Face the fire...

In 2 Corinthians 7, we read of Paul’s thorn in his flesh. Most of us have heard of this, I believe. Scripture says in verses 7 through 10,

“And lest I should be exalted above measure by the abundance of the revelations, a thorn in the flesh was given to me, a messenger of Satan to [a]buffet me, lest I be exalted above measure. Concerning this thing I pleaded with the Lord three times that it might depart from me. And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ’s sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong.”

We have no idea what his thorn is. But I do know that it definitely bothered him and that he did not want it.

I have a thorn, too. And I also know that you have a thorn.

And when I was in high school, my thorn was 100% anxiety. Anyone else relate?

I’ve talked about this before, but my anxiety was terrible. Constantly worrying all day long for months at a time, then coming home and lying in my bed until it was time to wake up the next morning and start it all over again. I didn’t have friends or family there to support me because I didn’t ask for help, and then as I tried to “pray it away,” I eventually lost my hope in God because I wasn’t being delivered from my thorn.

After months and months of drowning in my worry, by God’s grace, I was delivered from the debilitating anxiety that kept me from living my life.

The reason I put “pray it away” in quotes above is not because it is a silly thing to do when you have anxiety or any mental health disorder. It’s in quotes because it should not be the only thing you should do when you are experiencing mental health problems.

I cannot stress this enough – when going through mental health problems, you have to keep in mind that the body, mind, and spirit are all connected to each other.

When you experience anxiety, or stress, or depression, or _______, your only solution should NOT be to just pray it away.

The Bible says,

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

You cannot just pray and expect God to take it away. Obviously, God is God and He can do that if He wants to, but the Bible commands us to take care of all three of these areas in order for us to fully show our love and trust in God.

When you go through a mental health crisis, fervently pray to God about it, but do not forget to take care of your body and mind, as well.

Go on a walk to take care of your body. Eat healthier foods. Drink lots of water. Go to the gym and lift weights if that’s what you’re into.

To take care of your mind, seek out counseling!! Talk to a professional about the issues you’re facing. Or find a close friend who you deeply trust and talk to them about what you’re dealing with.

If these problems are not addressed and you aren’t actively working to better yourself, these kinds of problems can be passed down through generations. And I don’t say that to scare you – I tell you this so that you can get better and so that you have more reasons to get better!!!

Maybe you have mental health problems and you’ve noticed that your mom or dad also had the same issues. That’s not a coincidence. It is passed down from generation to generation.

Imagine how much sweeter life will be once you learn how to properly cope with your anxiety. Or once you figure out how to deal with stress healthily. Or once you create new and healthy habits that make you feel better and impact your life in spectacular ways.

I heard this quote the other day and I can’t stop thinking about it:

“Family dysfunction rolls down from generation to generation, like a fire in the woods, taking down everything in its path until one generation has the courage to turn and face the flames. That person brings peace to their ancestors and spares the children that follow.”

Like the quote says, you can be the person who looks at the problem straight on and works to find a solution.

It’s not going to be easy – mental health is a tough thing to combat. It's easy to ignore the problem and stay in your comfort zone of not acknowledging that there is a problem - it does take a lot of courage. If you’re the person who faces the flames, you’re going to get burned. But you will learn so much about yourself and you will bear some amazing fruit of the Spirit if you do.

So, if that thorn in your flesh is some type of mental health issue, take the steps today and get better. I can’t promise that your mental health issue will go away completely, but I do know that you will find new and better ways to function and cope with your issues in healthier ways.

"I am with you when you go through the fire... you shall not be burned, the flame shall not consume you..." (Isaiah 43:1-2).

If you have a prayer request, put in an inquiry and I’ll pray for you. If you wanna talk more about mental health, submit an inquiry and we can talk :)