Steve Alessi: Author of Alessi’s Angle, Pastor of Metro Life Church in Miami, Husband of World Renown Worship Leader Mary Alessi and Father of Four. I'm starting out this Wednesday all stressed out and I haven't even had my breakfast yet. Actually, I'm doing it on purpose...under Doctor Raji's orders, which means I have to dress for this stress so I won't look like a mess, and even pay for this stress because it's a Medical test. Today I'm taking a stress test.
After taking care of the paper work, I'll be put through a few prep procedures with an IV placed in my vein, shoot it up with some nuc juice, take a few before/after images of my heart and eventually get on a treadmill where they'll connect these probes to my chest and begin my test. Dr Raji will be present and on his go I'll slowly start walking and eventually get to a fast walk or slow trot so that my heart rate increases and blood will be pumped through my body. The purpose of this is to check my heart, valves and blood flow to determine my heart health. As I sit here and write this blog in prep, I know it will all be over in a few hours and then I'll have the peace of mind knowing my ticker is doing just fine.
I find this whole Stress Test thing so ironic and see how it parallels to life. Here, in order to see the condition of my heart, or what's in my heart, I must place stress on it. No, it's not good enough to put a stethoscope on my chest and simply listen to my heart beat. It's not good enough to check my blood pressure alone. No, they have to place the heart under stress to see how it functions under "game day" conditions to determine just how strong and healthy my heart is.
And that's the blessing we find in stressing. Not that we want to be walking around stressed out all the time as there is no blessing in that, but that we're able to discover something about ourselves every time we encounter a stressful situation. It goes right along with the saying; You find out what's in a person when they're stepped on, because what's in them is what comes out.
The good thing for me is this stress test only last for 3 hours, and then it's over, unlike the stress many are coping with regularly. On this PrayDay, ask God to show you what your stressful situation is accomplishing in you, and seek to determine a better way to handle the press, while you're dealing with the stress, so you too can pass the test.
