What Does the Bible Say About Mental Health?
We are in a time when mental health is rightly becoming a focus of many people around the world. We see marketing for counseling and other services more and more. I see hope in this societal change; many people are coming to an understanding that it is not only acceptable but encouraged to focus on their mental health.
As a believer, it is important to look at this part of health from a biblical standpoint. We see the biblical writers talking about soul-care and self-care at many points throughout scripture. Throughout the biblical story, we see fear, depression, anxiety, and many other negative aspects of the human experience.
Christ himself provides an example of how we can take care of our mental health through our relationship with Him and in finding time for rhythms and rest in our lives. Looking at scripture through this lens, we see the way that God wants us to work through struggles. In his Word, there are approaches that we can implement into our daily walk.
Here are a few of my favorite passages addressing mental health:
“For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and a sound mind.”
Here, Paul writes to Timothy that we can exchange our fears with these good things. This is so helpful in focusing on the gifts that Christ has provided to deal with struggles! We have been made in His image and because of that, we have power and love in our abilities to combat the fears that hold us back in spreading the Gospel.
“The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.”
This is one of my personal favorite verses. I see this as a depiction of the struggle with depression. Does God say that we won’t have troubles if we follow Him? No. However, He does say that we will be delivered from the troubles that we do face because He is close to the brokenhearted and saves the crushed in spirit.
This is such a wonderful reminder of the loving Heavenly Father that is waiting with open arms as we run to Him through our struggles. Mental health struggles are so different from physical ailments because we aren’t able to see what is hurting and cannot bandage over the hurt. This is where Christ becomes not only the bandage but the cure for our struggles!
“Peace is what I leave with you; it is my own peace that I give you. I do not give it as the world does. Do not be worried and upset; do not be afraid.”
Anxiety is another struggle that many people are facing in the day-to-day. Again, God’s Word provides answers of how to face this struggle and focus on Him. John 14:27 says, “Peace is what I leave with you; it is my own peace that I give you. I do not give it as the world does. Do not be worried and upset; do not be afraid.”
In this verse we have a culmination of the three struggles that I have talked about. Feeling worried, upset, and afraid are all things Christ tells us not to struggle with. Is it as easy as simply not struggling with it? Of course not, but we are reminded that Christ has provided the peace that we need to fight through these struggles.
Finding comfort, healing, and peace
These are just a few instances where Christ speaks to us about dealing with our mental health in a way that is effective and biblical. Finding it in ourselves to trust in Him and truly believe that He is in control of our lives is a very difficult part when searching for healing. However, we can look to Him and know we are not alone in our struggles and He will provide comfort, healing, and peace as we grow in caring for our mental health.