Help For Those Tossed About
I wasn’t in Kansas anymore and that surf was not safe for anyone (even according to the sign I saw later). Today, I credit God for telling those waves to spit me out on the sandy beach because getting back to the shore myself was entirely impossible. For what seemed like an eternity, I was tossed about. One moment a force with no mercy brutally slammed me on the floor of the sea, piling twenty feet of water above me. The next moment I was yanked up to the top of the waves. For one second the water was knee deep with a pull back out that was strong enough to knock me down. Then seconds later, water thirty feet deep landed on top of me. This exhausting cycle was something from which I couldn’t break out in my own strength.
Such is the mental health reality of those who struggle with bipolar disorder: one moment there is euphoria (mania) and the next moment they bottom out in deep dark depression. It is a vicious cycle from which they can not break loose. The energy and ability to function quickly dissipate and without help from something or someone outside themselves… life slips away.
Seeing people being jerked between these extremes leaves me with the impression that they are in the grips of something cruel. We know it is one of the devil’s schemes to wear down our minds (Daniel 7:25) and what better way to do that then to twist us far in opposite directions. The string of a yo-yo would break if it were subjected to the level of thrust common to bipolar disorder.
Battling the Beast
The Bible refers to the devil as a “beast,” but not because he looks like Chewbacca from Star Wars. The devil is called a beast because he is cruel to the core of his being. There is not one drip of mercy in his nature and tossing people about mentally and emotionally apparently brings him sick pleasure.
The Bible says Jesus came to destroy the works of the devil and liberate people from his clutches. Both of these are things we can not do in our own strength. We need someone outside ourselves. This is precisely why God sent his Son, to do what we couldn’t do –break free.
Try God First
This monthly Spiritual Dimensions of Health and Wellness column is to make the case for turning to God first, turning to what God has made second (natural remedies) and turning to the pharmacy as a final recourse. That alone is a reversal for many because the norm is to head to the doctor first and then turn to God only after every other option is exhausted.
Many churches today are equipping practitioners to know how to prayerfully lead people to the God who breaks in through the depression and heals polar opposites. They understand how to bind the devil from oppressing and distressing people. For anyone suffering bipolar disorder, seek out such a safe place where people have faith for and are seeing the fruit of God doing miracles in the area of mental illness.
The Drug of Choice
You need to hear this word of hope — bipolar isn’t beyond God’s ability to completely cure!
The Bible says the fruit of the Spirit of God in a person’s life includes things like joy and peace. Either this is true or it is not. My experience has led me to believe and experience that this is true. Romans 8:6 says,
“The mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.”
Turning to God for our emotional well-being is central to people finding freedom and healing, peace and life. The message of the Bible is a message of hope, not cope. Hope is all about breakthrough, victory, deliverance and overcoming.
With that all in mind, I’ll share that my first reaction when I once saw “JESUS IS MY PROZAC” on a church marquee was to shake my head and mumble, “Please. Jesus is not your drug.”
However, there is something in that marquee message that I can not get away from because it is true. A truth that will set you free: Jesus can deliver you from yourself, from all torment, from every ailment and give you peace.
Complete Turn Around
Let me say that turning to Jesus and going to church are not necessarily the same thing. There are many who go to church who are just as messed up as those who never darken the parish doors. My admonition here is to turn to Him alone. He is not an add-on to an already full life. It is more than just giving him a few moments of your day like he is a relaxing glass of wine after a hectic day. The “life and peace” promised to us comes as a result of turning from everything and calling out to Him alone.
One of the issues I have with medication is that it can take the place of God and inoculate us from our real need, which is God. To be clear, I view medications as a wonderful gift of God and part of how he heals people in many ways. However, people too often quickly turn to the pharmacy and medicines to settle us emotionally. Better to turn to God first and ask Him to calm the storm.
After all, a sound mind is a gift from God.
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7
A sound mind is something to be sought after and something to be guarded. Jesus even attended to his own mental health often telling his disciples they need to get away from the commotion and the crowds so they could rest. If Jesus needed mental health attention, how much more do we?
Psalm 4:4 is simple and practical advice for everyone for everyday…
“Meditate in your heart on your bed and be still.”
Here’s something to meditate on: Jesus commanded the wind and waves to be still.
He still does this for those who call out to him, even for those with bipolar disorder.
When was the last time you felt overcome by the waves? Was it this morning, last year, or are you still trying to get past the sense of being drawn under or tossed about? It is a horrible place to be and would appreciate if you shared your experiences.
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