Today's Devotional Thought
April 11, 2013 by Wendy Foreman
Dirty Little Secret
There has been so much talk about mental illness since the death of Rick Warren's son. I, like so many of you, have sent prayers up for the Warren family and have asked the Lord to give them comfort in a time of such deep grief.
There have been many Christian authors, speakers, pastors and musicians who have been writing blogs and tweeting about mental illness in the church. I have read many of them, but today I want to share one with you that brought tears to my eyes. It brought tears to my eyes not just because this gentleman is sharing his story but because of many of the comments at the end of it.
You see many believers struggle with some sort of mental illness. Perhaps it is depression, anxiety attacks or bipolar disorder. The sad part is that many of them feel as though they can never share with someone in the church about their mental illness out of fear that judgment will come. Judgment in the form of asking them to step down from any form of leadership or being asked to not teach or speak judgment in the form of being questioned about whether or not they truly have faith in God. Maybe if they just understood who they are in Christ or maybe if they prayed hard enough, read the Bible more or took time to be still and hear from God.
STOP!!!!
Honestly, I want to just slap people who have those thoughts.
I am a Pastor's wife. I read my bible daily and pray without ceasing. I am very aware of who I am in Christ. I am a daughter of the King. I know what he has done for me and I love Him with my whole heart and strive daily to follow Him in ministry. However, there is not a month that goes by that I don't experience a panic attack. It is something that I have learned to live with and I pray often that the Lord would remove them from me, but He hasn't.
As I have already stated I want to share a blog with you today of someone who battles depression and anxiety/panic attacks. Please read and pray for this man as well as many who have commented on his blog that struggle with mental illness. Blessings to you today and friend, if you battle any of the things mentioned today know that I am praying for you as I battle it as well.
Dirty Little Secret by Carlos Whitaker
December