By Pastor William Y. K. Brown Ph.D
(Resident Pastor)
Seventh-day Adventist Church
Osu-Bethel.
Tel: 0244165628/0243310773.
wykbrown@gmail.com
SABBATH
THEME: MINDSET THAT PROMOTES HEALTH: PART I
SCRIPTURE: Isaiah 26:3
“You will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.”
REFLECTIONS
October 10 has been set aside to celebrate World Mental Health Day globally. This suggests that the importance of mental health is acknowledged worldwide. For the Christian, mental health is vital to your spiritual well-being and relationship with God. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) explains: “Mental health includes our emotional, psychological, and social well-being. It affects how we think, feel, and act. It also helps determine how we handle stress, relate to others, and make healthy choices.” According to the CDC, more than 1 in 5 US adults live with a mental illness. It also estimates that about 1 in 25 U.S. adults lives with a serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depression. The same can be extrapolated for the world – in some countries and for various situations, it could be far higher.
Christians must consider mental health as important as their survival. It is essential because of the symbiotic relationship between mental and physical health—the mental impacts on the physical and vice-versa. A person’s mental health can change anytime over some time. Several factors and situations may cause this to happen. For instance, if a person loses a job for months and years and has a family to take care of, a person undergoes trauma or lives with a chronic disease without the requisite resources to manage the situation. Even prolonged stress or a feeling of loneliness or isolation contributes to poor mental health. We can only glorify God if we have sound mental health.
Maintaining a relationship with Christ is the surest way of securing consistent and unblemished mental health. You cannot go wrong; your mental health can be preserved if your life and faith are anchored in Christ. The thought of your loving savior, Jesus Christ, alone gives you stability of mind and comfort. Because He is with you always, there is no loneliness ((Isaiah 41:10; Matthew 28:20); because He will help you in every situation, you need not be anxious (Isaiah 41:13; Psalm 27:13,14). A Christ-centred, God-based, and Spirit-led mindset will honor God by thinking and acting positively. Many things go wrong because of how we think and act – as we think so, we are (Proverbs 23:7). As we think so, we act.
Jesus spoke the truth when He alluded that what is inside is what comes out. Matthew 15:18-20 reads, “[18]But those things which proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and they defile a man. [19]For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. [20]These are the things which defile a man, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile a man.” This is where many Christians fall foul. This borders practically on positive thinking. But mere positive thinking, though good, lacks the energy and the power behind it to make what is wished to happen. Isaiah 26:3 reminds us, “You [God] will keep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on You, Because he trusts in You.” Your mental health will be boosted as you think about God and place your life in His hands. It is lovely to fall into the arms of Jesus Christ to carry your burdens. Is it also heartwarming to comfort yourself with these words: “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” – Matthew 11:28.
MY SONG OF COMMITMENT
SDAH 517 – “My Faith Looks Up to Thee”
LET US PRAY
– Praise and thank God for your faith in Him; thank God for mental stability in Him; pray for your mind to stay on Christ to remain healthy mentally and physically;
– Pray for people in distress situations such as wars, disasters, violence, and inhumane treatment; pray for mental health for Christians who genuinely depend on Christ;
– Pray for our country’s mental health systems to function well; pray for those with mental health challenges to seek professional counsel; pray for mental health care providers;
– Pray for our nation to make God the center of hope to reduce mental health challenges during this austerity period; pray for Christ’s soon coming to be hastened.
