What to do with parenting stress - Triggers Study Guide

Perhaps your summer was hectic, running back and forth between their sun-soaked sprinkler play and afternoon bike rides, the umpteenth reapplication of sunscreen and popsicle parties, followed by last minute barbecues and late night movies on the couch! But now there's school and packing lunches and matching socks, sorting through newsletters and keeping track of class parties, making it to soccer practice on time, keeping the baby from falling asleep in the car, and helping with homework... not to mention fitting dinner into the evening routine. It's a different sort of stress. But there's aways stress. Whether you're a stay at home mom, a work at home mom, a traditional working mom, a single mom, or a married mom. There's always stress.

As far as my stress levels are concerned, I've been under the gun these past few weeks, with a crazy twitchy trigger finger.

Why? You may ask. Well, it's had a lot to do with the launch of the new Triggers Study Guide - which released today!

(insert confetti)

(insert sweeping confetti up quickly, because sometimes a mess can make me stressed. It's one of my triggers.)

Speaking of my own personal triggers... as Amber Lia and I wrote the triggers study guide we discovered that there's lots of stress bound up in the writing of a book and sharing it with our people online. What with all of our little people (seven boys between our two families!) continually wanting our attention, adamant that they're hungry... and out of clean underwear... in need of another glass of water before bed.

(insert scream)

(insert cool water to the face)

In case you didn't know it... writing Triggers was a great big trigger for me!

Seriously!

(I'm not a good multi-tasker)

(see chapter 27)

But I digress. Here's what I think: Chasing any dream beyond the dream-come-true of motherhood can bring on crazy amounts of stress - even when it's ministry! Especially when it's ministry related! After all, we've got an enemy who would love to rip all of us ministering mamas apart with stress, so that our stressed out nerves come undone and we blow like a left-over 4th of July bottle-rocket, one week into the school year! Nothing makes us feel less qualified as a mom than getting inappropriately angry with our kids.

Can I get an Amen?

Remember the ole adage, "The devil made me do it."

But you and I both know, as sure as we have an enemy up to no good, we have an advocate who can see us straight through the stress!

That quote above, ^^^ that there's my most favorite quote from the brand new Triggers Study Guide! I speak it over myself regularly, believing it's true.

[Tweet "When you're too stressed to see straight, He'll see you straight through the stress. #triggersbook "]

Yes. He. Will. It's a promise.

"When hard pressed, I cried to the LORD; he brought me into a spacious place. The LORD is with me; I will not be afraid." (Psalm 118:5-6, NIV)

Sweet friends, His ongoing, saving presence is promised to every man, woman, boy, and girl who puts their faith in His redeeming right arm! If you are a believing mama who is so used to fighting stress you start fighting your loved ones... God wants to see you through your stress better.

Though Satan loves to keep us distracted, toy with our feelings, and stir up the stress and the strife with his twisted little finger, God says, "This one's mine."

So we keep our eyes on Him, and He leads us safely through.

No matter the trigger. No matter the stress.