Upset and worried young Indian man sitting in the office at the desk, holding his head and looking frustrated at the phone screen By Tetiana/stock.adobe.com
If I asked you how you’re doing today, what’s the first word that pops into your head? I know for many adults, “stressed” is their average response. According to recent research, middle-aged people in the 2010s experienced 19 percent more stress than middle-aged people in the 1990s (and I’d guess that number is higher now in 2026).
On top of that, it’s estimated that the average American adult makes 35,000 decisions in a day. These decisions range from how (or when) to respond to yet another text message notification, to what to eat for lunch, to whether you should buy name-brand dish liquid or save one dollar on the generic brand (then whether or not to tip the Instacart delivery person extra today because it’s raining).
While this might not seem like a big deal, every small decision builds up your overall cognitive load, contributing to your perception of stress. Thanks to all these decisions and notifications, I’d argue that in the 21st century, we’re exposed to more “micro-stressors” than any previous generation.
Micro-stressors are repeated demands on the brain or body that may seem insignificant individually, yet their cumulative load presents an added challenge to the stress response system over time.
For example, we carry handheld devices that alert us to everything from mini emergencies to catastrophic news all day long. The air is filled with environmental toxins that didn’t exist a hundred years ago. So is the water. And we’re exposed to foods and additives that weren’t even in production for most of human history.
Our brains and bodies are working overtime, all the time, to adapt to our environment. And that’s how God designed us. The question is, how do modern micro-stressors impact our attention—and our faith?
Stress-Nervous System Connection
While the Bible encourages us with reminders to “meditate on God’s works” (Psalm 77:12) and “be still and know” (Psalm 46:10), quietness and stillness are uncomfortable for most believers. It’s difficult to press pause when there’s always another alert on our phone, another item on our to-do list. This not only takes a toll on our spiritual connection, but it also affects our physiology.
Your body doesn’t know the difference between a real threat and a perceived one. Mentally stressful threats alert your HPA axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis) just as quickly as an uptick in heart rate or blood pressure.
When your HPA axis is activated, all systems hit “go mode.” This is known as the sympathetic nervous system state. It’s the same system that caused David to launch his slingshot at Goliath and Rahab to hide the spies. It’s how God designed us to fight or flee from threats. It’s helpful in small doses, as needed.
We were also designed with another branch of the nervous system, called the parasympathetic branch, which is the “rest and digest” state. This is the state where we feel calm, love well, connect with others, and activate healing at the cellular level. I like to picture David writing songs while he tended to sheep, or even Rebekah performing the mundane task of watering camels.
The parasympathetic state is not an activated state. Ideally, we should spend most of our time in the parasympathetic state, with only temporary activations in the sympathetic state. The more time you spend in parasympathetic, the more energized you will be for the immediate threats of the sympathetic, fight-or-flight state.
These days, since we’re spending the majority of our weeks (and even weekends) making constant decisions and being alerted to every possible notification, it keeps us in a heightened stress state, even if the stressor isn’t Goliath-sized. Over time, unabated stress creates chronic health issues, which is one of the reasons that even a basic Web MD search shares that “seventy-five percent to ninety percent of all doctor’s office visits are for stress-related ailments and complaints.”
Unsurprisingly, mental health concerns now outrank cancer as the top global health concern, according to a survey of over 23,000 people in thirty countries in 2025. And the third global health concern? Yep, it’s stress.
What the Bible Says About Stress
While the word stress doesn’t appear in the Bible, it does use terminology such as worry/anxiety (Matthew 6:25, Philippians 4:6-7), weary and burdened (Matthew 11:28-30), troubled (John 16:33), overwhelmed (Psalm 61:2), and fear (2 Timothy 1:7). All of these common human feelings are inherently stress-inducing.
There are also many stories of people encountering the debilitating, physical effects of stress, such as Elijah, emotionally exhausted while on the run from Jezebel in 1 Kings 19, and David’s deep emotional anguish in many of his psalms (such as Psalm 6). Even Jesus himself was in such distress during his prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane (Luke 22:44) that he began sweating drops like blood (a condition known as hematidrosis, which is brought on by deep emotional turmoil and causes blood vessels to rupture).
As humans made in the image of a God who feels deeply, chronic stress often results from an overly activated HPA axis when feelings and alerts become so constant that they’re difficult to manage—especially in a modern world filled with many distractions that keep the mind bouncing around like a pinball machine.
Solutions for the Stress Epidemic
I find it interesting that the Bible usually tells us first what modern neuroscience research demonstrates: fixing your mind on what is true and positive (Philippians 4:8) changes your brain. It reduces stress. It calms a dysregulated nervous system.
God’s Word mentions giving thanks to the Lord and praising him for what he’s done numerous times (and if Google is correct, gratitude and praise together are mentioned over 400 times). Gratitude has been shown to lower the stress hormone cortisol. Repeating positive affirmations boosts serotonin and dopamine in the brain. Collective worship releases oxytocin, a feel-good neurotransmitter that counters stress hormones. Mindfulness and meditation increase GABA, a calming neurotransmitter.
You were designed by an intentional God with an intentional internal stress alert system that communicates throughout your entire body. It does this on purpose for a purpose. It’s one way God chose to “equip you with everything good that you may do his will” (Hebrews 13:21). It is part of his provision, so that you can live this one life in this one body in a way that shows his love to a hurting world. Addressing the stress in your life by creating space for the parasympathetic “rest and digest” state is not only good for your physical and mental health, but also benefits your spiritual well-being.
Can I offer a suggestion? Allow the Holy Spirit to help you create space for calm in your life today. Yes, there is plenty to be stressed about, and there will always be interruptions to your peace. But God gave you a nervous system with alerts for you to pay attention to, not suppress. And when you listen, you can filter out the noise and make space for his calming presence, along with the overwhelming peace that surpasses all understanding. That too is a gift only God can provide, and it’s one most of us desperately need today.
