Helping you navigate the tension between faith & mental health by looking at a tension point, a talking point and a truth to ponder.
Tension Point
"I want to live an authentic life – free to be me – but I often think I have to put on a brave face. I don’t see it as faking it necessarily, but showing people how good God is and being positive. I might be hurting or angry inside, but I want to push through and be faithful. "
Talking Point
It's so easy to build up an idea of a ‘good Christian’, especially when others rely on us. We are committed to sharing our faith with others by living a life that leads by example; one of faith, showing who God is. But let's be honest, for some of us that can feel like it comes with a heavy weight of expectation.
Do we really feel able to show our weaknesses, struggles and failures as well as our answered prayers and hilltop moments – because surely those moments are the epitome of knowing Christ?
But what if those times of authenticity and realness are actually what God desires most for us – both for us to live freely and for us to be able to relate to him totally honestly?
Truth to Ponder
When we’re busy being who we think God wants us to be, we forget what Jesus values the most – for us to be like little children (Matt 18:3). The beauty of children is that they rarely have a filter. My youngest daughter is very comfortable asking Jesus questions about his preference of pet, whether he was ever bald (that one gets asked a lot), or if he plays the ukulele.
A glimpse of the Psalms can be mind blowing when we realise what David was actually comfortable saying to God (examples taken from The Message version):
“I'm feeling terrible. I couldn’t feel worse”
"Punch those bullies in the nose!”
“You've ignored me for long enough”
“You walked off and left us – how could you do that?”
“God treat me nice for a change”
“Because of you I look like an idiot”
“You won't embarrass me will you?”
Maybe it’s time to become aware of beliefs you may have about what a ‘good disciple’ looks like and bring them honestly to God, expectant that he is very comfortable with our questions and doubts, and loves to help us wrestle through them.
David also shares in the Psalms why he is so open with God:
“God rewrote the text of my life when I opened the book of my heart to his eyes”
What might it feel like to be totally yourself, alongside the knowledge that there’s nothing you can do to make you more pleasing and wonderful to him? That the living God dwells in you, desiring to continue the process of sanctifying you himself and therefore you can not fail?
Explore further your beliefs about God’s expectations of you with a professional or with a facilitator on the Freedom Journey.