Including Scripture references. Seek medical assistance. “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick.” (Mark 2:17) If you are sick mentally, then you need to speak to a doctor, and follow the treatments they give you. This may include medication, therapy, or both. Look beyond. “This too shall pass.” Christian […]
Joy Comes in the Morning
September 1, 2012 by 1 Comment
I have always loved the line in Psalm 30: “weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.” (v5b KJV) This particular verse has brought me much comfort, and also caused me some conflict. I have experienced plenty of weeping when depression has brought me low, and for me it is generally […]
Verses for the Afflicted
July 28, 2012 by 3 Comments
I thought it might be helpful if I posted some verses about affliction (definition: grievous pain or trouble) and how the Bible describes its purpose. You’ll note that the Bible doesn’t view affliction as always being bad, or as a punishment, it consistently describes difficulty as a way to refine us, to teach us, and that good […]
Troublesome Verses: Sound Mind
July 17, 2012 by Leave a Comment
There are some verses in the Bible which are troubling to Christians who suffer mental ill-health. Some of them seem to suggest that we cannot be proper Christians, or even Christian at all, if we have mental illnesses. One of these verses is in 2 Timothy, where Paul is speaking to Timothy: For the Spirit […]
Reading the Bible as a Mentally Ill Person
June 30, 2012 by 13 Comments
I remember when I was given a “proper” Bible. I was about thirteen and the Gideons had come round to my school, handing out pocket New Testaments in the NIV translation. I don’t think I really read it at that time, aside from when we were covering Mark’s Gospel in RE class, but I have […]
Self-Injury: Sinful?
June 29, 2012 by 4 Comments
I first self injured when I was 14. It became a bigger part of my life when I went through an acute episode of bipolar disorder (mostly characterised by depression) when I was 21/22, and I became a Christian at 22. Since then I have occasionally self harmed – though not with the same intensity […]
Benefits of Bipolar
June 22, 2012 by 3 Comments
I honestly thought I would never in my life write that there are any benefits to being bipolar. The very worst times of my life have been when I have been unwell, and my life has been forever changed because of my illness. Now, some ten years since diagnosis, I have come to a position of wellness. […]
Spiritual Sticking Plasters
June 21, 2012 by 1 Comment
There are times when we (and I mean we, I include myself in this) use Christian terms, concepts and Scriptures as a spiritual sticking plaster on a very big wound. There are times when we over-simplify complicated issues, slap a verse on it from a topical index in our minds, and think we have solved the […]
Believer's Brain 