Yet stress is not really new. In 2 Cor. 1:8, the apostle Paul writes “We were under great stress, far beyond our ability to cope. We despaired even of life.” Paul’s stressors, of course, were very different from ours – his were shipwrecks, beatings, persecutions, imprisonments (somehow I think I prefer mine!) However, Paul rose above them, and in doing so he gave us a way to rise above our own.

Firstly, Paul acknowledged that he couldn’t cope. There are things which we simply can’t handle on our own. To acknowledge this is not a sign of weakness. In order to tap into God’s power, the first thing we have to do is to need it. (If we think we can stand on our own, God will let us try till we find we can’t.) In fact, Paul said that the pressure came to stop him from relying on himself and cause him to rely on God (v.9).

Secondly, Paul declared that in spite of all appearances, God’s promises stand. (v20). What God has said He is, He is. What God has said He will do, He will do. No matter if the world is falling apart around us, no matter if God seems to have retreated to the outermost corner of the universe, no matter if every man on earth and every demon in hell is against us, God has said He will never leave us nor forsake us, so He will not.

Sometimes we simply have to cling to that truth in blind faith.

Thirdly, Paul acknowledged that the battle is already won. In Chapter 2 vs 14 he gives a picture of a Roman triumphal procession. Now, this did not happen as the army was going out to wage war. It happened as they returned home, victory won and the spoils in their possession. Jesus is not going to win the battle with Satan at some time in the future – He has already won it at Calvary. We are already victors in Him – we simply have to enforce that victory in our circumstances.

The skirmishes we fight today are much like the small enclaves of Japanese soldiers who, for years after the end of World War II, were being found on isolated islands. They had no idea that the war was over and they had lost. In holding their positions they could, and sometimes did, inflict casualties, but they could never win the war. The devil is in exactly the same position with Christians today.

Finally, Paul tells us to keep an eternal perspective. It always amazes me that in Chapter 4 vs 17 he can describe his troubles as “light and momentary”, but he is looking beyond this world. In all the ups and downs of life, one thought has kept me going more than any other: “this too will pass”. If there are bad times, there will eventually be light at the end of the tunnel – even if we have to dodge a few oncoming trains along the way. If there are good times, they too will pass – so we shouldn’t get too comfortable.

Most importantly of all, in a thousand years time very little of what we are experiencing today will matter at all. What will matter is the relationship with Jesus Christ that sustains us through it.