Been struggling with mental health issues/anxiety, primarily health anxiety for a very large portion of my life(teen to now in my mid 40s)I am analytical and am putting two and two together that having ocd tendencies and not having a certainity feeling in my faith greatly contributes. Besides that, has anyone completely overcame anxiety/mental issues? It is quite draining to say the least.
Has anyone been truly set free from their mental health issues?
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Not completely yet, but so much more so than in years' past. Yes, I find it very draining, but trusting Jesus to do what I need is the solid foundation of my healing. Anxiety, depression, OCD, Mind Race, mental illness can play havoc with our faith!
I still have some OCD issues, but so much has been accomplished in me, I am greatly encouraged that He will see me through, all the way home.
Much love!
Ernie,
From what I can tell, the inner struggle is something many of us carry throughout life. I recorded a video this morning for anyone interested—just me sharing some thoughts on life, faith, and personal challenges. The journey isn’t easy, and I still face my own suffering.
That said, I’ve found that taking our thoughts captive, abiding in Yeshua, and staying prayerful before God can offer some relief. The flesh will always try to pull us off course, but there is rest for the soul in Him. Stabilization—true peace—comes through surrender and trust in Yeshua.
Here’s the video, if you’d like to listen
On another note, I’m preparing to return to work, continuing my role supporting individuals in mental health group home facilities. It’s meaningful work, and I’m grateful to be part of it.
As a final thought, I’ve noticed that common contributors to depression often include lack of purpose, financial strain, unresolved debt, and unpaid bills. These burdens can compound and weigh heavily on a person’s spirit.
Take care,
Matthew
From what I can tell, the inner struggle is something many of us carry throughout life. I recorded a video this morning for anyone interested—just me sharing some thoughts on life, faith, and personal challenges. The journey isn’t easy, and I still face my own suffering.
That said, I’ve found that taking our thoughts captive, abiding in Yeshua, and staying prayerful before God can offer some relief. The flesh will always try to pull us off course, but there is rest for the soul in Him. Stabilization—true peace—comes through surrender and trust in Yeshua.
Here’s the video, if you’d like to listen
On another note, I’m preparing to return to work, continuing my role supporting individuals in mental health group home facilities. It’s meaningful work, and I’m grateful to be part of it.
As a final thought, I’ve noticed that common contributors to depression often include lack of purpose, financial strain, unresolved debt, and unpaid bills. These burdens can compound and weigh heavily on a person’s spirit.
Take care,
Matthew
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Yes, for 99%. With strict healthy lifestyle, regular sleep, animal-based diet, stress management and supplements.
I say 99%, because when I fail this lifestyle, I feel it is coming back. It disappears when I return to my regime.
TrevorHL
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Greetings Ernie,
My improvement after this was based on the move to a day job, and improvement in my marriage. Gradual Spiritual growth was also a major factor. I appreciate the benefit of Paul's advice at the end of Ephesians 4 which could be labelled replacement therapy or sublimation. This is only a sample and these concepts can be applied to a whole range of difficulties. Another factor is my intense interest in The Psalms and the prophecy of Isaiah. These give much opportunity for positive thoughts and also some discussion with my very active fellowship. I also enjoy the full range of Bible studies available in my fellowship. I am now 81 y.o. and do not consider that I have had any further lapses in mental health. .
Kind regards
Trevor
I had two mental failures when I was 38 y.o. and spent about two weeks in hospital for each of these. They were about six months apart. Although I had some tendencies towards these in my earlier life, these were most probably due to not coping with shift work 7 afternoon shifts,7 night shifts and 6 day shifts in a four week rotation, and also some marriage difficulties. I lived by myself in a caravan park for the six months, and this was part of my slow recovery and improvement. I would say that some elements of my condition continued after my six months and second failure, but I was well enough to return home to my wife and four children at the end of my second hospitalisation.
My improvement after this was based on the move to a day job, and improvement in my marriage. Gradual Spiritual growth was also a major factor. I appreciate the benefit of Paul's advice at the end of Ephesians 4 which could be labelled replacement therapy or sublimation. This is only a sample and these concepts can be applied to a whole range of difficulties. Another factor is my intense interest in The Psalms and the prophecy of Isaiah. These give much opportunity for positive thoughts and also some discussion with my very active fellowship. I also enjoy the full range of Bible studies available in my fellowship. I am now 81 y.o. and do not consider that I have had any further lapses in mental health. .
Kind regards
Trevor
- Dec 31, 2010
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If E = mc2 then we can divide and conclude that...
Mass (m) = Energy (E/c2) --- Making this eternal stuff
And there are three varieties...
Natural E/c2 - All mass is basically cooled plasma --- And bang! Back to plasma!
Mental E/c2 - Mentally, A mathematical formula, and a mind to study these things
Spiritual E/c2 - E (motivation, warmth, love) / c2 (faith, hope, charity, joy)
Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counsellor hath taught him? - Isaiah 40:13
Even if we could... What could we do with basic silica sand save make sand castles?
Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. - Luke 3:8
I have studied and learned for decades... All I could do decades ago with silica sand is make sand castles. All I can to today with silica sand is make sand castles. But... God can take that same silica sand and raise up great nations. So the answer for me is...
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.- 1 Peter 5:7
God has not called us to figure anything out. He has only called us to have faith in him.
John Bunyan... The simple passage from Martin Luther's commentary on the book of Galatians that made such a huge difference on this uneducated man's life. And the simplicity that was passed down in his own works as well... How easy it is to receive Salvation and the Holy Ghost...
Paul taught justification by faith in Christ Jesus, without the deeds of the Law. He reported this to the disciples at Antioch. Among the disciples were some that had been brought up in the ancient customs of the Jews. These rose against Paul in quick indignation, accusing him of propagating a gospel of lawlessness. Great dissension followed. Paul and Barnabas stood up for the truth. They testified: "Wherever we preached to the Gentiles, the Holy Ghost came upon those who received the Word. This happened everywhere. We preached not circumcision, we did not require observance of the Law. We preached faith in Jesus Christ. At our preaching of faith, God gave to the hearers the Holy Ghost." From this fact Paul and Barnabas inferred that the Holy Ghost approved the faith of the Gentiles without the Law and circumcision. If the faith of the Gentiles had not pleased the Holy Ghost, He would not have manifested His presence in the uncircumcised hearers of the Word. - Martin Luther's commentary on the Book of Galatians Chapter 2
Mass (m) = Energy (E/c2) --- Making this eternal stuff
And there are three varieties...
Natural E/c2 - All mass is basically cooled plasma --- And bang! Back to plasma!
Mental E/c2 - Mentally, A mathematical formula, and a mind to study these things
Spiritual E/c2 - E (motivation, warmth, love) / c2 (faith, hope, charity, joy)
Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counsellor hath taught him? - Isaiah 40:13
Even if we could... What could we do with basic silica sand save make sand castles?
Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. - Luke 3:8
I have studied and learned for decades... All I could do decades ago with silica sand is make sand castles. All I can to today with silica sand is make sand castles. But... God can take that same silica sand and raise up great nations. So the answer for me is...
Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you.- 1 Peter 5:7
God has not called us to figure anything out. He has only called us to have faith in him.
John Bunyan... The simple passage from Martin Luther's commentary on the book of Galatians that made such a huge difference on this uneducated man's life. And the simplicity that was passed down in his own works as well... How easy it is to receive Salvation and the Holy Ghost...
Paul taught justification by faith in Christ Jesus, without the deeds of the Law. He reported this to the disciples at Antioch. Among the disciples were some that had been brought up in the ancient customs of the Jews. These rose against Paul in quick indignation, accusing him of propagating a gospel of lawlessness. Great dissension followed. Paul and Barnabas stood up for the truth. They testified: "Wherever we preached to the Gentiles, the Holy Ghost came upon those who received the Word. This happened everywhere. We preached not circumcision, we did not require observance of the Law. We preached faith in Jesus Christ. At our preaching of faith, God gave to the hearers the Holy Ghost." From this fact Paul and Barnabas inferred that the Holy Ghost approved the faith of the Gentiles without the Law and circumcision. If the faith of the Gentiles had not pleased the Holy Ghost, He would not have manifested His presence in the uncircumcised hearers of the Word. - Martin Luther's commentary on the Book of Galatians Chapter 2
TrevorHL
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Greetings again Ernie,
Kind regards
Trevor
I mentioned my interest in The Psalms and I found Psalm 34 to be helpful in the early period of my recovery, and also a stability in the years following this as I grew to understand this Psalm and its background more fully. We may be all different and our particular circumstances could be different.
Kind regards
Trevor
Hi Ernie,
what do you mean by that? Not being able to tell wether you're "in" faith or feeling confused or getting doubts or being scared of losing
your faith? I have all that. Been having it for a long time. It started focusing on my faith not long after becoming a christian. It's really
totally damaging like trying to drive with your handbrake on or going in circles all the time. What sucks is that normal christians don't
understand how this is. I have emailed with ministries and talked to pastors over the phone and tried to describe my struggles to them
and some of them even claimed to understand ocd but none of their advice, like "proclaim bible verses to generate faith", helped me one bit. It only made me feel like a hamster in a wheel struggling to generate faith for things like healing. I never got to a point where I felt
like "now I have faith". And it also didn't help me with doubts and fear. But they say fear cancels out faith which means that if I can't
turn off fear then it's all useless.
Or for example what about "believe when you pray that you receive and you shall have it". How on earth is someone who struggle with
fear supossed to meet those requirements? I have been struggling with this ever since and found no darn solution for it! *cry*
I don't even dare to pray and ask for something cause I already think what if I fail again how shall I deal with the disappointment? Then I rather not even try it cause I know failing again would only hurt my faith even more. It's a vicious circle with no way out.
What helps to a certain degree is focusing on grace-based teachings and avoiding calvinistic,lordship salvationists. This stuff is pure poison.
I can recommend JB Hixson (his gospel explanation videos),Yankee Arnold,Andrew Farley and Les Feldick.
Mark DeJesus also has a ton of videos on youtube which I believe can be helpful.
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I also have been listening to Mark DeJesus.
I mean the fact that I specifically (and think many, possibly everyone) doesnt have the certainty that definitely what as hope for is a 100 percent fact. That is where faith comes in, however in my mentality not having certainity is a massive struggle.
I understand that. I also cannot deal with uncertainty at all, not even when it comes to spritual isses, but also everyday issues.
It's very discouraging cause I feel like if I dont have certainty then I dont have strength to do something.
I wish I could have an experience with God, like some christians. Then my faith would be much stronger and not fluctating.
It's very difficult to try to witness to others when I myself am confused or feel like my faith is not strong. The few times when I tried
to talk to others about God they brought up all kinds of arguments against God and the bible which I wasn't able to refute and
then I ended up feeling confused and miserable.
With these issues I feel pretty much useless. I just wish I had an unwavering faith which is immune to any kind of attack.
Some christians also say stuff like "when you have faith you just know that you know that you know" or "you know it in your knower".
I don't have this.
I understand that. I also cannot deal with uncertainty at all, not even when it comes to spritual isses, but also everyday issues.
It's very discouraging cause I feel like if I dont have certainty then I dont have strength to do something.
I wish I could have an experience with God, like some christians. Then my faith would be much stronger and not fluctating.
It's very difficult to try to witness to others when I myself am confused or feel like my faith is not strong. The few times when I tried
to talk to others about God they brought up all kinds of arguments against God and the bible which I wasn't able to refute and
then I ended up feeling confused and miserable.
With these issues I feel pretty much useless. I just wish I had an unwavering faith which is immune to any kind of attack.
Some christians also say stuff like "when you have faith you just know that you know that you know" or "you know it in your knower".
I don't have this.
I know for me personally I believe ocd is tied Into a lot of it I really like apologetics which helps defend our faith(but I know with me sometimes are to more questioning)...but simply some questions just are impossible to be answered with certainity. My favorite apologists name is Michael Licona. He has an obsessive analytical mind like myself.
It's not about getting free from mental health issues it's about building your best possible life with them. If you can do that then the mental health issues don't disappear they just become background noise to your life and in that way things seem to get "better".
Lol you're assuming what I described wouldn't be healing and deliverance. Anxiety and sadness aren't going to go away and most people suffer more trying to make them go away rather than making their lives the best possible thing it can be.
You are talking about sublimation. I'm talking about restoration of brain structures and chemistry.
You say anxiety and sadness are not going to go away, well, I know differently.
Much love!
Hello @friedice
I do so relate to much of what you have written and am still getting the same attacks from the enemy. Yes, vicious cycle for sure. And I can really relate to the disappointment when nothing seems to work out like, hardly ever at times.
YES, avoiding the Calvinistic doctrine is so important as their doctrine threw me off course in the 1990's and to some extent still throws me.
All I know is that any and all bad things come from Satan but, that does NOT mean a person being mentally attacked on a regular basis is not saved. Faith is a muscle and no matter how hard it can be, we need to continually get up and dust ourselves off, and start over. It sure helps though, if you have a spouse or a good few true Christian friends who lift you up and that you can trust to be there for you.
I have also purposely not prayed for "fear" of the disappointment. I've not had the sense of assurance of my salvation since reading about the Calvinistic doctrine of TULIP, ESPECIALLY the "L" = limited atonement. Where is the so called "Good News" in that?
What helps me most is to continuing to do this, despite what I feel:
"In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths".
Proverbs 3:6
Here's another verse I lean on immediately when the lies keep coming:
Philippians 1:6-7
6 "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
7 Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace."
So God isn't through with us yet.
And the nature of the enemy's attacks are constant. Satan will leave for a short while as we call upon the name of Jesus as, he MUST flee and God rebukes Satan, not us, ever---> "Yet Michael the archangel, when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation, but said, The Lord rebuke thee."
Jude 1:9
Do I still fail at this, yes at times but, if I think of all the good things He has given me in this life, I can always give Him praise, worship and thanksgiving. Even if I thought i were not truly saved, I would still give Him praise, worship and thanks.
I will be praying for you brother.
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Not only is it wrong its horrendously wrong.
So you have no emotions? That makes you an automaton. Emotions are gifts from God not things to be removed because they feel icky
Huh??
Do you understand the difference between having healthy emotional responses, and mental illness?
You think God cannot heal, I'm here to tell you that's not true. And I'll keep saying it because I know as a fact it is true. God is our healer.
Much love!
The Psalms and Isaiah in particular, along with Ecclesiastes, have been hugely instrumental in my healing, and coming to know more how much God loves me.
Much love!
