INTRO–'What are Your Stress Triggers'Read I Kings 19:1-5a

Life can be stressful but stress causes a physiological response in your body that releases powerful chemicals to help you survive in a hostile environment, preparing you for fight or flight. This is good in the short term, however if sustained it can wreak havoc on your body including weight gain, sleeplessness, depression, high blood pressure, heart disease, etc. To recession proof your life in these uncertain times the key to dealing with stress is not being reactive but to become proactive, moving toward the positive growth God desires.

• What is the greatest stress in your life right now? Do you handle stress very well? Explain.


• Describe a time drought in your life caused you begin seeking God again? What happened?


• When you experience heavy stress, which effect do you feel most: fear, self-doubt, shutting down or depression? How do you normally overcome it?

STEP 1 –‘Self Care’Read I Kings 19:5b-7

Elijah’s response to the stress put on him by Queen Jezebel was to flee, a normal response for many people. But also in this story you begin to see what he needed to do in order to combat the stress and continue living for the purposes and plans of God. The first thing he had to do was take care of himself. The body is more than just a home for your spirit; it is also a temple of the Holy Spirit, serving God’s purposes for as long as God chooses. And in order to be the hands and feet of Jesus you have got to take time to take care of yourself physically and emotionally. You’ve heard the old saying, ‘you can’t take care of others if you don’t take care of yourself,’ and you do that by proper diet and exercise as well as making sure you have well defined boundaries and proper margins of time.

• Name the ways you take care of yourself on a weekly basis. Is it enough to keep you renewed?


• Do you truly consider your body as a temple of the living God? How then should you take care of yourself?


• Are you careful to keep good margins and boundaries in your life? How can you improve those?

STEP 2–‘Spiritual Renewal’Read I Kings 19:8-12 & II Corinthians 13:5Read I Kings 19:8-12 & II Corinthians 13:5

After Elijah took care of himself physically, he needed to reconnect with God to hear the word of the Lord for his life. In order to deal with the stresses of life, you too must become much more committed to withdrawing from people and activities to hear God’s directives for your life. It is way too easy to live with a kind of counterfeit faith and heart, seeking God’s blessing for your life goals instead of seeking God’s purposes for you to fulfill. It is in those daily times of seeking God, with reverence and expectation, that God will not only give you direction, but give you a faith that is true, powerful, and worthy of God’s call.

• How much time a week do you withdraw to receive God’s directives for your life? What do you do?


• How do you test your own heart and faithfulness to God? What has been most helpful in examining your life and faith?

STEP 2–‘Go Make a Legacy’Read I Kings 19:13-17 & John 15:16

Finally, life is more than raising children and making a living. Life is about leaving a legacy, and only what you do for others under God’s directives will live beyond you. Just as God’s message to Elijah was about reprioritizing the purposes and plans of his life mission, God also has a plan for you. Once you begin to living out God’s plans, it matters little what stresses and hardships may come your way. God will bless you and empower you to help change people’s lives, leaving a lasting legacy for Jesus Christ

• What legacy would you like to leave with your life? What are you doing now to further that hope?


• What do you think is the legacy God wants you to leave? Will you commit to asking God for more direction?