3 Reasons Why The Church Should Talk About Mental Health
Have you been told or taught to believe that faith and mental health don’t go hand in hand? In fact, struggle is all across the Bible, the story of God’s people. King David struggled with depression at various points in his life, the prophets Elijah and Jonah despaired to the point of death, and even Jesus was acquainted with deep grief. The conversation around mental health is not unfamiliar in the Bible; it is an honest story of who God is and who people are, a story of help and hope.
Las Vegas is one of the loneliest cities in America where a loneliness epidemic runs rampant.
38% of adults in Nevada experience anxiety or depression.
This is 6% higher than the national average.
Studies suggest that 50% of people in the world will develop a mental health disorder in their lives.
Maybe this is you. Maybe this describes someone you love. How do people find the help and hope of God in the midst of struggle? How do followers of Jesus show up well for neighbors, friends, and family who are struggling? Often, it starts with a conversation. For more mental health resources, visit canyonridge.org/help.
3 Reasons Why The Church Should Talk About Mental Health
If the story of God’s people reveals deep points of pain intertwined with a deep, intimate relationship with God and others, then God’s invitation to you is to show up, acknowledge your role, and seek God together. Here are 3 reasons why the Church should engage conversations around mental health:
Honesty: Honestly, there’s a problem, and honestly, people don’t always handle challenge well. Followers of Jesus want to be honest about the real helplessness of the human experience and the help and hope of Jesus who is acquainted with grief, sorrow, and pain. One major reason people shy away from hard, but necessary conversations is the fear of not getting it right. When it comes to really challenging and really important conversations, most people aren’t looking for the right answers - they’re looking for compassion, for support, and for a lasting hope. Good news, pain can help point people to Jesus.
Community: Maybe the only thing worse than suffering, is suffering alone. God has everything to say about living in community: how to form community, to find a sense of purpose through partnership with him and his people, and to suffer together. Good news is that Jesus modeled this with the intention of shaping you into his image day by day. So, along this journey of talking about mental health is learning to show up well for the people around you with unhurried curiosity and compassion, not quick judgment or solution. If you’re struggling to bring up the conversation or need some support on where to look in the Scriptures, here is a simple, yet powerful resource you and your people can use called the Three-Column Study.
Prayer: God’s comfort is what hurting people need, so ask! God is always waiting to meet you. There are many ways to do this.
Breath Prayer: This is using your breath to pray the truth of who God is. Maybe it’s as simple as inhaling, “God, our helper,” and exhale, “be our hope today” (Psalm 33).
Presence Prayer: Call to mind the place of pain or a person enduring through pain. Hold them in God’s presence. Ask on their behalf for God’s comfort. Pray a Psalm or any passage of Scripture that God is bringing to mind to pray through.
Prayer Walk: Maybe there is tension in your own home, maybe there is pain in your neighborhood, maybe there is loss in your workplace. Prayer walking is a beautiful, intentional way to slow your pace and turn your attention to how Jesus is already showing up in the physical spaces you frequent. Pray with him in these areas.
As you talk about mental health, what is God revealing to you and the people around you? Look to what God is saying in his Word, and how he is inviting you to show up in his name in the people and places around you.