant life Christ came to give
• 28:27
  Speaker 3: victor not victim. Rid yourself with a doubt, poisonous shame,
• 28:32
  Speaker 3: and self defeat from your life, walking in the truth
• 28:35
  Speaker 3: of our identity, hope for the silent epidemic, understanding depression
• 28:40
  Speaker 3: in children and teens, and breaking anxiety strip how to
• 28:45
  Speaker 3: reclaim the piece God promises. Doctor Benson is willing to
• 28:49
  Speaker 3: tailor her message specific to your group or event. Past
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  Speaker 3: audiences have included one hundred Hotney Street Life Today, American
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  Speaker 3: Association of Christian Counselors, Gateway Church, Embassy City Church, Roaring Lambs,
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  Speaker 3: and Fellowship of Professional Women, to name a few. Doctor
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  Speaker 3: next two years and beyond. For more information or to
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  Speaker 3: contact with doctor Benson to speak at your next event,
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  Speaker 3: dot Org, or Hope Prevails at texant dot com. That's
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• 29:41
  Speaker 4: Thank you for joining doctor bankson to your hope build perspective.
• 29:45
  Speaker 4: We hope you are encouraged by her authenticity, vulnerability, and
• 29:49
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  Speaker 4: Mishelbe dot com. Until next time, May you have a
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  Speaker 4: hope filled week.
• 30:35
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