Faith – Hope for Complete Healing

How to Increase Emotional Intelligence

So, what does emotional intelligence and complete healing look like? I discovered that complete healing encompasses three key areas of your life: mental, physical, and spiritual. These three areas affect your level of emotional intelligence. (I had to take a break from blogging because I broke my hand and couldn’t type.)

Emotional intelligence is your ability to make a thoughtful, healthy choice about how you respond to a stressful situation rather than reacting. I am a reactor because that is how I was conditioned in my formative, dysfunctional home life. I am learning to respond by taking my reactive thoughts captive, setting them aside, and choosing to respond according to the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 22-23). Are you a reactor or a responder? Do you respond with thankfulness or complaining? Do you respond with grace or anger? Do you respond with love or hate, malice, or scoffing? Do you respond with humility or pridefulness?

My blog focuses on achieving complete healing in the three key areas of your life so you can respond with love and a sound mind to stressful situations. Stress can range from stubbing your toe to facing a cancer diagnosis. I determined that spiritual health is the key to physical and mental health. Spirituality is the third dimension of each human being. In the last 13 posts, I explained how to recognize your spiritual adversary (i.e., the devil and demons). The unseen spirit world attacks you spiritually, physically, and mentally, so being spiritually healthy mitigates these attacks. Your spiritual health also determines how you respond to stressful situations.

A Healthy Spiritual Life.

1. A healed spiritual life begins with believing in Jesus Christ as your Savior, who saves you from the wrath of God for sin and the devil’s control. (Rom. 10:9-10; Rom. 5:9-11; Col. 2:8-10).

2. Repent of your sins (Luke 13:3&5; Acts 3:19, 26:20; Rom. 6).

3. Accept the help of the Holy Spirit to forgive and love others well, which is proof of a healthy soul (Eph. 3:16-19; Col. 3:12-16; and 1Pet. 1:22).

4. Trust God as your healer, provider, and protector (Ex. 15:26; Ps. 68:5; Phil. 4:19).

5. Put off your old way of thinking, which leads to sinful behavior (Eph. 4:22-27).

6. Focus on God’s truth, love, joy, peace, forgiveness, faithfulness, humility, and so on; then those traits will also become yours (1Tim. 6:11 and 2Tim. 2:22).

7. Show mercy and grace by forgiving those who hurt and offend you (Matt. 6:14-15).

8. You cannot be spiritually, mentally, or physically healthy if you are bitter, prideful, and unthankful (Heb. 12:15; 1John 2:16; and 2Tim. 3:1-5).

9. Read your Bible, go to church, pray, and work through the painful issues of your life so you can love from a pure heart (Josh. 1:8; Ps. 1; Heb. 10:24-25; 2Cor. 7:1; 1Pet. 1:22).

10. Spiritual health is evident in humility, complete surrender to God, drawing near to Him, and repenting of sin (James 4:6-8). Submission to Him means obeying Him and resisting the devil, who wants to keep you in bondage to bitterness, pridefulness, and complaining.

A spiritually healthy prayer life supports sound mental health. Especially when you submit your painful memories to God for healing and forgive those who sinned against you. Without God, your memories won’t be healed. Painful memories negatively affect your mental and physical health, which lowers your emotional intelligence because you react from your pain. You can learn to manage your emotions from the pain of your past, but they will still cause you to react negatively instead of responding positively to stressful or painful situations. Also, Satan cannot read your mind, but he knows what you say and will use the negative experiences you complain about to keep you in bondage to offense, which lowers your emotional intelligence.

For example, I have a family member who has a lot of mental and physical health problems. She hasn’t purified her heart from the trauma of her past, and she is still bitter and prideful. Her trauma memories prevent her from being spiritually healthy, which is evident in the quality of the fruit of the Spirit in her life and reactions (Gal. 5:22-25).

How Does a Healthy Person Respond?

A completely healthy person values themselves and others, and their emotional intelligence will reflect that. They’re going to care for themselves physically by eating well and exercising. Next, they receive God’s forgiveness and love, so they can love themselves, love and forgive others well. If you don’t love yourself and take care of yourself, you can’t love others. But if you have a lot of traumas in your past where people did not love you well, it will affect how you respond. So, you need to deal with the trauma of your past through God’s healing power and love. For you to respond with love, you must receive His forgiveness of your sins and His mercy and grace; then you can give His love, His mercy, and His grace to others. Who has offended you or hurt you? Understand that they may be acting out of their own trauma and pain in their life. Or they may be reacting from their sinful flesh. Spiritually healthy people forgive and show mercy.

In 2025, I discussed various mental health issues and ways to improve them. You will find those posts on my mental health page. I later discovered that physical health and mental health are related to your gut health (see Dr. Mark Hyman podcast). My physical and mental health improved greatly when I gave up sugar, corn, most wheat products, and began eating God’s way in Genesis 1:29, “And God said, “Behold, I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the face of all the earth, and every tree with seed in its fruit. You shall have them for food.” These are recognizable foods in their whole form and not highly processed. Exercising regularly and fasting are also good for improving both physical and mental health. You can learn more in my post, Healing Depression: The Role of Gut Health and Diet.

Conclusion

The devil is constantly waiting to distract you and to cause you to be offended at God or others. Satan wants you to give up your faith and walk away from him or be offended at the church and people who go to church. And that’s why I just wrote a series on how the devil and demons interact with humans. You can read all these posts on my Spiritual Warfare Posts page. Spiritually healthy people understand the spirit world and how it affects their mental and physical health. Emotional intelligence depends on strong spiritual health. Praying through a stressful situation helps you respond with the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22-23) instead of reacting from your sinful flesh or painful memories. Are you spiritually healthy?

Does this make sense? If not, please comment below on what does not make sense, so I can clarify it.

RELATED POSTS

Are you Spiritually Healthy?

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All verses are from the English Standard Version. If you find my posts and website helpful, please share this link with your friends and family: hopeforcompletehealing.com. The information is copyright-protected. Please do not reproduce any part of the posts or my book without proper citation to Joyce Hanscom and this website.

My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of relevant promises to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Additionally, consider my book Fighting Unseen Battles, which describes the many unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and what the truths are. To learn more about this book, read the post How to Fight Unseen Battles. my post called Breaking Mental Strongholds Book. Also, check out Fighting Unseen Battles on Amazon. To learn more about this book, read: How to Fight Unseen Battles.

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com, and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

How Does The Devil Scheme Against You?

So, how are we caught in the devil’s schemes? Do you believe you can’t be deceived by the devil? You learned in my previous posts that even Jesus’ disciples were deceived. Deception is to mislead and appear to be true, but it is not. How do you know if you are being deceived by an evil spirit you do not see?

The anatomy of deception or temptation.

This post contains excerpts from my book, Fighting Unseen Battles. In my last post, I explained how temptations open us up to do the devil’s will through our thoughts. Thankfully, we can take every thought captive and submit them to God. Satan’s deceptions follow the same strategy, so let’s look at the first temptation pattern in Genesis chapter three:

Satan tempts Eve to doubt and question God’s words and motives when He asked her in Genesis 3:1, “Did God actually say?” And then in verse four, Satan says, “You will not surely die. For God knows that when you eat of it, your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” His suggestion creates the thought that God was withholding something good from her. Temptations are lies that generate false beliefs.

The forbidden object looks enticing: “saw that the tree was good for food” (Genesis 3:6).

She desired to disobey and eat the fruit: “and that it was a delight to the eyes” (Genesis 3:6).

She believed the lie that she would be like God, which created pride: “the tree was to be desired to make one wise” (Genesis 3:6).

She acted on the lure to disobey God and sin: “she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband” (Genesis 3:6).

Consequence of falling into Satan’s temptation to sin.

Ever since Adam and Eve lost in the first encounter of deception with the devil, we have struggled with a sinful nature. Sin is doing evil when we forsake God and disobey His loving, protective commands (2Chr. 12:14; Jer. 2:19). Sin has consequences. James1:14-15 explains, “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. 15) Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” The Bible says you are dead in your sin (Eph. 2:1; Col. 2:13a; Rom. 5:10, 6:23, 8:10). Dead means no life, no energy, and no growth, like a branch cut off from a tree. Dead is how you feel when you sin; you may become fearful, depressed, and feel purposeless and devoid of hope and life. Shame and guilt are also consequences of sin.

How to master our thoughts.

Cain became angry and wanted to kill Abel. God spoke to Cain in Genesis 4:7 and said, “Sin is crouching at the door, and its desire is toward you, but you must rule over it.” God is telling Cain to rule over or master his thoughts of anger and jealousy, but he did not and killed his brother Abel. Sin begins as a thought that leads to desire, so God uses the image of crouching to show how sin is waiting to control our thoughts. We are to master all our thoughts and make them obey God’s commands. Namely, to love Him and to love others.

Cain was angry because Abel’s offering was accepted by God, and his wasn’t. Anger is not a sin because God also gets angry, yet He is perfect (Num. 22:22; Judg. 2:12; Rev. 14:10). According to Webster’s dictionary, anger is a feeling that may result from injury, mistreatment, opposition, and so on.

Is anger a sin or an indication of something being wrong?

Our anger indicates that we are offended by a perceived unfairness or unmet expectation. The term offended, according to Webster’s dictionary, means to feel irritated, annoyed, or displeased because of someone’s sin, negligence, or disregard. Ephesians 4:26–27 states, “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.” We sin when our anger causes us to retaliate against the person who hurt us, by returning an evil for an evil or an insult for an insult (Rom. 12:17; 1Thes. 5:15). The devil tempts us to act on our anger and to sin against another person, but don’t give him that opportunity; take your thought captive.

The Bible says we are to do what is good and honorable to everyone, even those who hurt us (Rom. 12:17). 1Peter 3:9 even says, “Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.” God wants us to rule over anger and not let it rule us, but to bless those who offend us or do evil to us, which is hard to do on our own. Through our fleshly desire, we are tempted to retaliate and make the person pay for hurting us. God said we are to forgive and live in peace with everyone as far as it depends on us.

Conclusion

Everyone is susceptible to being deceived by the devil. Remember, he roams about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, so be watchful and stand firm in your faith (1Peter 5:8-9a). You are in a spiritual war that is full of offenses and deceptions that lure you into sin and spiritual death (Eph. 6:12). Every day, you need to put on the full armor of God. You can take every thought captive and make it obey God (2Cor. 10:5). Knowing what the Bible says is necessary to know the truth, so you know when you are being tempted to sin and do evil. If you do fall into temptation and sin, immediately turn back to God and seek His forgiveness. 1John 1:9 tells us, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” Don’t let Satan deceive you that you cannot be forgiven and made right with God. Take all thoughts of guilt and shame captive and command them to be gone, and tell yourself that you are forgiven and a new creation in Christ Jesus.

If you are interested in knowing more about this topic, I encourage you to get my book, Fighting Unseen Battles.

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-Changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, the 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

FIVE WAYS TO FIGHT THE DEVIL SUCCESSFULLY

Do you know people who make life difficult for you or others? Have you struggled with an argumentative person? I have. Have you considered that Satan is influencing you and those around you? Sometimes I am influenced by Satan when my mind does not resist him, and I am not submitting to God. When that happens, I become selfish, want my way, and am easily offended and unforgiving. A Scriptural example is found in Mark 8. Peter confesses that Jesus is the Christ, but when Jesus tells him that He will die and be raised up again, Peter protests. In verse 33, Jesus then rebukes him, saying, “‘Get behind me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.’”

The Apostle Paul said in Colossians 3:1-3, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2) Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3) For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

Ephesians 6:12 states, “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” This verse explains the levels or ranks of demons. Remember, if you or others do not submit your minds to think on the things of God, you are also not resisting the devil’s influence on your life.

The last post described how believers respond to demons who afflict them and also to being set free. I described four responses:

a) Stand firm in your faith.

b) Be devoted and fully submitted to God when you are set free.

c) Do nothing, then the demon returns with more demons.

d) Be thankful and know that God’s grace will help you deal with the affliction, and His power is great in our weakness.

In this post, we will study Ephesians 6:10-18 and learn five more ways to respond to the devil. I will not go into great detail, but if you are interested in learning more, please check out the series of posts I wrote on spiritual warfare on the Spiritual Warfare Posts page.

1–Be Strong Through Jesus Christ.

10) Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.

Observation: We are to be strong in the Lord, not ourselves, and not in anyone or anything else. We can only be strong in God’s strength and in His might.

Interpretation and Application: We can only be strong when we are in the Lord; that is, when our minds are set on Him. We cannot fight against evil spirit forces in our own strength, which is why we must be fully submitted to God through repentance of sin. 2Peter 1:3-2 states “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.”

If you don’t know Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, then receive Him now into your heart and ask Him to forgive your sins, so nothing separates you from God the Father (Rom. 10:9-10).

2–Put on the Armor of God.

11) Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil.

Observation: “Put on” is a command. The whole armor of God means all of it, every piece described below. We can only stand against the schemes of the devil when we have the whole armor on. Yes, the devil schemes about how to trip you up and cause you to doubt God, just like he did Adam and Eve. 2Corinthians 11:3 explains, “But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ.”

Interpretation and Application: Verse 11 does not say how often we are to put on the armor of God, but it is safe to say that every day would be a good start. It does not say when to put on the armor of God, but the safest time is the first thing in the morning. I have a prayer model to help you do this; use the PUTTING ON THE ARMOR OF GOD PRAYER MODEL. Paul talks about the devil’s schemes. Schemes mean to plot, plan, design, strategies, and so on. Remember, Satan is the roaring lion seeking whom he may devour (1Peter 5:8). In 2Corinthians 2:11, Paul said, “So that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs.” Put on the full armor of God, so you are not outwitted by Satan’s schemes or designs.

3–Do Everything to Resist the Devil and Stand Firm.

13) “Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand firm.”

Observation: The previous verse, verse 12, explained that we are in a spiritual war against the ranks of demons. Therefore, the whole armor of God is needed to withstand or successfully resist on the day you are tested or tempted by evil spirits. Next, this verse tells you to stand firm when you have successfully resisted. James 4:7 tells us that when we resist the devil, he will flee.

Interpretation and Application: I often forget to be prepared and to stand firm every day. I forget that I am a spirit being in a human body living in a spirit world within the physical world. I need to be reminded to put on the whole armor of God, so I can successfully resist temptations and oppressions from evil forces at work against me or others. Taking up the whole armor of God is a mental discipline because Satan works in our minds.

4–Put on Truth, Righteousness, and Peace.

14-15) “Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace.”

Observation: The armor is already on before you stand firm against the evil day. Each piece of armor represents a characteristic of Jesus Christ.

Interpretation and Application: Jesus is the truth and the Word. When you read, memorize, and do the Word of God, you are putting on truth. When you put on Jesus Christ, you are putting on righteousness. Romans 13:14 states, “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.” When you put on the shoes of peace, you walk as Jesus would. 1John 2:6 states, “Whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” Also, Hebrews 12:14 states, “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.”

5–Keep Faith, Salvation, and the Word of God Close to You Through Prayer.

16-18) “In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.”

Observation: Faith, Salvation, and God’s word are imperative to stand firm against the assault of the evil one (the devil and his demons). Continual prayer in the Spirit is how you stay alert.

Interpretation and Application: If you relax in any way and do not keep on the whole armor of God and take up the shield of faith, you will be destroyed. Our faith is a shield held up through prayer and reading God’s Word. Praying at all times helps keep these necessary components of the armor close to you. Colossians 4:2 tells us to “Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” We are also commanded to keep alert with all perseverance to be watchful, that means, don’t give up and don’t let your guard down.

Conclusion:

The armor of God is something we forget about. We lay down our shield of faith, don’t read the Bible, forget to pray, and then wonder why we aren’t doing well and have so many problems. Too often, watching TV takes up most of your time, and you don’t have time to read your Bible and pray. Remember, if you are a child of God, you need to keep your mind on the things of God above, not the things of this world. TV is a gateway to worldly thinking. The five more ways to deal with the demonic realm are as follows:

1–Be Strong Through Jesus Christ.

2–Put on the Armor of God.

3–Do Everything to Resist the Devil and Stand Firm.

4–Put on Truth, Righteousness, and Peace.

5–Keep Faith, Salvation, and the Word of God Close to You Through Prayer.

If you are interested in learning more, please check out the series of posts I wrote on spiritual warfare on the Spiritual Warfare Posts page.

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

The Spirit World Through Jesus’s Eyes, Introduction

Have you ever wondered if a person had demons or oppressive spirits? What would that look like? In the coming months, I will explore the unseen world through the eyes of Jesus. My posts will be biblically based using the Inductive Bible Study method, which focuses on observation, interpretation, and application. We know the Bible says that angels are ministering spirits for those who are to inherit salvation (Heb. 1:14). They give us messages (read the Christmas story as an example) and protect us (Ps. 91:11). Angels obey the word of God (Ps. 103:20).

Last year, I wrote about mental health. As I was praying about what to write this year, the Lord impressed on my mind to do a deep dive into how we can know when we are dealing with a demon or oppressive spirits, and what to do. I lead a Bible study in the prison system, and I have seen the evidence of demon activity in the women who attend my Bible Study. I have cast out demons as well. And, I have been attacked by demons/evil spirits. I will explain how I knew and what I did about it. Our mental health is also influenced by unseen evil forces.

Misconceptions About Demons

I am surprised by how many people do not believe that Christians can be afflicted by demons. And how many Christians believe that when Jesus died on the Cross, he defeated Satan, which is true, so we are victorious over them, which we are. But what many Christians are not aware of is how they are unwittingly inviting evil spirits to oppress them through their sin and thought life. Then, I know some Christians who rebuke everything as if a demon is behind it. If a door is stuck, they rebuke the demon that is causing it to stick. YIKES! We need a balanced biblical view of demons, evil spirits, oppressive spirits, and Satan. I generated 16 pages of scripture references, so I have plenty of factual material to teach from.

The Three References to Evil Entities.

So what is the difference between demons, evil spirits, and Satan? The Bible uses all three references. I am not an expert on this topic, but I have firsthand experience. Let’s look at what the Scripture says.

Demons are known to be the fallen angels who followed Lucifer in his sin and were thrown down to the earth with Satan, who is also known as the devil. Revelations 12:9 states, “And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”

Demons are spirits, Matthew 8:16 states, “That evening they brought to him many who were oppressed by demons, and he cast out the spirits with a word and healed all who were sick.” King James reads, “When …, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, ….” The New International Version and New American Standard Version read, “When… many who were demon-possessed were brought to him, and he drove out the spirits with a word…”

Evil spirits are demons. Luke 8:2 explains, “And also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out.” Here is another example of evil spirits also being demons: Acts 19:15-16 states, “But the evil spirit answered them, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I recognize, but who are you?’ ¹⁶And the man in whom was the evil spirit leaped on them, mastered all of them, and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.” We know the demons who possessed the men at Gadarenes knew who Jesus was (Matt. 8:28-29). The evil spirit in the man in Acts 19:15 also knew Jesus, which suggests that evil spirits are demons.

Concludion

I described two spirit entities, demons and evil spirits; to respect your time, I will write a separate post on Satan. We do not have to fear the devil, evil spirits, or demons because Jesus Christ has given us the authority to command them to leave. BUT many of us give the evil spirits the right to oppress us. I will elaborate on that in another post. YOU can live in victory and freedom through Jesus Christ.

Blessings.

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

How to Successfully Navigate the Seasons of Life

Do you like change? How about the change of seasons? Each season has beauty and challenges. But all seasons bring change. What season of life are you in? You may be in a difficult season of sickness, a relaxing retirement, or a busy season with many demands. Whatever the season you are in, God is with you, so don’t forget about Him. He is there to help you and to give you peace, strength, and wisdom.

When Multiple Seasons Coincide

I am still in the season of caring for my handicapped mother since 2012, who has dementia. For many years, I cared for her in her home, which was a three-hour drive; now she is in a local Nursing home. This season was challenging because it coincided with working full-time, attending grad school part-time, and attending endless sporting events my youngest teenage son was involved in. At the same time, my oldest son was a drug addict for ten years. I say all this to encourage you, that God is my help, and He sustained me through it all. God will sustain you as well. 2Chronicals 16:9a (NIV) states, “For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.” Is your heart fully committed to God?

My favorite uplifting scripture is Isaiah 46:3b-4 (NIV), “Listen to me, …, you whom I have upheld since your birth, and have carried since you were born. Even to your old age and gray hairs, I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you, and I will rescue you.” Sustain means to support, provide for, hold up, to keep (a person, the mind, the spirits, etc.) from giving way, as under trial or affliction. Sustain also means to supply with food, drink, and other necessities of life (Dictionary.com 2025). Psalm 55:22 states, “Cast your burden on the LORD, and he will sustain you; he will never permit the righteous to be moved.” Also, Isaiah 50:4 states, “The Lord GOD has given me the tongue of those who are taught, that I may know how to sustain with a word him who is weary.” I pray that this post offers words of hope and encouragement to sustain you in your seasons of change.

Enduring Difficult Seasons

You can trust and rely on God when you are in or facing a season of difficulty, even if you feel overwhelmed and can’t sense God’s nearness. He is there, carrying you whether you are aware of it or not. God (the “I am”) promises to sustain you and even rescue you. Read over Isaiah 43:4 again. Note the phrase “I will.” These are promises. You can trust God to keep His promises. I have written about many of God’s promises in my book “Unlocking God’s promises.” Jesus promised to give you peace in John 16:33, “I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world, you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.” 1John 5:4 explains, “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.” And Hebrews 11:6 states, “And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.”

Transitioning to a New Season

I am entering a new season of change and uncertainty, but aren’t all seasons like that? This is why we need to hold onto God to help us navigate each season of our lives. I retired about six months ago, which was a breeze. I loved it. I got so many projects done. Retirement is great, but my husband is retiring next month, which will drastically change my retirement season. I like to be in control of what, when, and how I do things. I also pace myself throughout the day to get everything done. Having him home all day will be difficult, as he will want me to be part of his agenda. I am already getting very stressed about it. But remember, all thoughts are in my control, and I will take every thought captive. I may not be able write posts as often as I have in the last eight years, but everyone who reads my posts is in my prayers.

Here are ways to navigate life’s seasonal changes with grace.

Find something praiseworthy to focus on.
Embrace the changes and know that you will find a new normal.
Discuss common interests and potential conflicts, and how to mitigate them.
Talk about expectations and concerns. The more you understand each other’s expectations and concerns, the easier the transition will be. For example, when I began working full-time, I would not have time to do all the housework. So my husband and I worked out a way to split the chores.
Commit all your frustrations to the Lord, and seek His wisdom to overcome problems that inevitably occur in any season you are in.

To help with the transition of having my husband around every day and all day, I suggested we buy a van and turn it into a camper van, then take short trips around the US while we still have our health. This will give us a common goal rather than being annoyed with each other for interrupting our individual agendas. Does this make sense? If you have any other suggestions, I would love to hear them. Please leave a comment. I understand that this plan can backfire, and other issues will sneak up. Gary’s parents are old, and so are my mother and my aunt, so they could die or suffer a major health crisis, which will bring in a new season. The key is to trust God and rely on Him to sustain you and help you.

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Additionally, consider my book Fighting Unseen Battles, which describes the many unhealthy beliefs that control our lives and the truths behind them. To learn more about this book, read the post How to Fight Unseen Battles. Contact me at hopeforcompletehealing@gmail.com and ask for a PDF of Eight Life-Changing Prayers from the Bible. The prayers are for the Spirit of wisdom, renewal, spiritual strength, knowledge of His will, virtues of God, non-believers, the 23rd Psalm, and victory. I will also send you the Lord’s Prayer Model to pray effectively. Please leave your name, so I know you are a real person making the request.

14 Mental Health Indicators

If you had to rate your mental health from one to ten, what would it be? I learned to manage disappointment more effectively, to accept what I cannot control and to trust God, and to gently correct others’ offenses. My marriage improved because I stopped speaking negative words over it and replaced negative thinking with gratitude. I have spent the last year exploring ways to improve my mental and spiritual health. I was amazed by how much it affects our psychological and physical health. There is so much more to learn. The key takeaway from my research is that mental health and spiritual health are interrelated and directly affect your physical health. Therefore, the more spiritually healthy you are, the more mentally healthy you will be, and the more mentally healthy you are, the more physically healthy you will be. Read “Why Be Physically Healthy?“

Mental Health Rating.

I created the following summary in the post titled “How Mentally Healthy Are You?” published on January 11, 2025. When I read various articles about mental health, including my Mental Health coaching instructions with Light University, I learn that there are many perspectives on what a mentally healthy person is. The following list summarizes people’s views of what a mentally healthy person looks like. Rate yourself from one to ten for each category. How well are you doing?

Aware of negative thinking but not obsessed with it. 1 —–5—– 10

(Thinking creates feelings, which build beliefs that affect emotions and behavior. Read “All Thoughts are Within Our Control.”)

Identifies and accepts disappointment but does not discount it. 1 —–5—– 10

(Acknowledge the unmet expectations and process resulting disappointment through prayer. Read “How to Develop Emotional Resilience.”)

Forgive those who offend me. 1 —–5—– 10

(God requires forgiveness, and it removes the power of the offence from influencing your thoughts, emotions, and behavior. Read “Why Must You Forgive.”)

You are realistically thankful about something even when expectations are not met.

1- –5 — 10 (Thankfulness changes the negative thought and emotion into a positive thought. Read “Being Thankful During Hardships.”)

Humbly consider others’ needs and desires. 1 —–5—– 10

(Loving others requires humility and consideration. Read “How to Build Trust with Win/Win Agreements.”)

Understands boundaries and uses them. 1 —–5—– 10

(Boundaries create healthy interactions. Read “HOW TO BE PROACTIVE: cont.”)

See possibilities and positives in hardships, and don’t obsess over unrealistic worst-case scenarios. 1 —–5—– 10

(Hardships are part of life, Jesus said He will give you peace. Read “Thoughts That Create Peace Within and Without.”)

Proactive and not defensive. You receive criticism and use it for positive change, and do not get defensive or become depressed. 1 —–5—– 10

(Very difficult to do. Read “How to Respond to Criticism.”)

Do not get into futile arguments to prove your right. 1 —–5—– 10

(This requires wisdom and a sound mind. Read “How to Have a Healthy Argument or Conflict.”)

You know you can only control your own thoughts and actions, not what others think or do. 1 —–5—– 10 (Read “10 Ways to be Proactive Instead of Reactive.”)
You are content yet persevere toward positive goals. 1 —–5—– 10

(Being envious and anxious steals you peace; contentment gives you a sound mind. Read “TWELVE WAYS TO ACHIEVE HEALTHY GOALS.”)

Do not need validation from others to feel good about yourself. 1 —–5—– 10

(Read “Eliminate Depression with Self-love and God’s Love.”)

Do not relinquish your power to external influences. 1 —–5—– 10

(Do you allow others’ flawed opinions to influence how you think and believe? Read “What is An Emotionally Healthy Person?”)

Do you take your sad thoughts to God and rejoice in His help, provision, and wisdom?

1 —–5—– 10 (You can take every thought captive and focus on Jesus as your source of joy. Read “HOW TO REPLACE SADNESS WITH REJOICING” and “Purpose, Sadness, and Loneliness.”)

Conclusion

How did you do? if you need to improve in one or more areas, there is hope. Read “Eight Ways to Rewire Negative Responses.” Your mental health is critical for living your best and most prosperous life. You cannot have healthy relationships without healthy emotions. You can’t face life’s hardships without a strong spiritual life. I pray you grow more mentally healthy as you also strengthen your spiritual and physical health. To read all my mental health posts, go to the Mental Health Posts page.

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

FIVE WAYS TO TAME YOUR IMAGINATION

Have you ever caught yourself getting all worked up imagining a worst-case scenario that may never happen? It is unwise to let your imagination go down a dark path, because your emotions and behavior follow your thoughts, and you will often act foolishly. For example, my sister accused my husband of cheating in a game we were playing. She let her imagination fuel her assumption, and her emotions followed. She said many unkind words. I tried to reason with her, but she kept believing the lie that my husband was trying to do her in. My husband was not cheating, and he will no longer play games with her. Her foolish imagination and controlling behavior ruined her relationship with my husband. Has your imagination caused you to act foolishly?

What Stimulates Your Imagination?

Stories, TV shows, and movies are often make-believe scenarios to entertain you, but those images influence thoughts, which stimulate your imagination. For example, I became interested in the van-life movement, and I found their van creations and travel experiences very interesting. Watching these YouTube videos has inspired me to want to do the same thing. My husband is shocked because I am a homebody, and he loves to travel. Talking to people can stimulate good or bad thoughts and imagination.

Problems stimulate either creative thoughts or destructive thoughts. If you have a problem you need to solve, you can use your imagination to come up with a solution. For example, I had a problem with one of my chickens that always wanted to fight. I had to separate her from the flock because the other chickens would nearly kill her. My husband did not want to kill her, so I had to come up with a solution to keep her separate, protected from predators, and not a burden to care for her. It took me about a month to come up with a viable, though not perfect, solution. On the other hand, if you are having problems with your family, you may imagine it would be better to get a divorce, turn to alcohol or drugs, go to the bar instead of going home, and so on.

For a long time, as I was healing from the trauma of my past, I was caught up in a world of make-belief to escape the struggles of my life. As a child, I spent hours completely dissociated from reality, living in a make-believe world in my mind. Since I healed my trauma memories, I no longer struggle with dissociation. To learn more about how I healed my memories, read my website book called “Hope for Complete Healing.”

Unhealthy beliefs will stimulate your imagination to go down a dark road of make-believe that robs your life and sometimes your finances. If you have insecurity issues, you may have the unhealthy belief that someone doesn’t like you. Your imagination will come up with many scenarios of why they don’t want you, which feeds your unhealthy belief that you are unworthy. Some people have the harmful belief that they must prepare for some catastrophe that may never happen. Many people are caught up in the prepping phenomenon because of TV shows, YouTube videos, and prepping books. My sister is totally controlled by the prepping phenomenon, spending a vast amount of money and time on it.

What Does the Bible Say?

God writes a lot about our thoughts, which I explain in the page called “Posts on Thoughts.” I found two verses concerning imaginations.

Proverbs 18:11 states, “A rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and like a high wall in his imagination.”

Act 17:29 states, “Being then God’s offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man.”

How to Tame Your Imagination.

A person’s imagination can be good when used to create beautiful works of art, engineering feats, or great inventions. But most of the time, imaginations are fueled by unhealthy beliefs and unrealistic fears. I explain this in a post called “How Fear Controls You.” In this post, I want to explain how to tame your imagination. Your thoughts direct your imagination, and you can control what you think.

Recognize (be mindful of) your thoughts and feelings. Note, God is aware of all your thoughts (Ps. 139:1-4).
Ask yourself, is what I am thinking the truth? Did the situation happen, and is there a real threat or problem that needs to be mitigated?
Take the unhealthy belief captive and tell it to be gone in Jesus’ name (2Cor. 10:5 and John 14:14).
Apply a truth to your mind and dwell on what is true (Phil. 4:8).
Let your mind dwell on God’s word (Ps. 1:1-3 and Joshua 1:8) when you become worried or fearful.

Conclusion

The quality of your mental health depends on what your mind dwells on. Understanding external influences on your mind and imagination will help you determine whether what you believe is the truth or a lie. Take captive all thoughts that stimulate feelings of anger, hate, malice, manipulation, sadness, fear, envy, impurity, sensuality, and so on. Don’t let your imagination cause you to sin. Set your mind on the things of God to stay in the will of God and to worship Him continually. Colossians 3:1-3 states, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. ²Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. ³For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” And Romans 12:2 states, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Purpose, Sadness, and Loneliness

Do you have a sense of purpose for your life? Do you see how sadness is related to a lack of purpose? How do you know what your purpose is? To learn more, read my post called Know Your Purpose? In this post, we will explore why having a sense of purpose diminishes or eliminates sadness and loneliness. Webster’s dictionary defines purpose as to aim, intend, or resolve to do something good or achieve a goal.

Focusing on achieving a goal or doing something good takes your mind off what makes you sad or lonely. Having a purpose can diminish and even eliminate sadness when the source is feeling hopeless and despondent. Let’s face it, most of the time we feel sad, and it is most often about how we have been wronged. Yes, grieving is healthy sadness, but when you become sad because of a wrong, this can be diminished or eliminated. Often, when we suffer a loss, we also lose our sense of purpose. You will learn how to find another purpose despite the loss. Loneliness makes us feel sad because we don’t feel connected to others.

How Trials and Afflictions Make You Sad But Give You Purpose

I can give many examples, but here is one: when I was going through a difficult trial at work many years ago, I focused on earning a post-baccalaureate certificate and on writing my testimony in Hope For Complete Healing. Achieving goals helped me not feel despondent about the unfairness. I had to battle anxiety since I was the only one with a full-time job, and helping my son with his college tuition. At the very last minute (God’s timing), my husband was given a full-time job, which also helped my son with his tuition. God is faithful, and we can trust Him. God also gave me a new purpose for when I would be laid off: to write my first book and start my Hope for Complete Healing ministry.

The trials in my life prepared me for my purpose. Romans 8:28 states, “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to His purpose.” The condition is to love God and be called according to His purpose. His main purpose is for you to be conformed to the image of God. Verse 29a says, “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son.” God foreknew everyone who would love Him. We are conformed to His image through affliction (James 1:2-4). King David said in Psalm 119:50, “This is my comfort in my affliction, that your promise gives me life.” Knowing God’s promises comforts us and lifts our sadness. Afflictions contribute to depression, so knowing God’s promises and trusting Him will give you hope and a feeling of life. I wrote a book called Unlocking God’s Promises. I encourage you to get a copy to know God’s promises.

Where Does Our Purpose Come From?

Our emotions are complex, but know that you are made in the image of God, who has all the same emotions. Even in the midst of your suffering and sadness, you can find purpose. Consider the following purposes that God shows us in the Bible. A sense of purpose breaks the stronghold of loneliness as well.

Show others love as you would want to be loved.
Be kind to someone, even the person or people who are troubling or ignoring you.
Be patient when things don’t go as you want.
Be gentle when annoyed.
Spread joy by encouraging others, even when you feel discouraged.
Ease a burden for someone.
Seek peace with others and don’t argue.
Be faithful to your family and employer.
Be trustworthy and not lie.
Be self-controlled and do not indulge your unhealthy feelings or desires.
Be thankful for something, even that you are not a leper in India.
Pray for someone who is struggling.
Minister to widows and orphans by visiting or helping them.
Show hospitality.
Use your gifts to serve others.

All the above actions help you focus on others and not yourself. I learned that sadness is self-focused on what I think is unfair and on my wants and feelings. Loneliness is also self-focused. When you focus on others or achieving a goal, it gets your focus off yourself and your troubles. Try it, and tell me how you feel afterwards. As soon as you begin to think about “poor me” and how you are being wronged, or whatever it is, then choose something on the list above and focus on accomplishing that instead. Make a habit of focusing on others, and you will feel as if you have a purpose.

Conclusion

Here are a few, but not exhaustive, ways to overcome sadness.

Being sad is an emotional response to living in a sinful world with sinful people. Stay in prayer and forgiveness so you aren’t filled with toxic sadness and hopelessness.
Acknowledge that you are sad, which is okay, forgive, and look for ways to avoid focusing on how you or others were wronged.
Let the wrong define your purpose. If a friend’s husband leaves her for another woman, you can feel sad for her, but you now have an opportunity to serve and help her in her time of need. When I was going through a divorce and was a single mother, many people helped me. I have the purpose to help other single mothers who are struggling.
We will always be offended or feel hurt by someone. Forgive and don’t let the other person’s weakness steal your joy and peace. Pray for them.
Don’t make excuses that you were born melancholy; that is a non-biblical label and not how God intended you to exist. See yourself as God sees you, which you can read in my post called How Does God See You?.

May God bless you richly as you seek Him and become more like Him.

Related Posts:

HOW TO REPLACE SADNESS WITH REJOICING

Prevent Suicide and Addictions with Hope

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

Ten Ways to Live in Peace to Maintain Mental Health

Are there people who make you miserable? Do you have a hard time living in peace with family members, co-workers, or even church members? Are you triggered when someone challenges you or disrespects you?

Peace is a hallmark of someone who does not let people and situations affect them emotionally. How can someone do that? I admire those who stay calm and can be rational with those who are angry and dysfunctional. I have always reacted negatively to those who were mean to me, which is human nature. I often become anxious when situations are outside my control. In this post, you will learn the ten ways to stay above chaotic people and situations that affect your mental health.

I grew up in a very angry home, where fights were the norm every day. I never had peace or joy in my life, even when I lived alone, because my mental health was affected by the chaos of my past. Then I married an abusive man, who antagonized me with constant threats and put-downs. The fights were horrendous because my old tapes replayed in my mind. I desperately wanted to feel valued and loved. Have you ever noticed that where there is love in the home, there is also peace and joy? Where there is respect, there is peace and cooperation.

First, Deal With Your Own Peace Issues.

You can’t live in peace with others if your mind and heart are filled with conflicting emotions from past trauma and painful memories. When I worked through my peace issues, I became emotionally stable. I am a completely different person today, and as I continue to work through peace issues, I can now separate myself from the emotions of another person and not let them bother me. For example, a woman who is contentious came up to me on several occasions and spoke in an unkind way. I was able to smile and listen to her and not react out of my past insecurity tapes. That is when I knew I had victory and could live in peace with anyone. The other way you know you are living in peace is if you don’t repeat the matter and gossip. Not being triggered by other people’s weaknesses is the victory we are to strive for.

Peace is as big an issue as love is to God. Matthew 5:9 states, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.” Peacemakers are not people pleasers, but they make peace with those who are controversial. And Hebrews 12:14 states, “Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.” Striving means to work hard for. People who make an effort to live in peace with those around them are also holy. Holiness is having a pure heart and living in perfect, harmonious union with God and people. Holiness is a huge topic that I will not cover in this post. Please read my posts about why and how to purify your heart and soul. WHY HEAL YOUR HEART AND PURIFY YOUR SOUL? and Five Steps to Heal Your Heart and Purify Your Soul.

Second, Give the Circumstances to God and be Thankful.

It is hard to have peace when the world around you is falling apart, or your health is falling apart, or your family is falling apart. God wants you to cast your cares and anxieties on Him because He cares for you (1Peter 5:7). The devil is looking for a chance to steal your peace and joy, through chaos. Overcome the devil by keeping your faith and eyes on Jesus (1Peter 5:8-9). In John 16:33, Jesus says, “These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”

Being thankful is another way to keep peace in your heart despite your circumstances (Phil. 4:6-7 and 1Thes. 5:16-18). For example, you get a flat tire and you are late for an appointment. Before you get upset, thank God for his protection and for giving you a sound mind to know what to do. Ask God to help you and keep your mind on God’s perfect will being accomplished in the situation. It is amazing how being thankful helps you maintain a sound mind.

How to Respond to Those in Opposition.

I came across Second Timothy 2:22-26, which offers insight into how to live in peace with difficult people. In today’s politically divided world, we have ample opportunity to practice living in peace. Romans 12:18 states, “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.”

22) So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. When we were young, we would take everything personally. If someone didn’t do what we wanted, we would get angry. If they snubbed us, we would get angry, and so on. Now we are to put away our youthful passions and childish thinking and love others (1Cor. 13:4-11). We must now pursue (strive for) righteousness, faith, love, and peace.

23) Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. We are all familiar with foolish, ignorant controversies, so I won’t describe them here. If you know an issue is controversial, do not become emotionally engaged with it. As I said earlier, when you are at peace in your own mind, then you will be at peace with others. No one ever wins a quarrel, which is why Satan baits us to quarrel with each other. The definition of quarrel is a cause of dispute, complaint, or hostile feeling (dictionary.com 2025). Quarreling destroys relationships.

24-26) And the Lord’s servant must

A. not be quarrelsome

B. (be) kind to everyone,

C. able to teach,

D. patiently enduring evil (trouble, Rom 12:12),

E. correcting his (or her) opponents with gentleness.

God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

Conclusion

The ten ways to live in peace are:

Deal with your peace issues to eliminate the triggers that cause emotional upset from other people’s rude unkindness.
Pray and give all your troubles and concerns to God.
Be thankful in every circumstance, even those that are stressful.
Strive for and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace.
Do not quarrel.
Show kindness.
Teach the truth.
Be patient.
Gently correct those in opposition.
Set your mind on the things of God and purify your heart.

1Thessalonians 5:23 states, “Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.

HOW DOES GOD SEE YOU?

Do you sometimes have low self-esteem because of the people you compare yourself to? Do you have a shame-based identity because of what you did or what was done to you? What people have said about us and to us shapes our identity. Experiences shape your identity. When we put our faith in Jesus Christ and receive Him into our hearts, we will then have His identity. However, first, we must put off the wrong beliefs. And put on God’s truth.

Last week, I explained how the lies we believe control how we feel about ourselves. I listed different lies and the truth found in God’s word. To have a new self-image, you first need to put off the lies you believe. For example, when you clean your house, you need to remove the trash and dirt first, to make it look clean and new. The following truth statements are for those who believe in and have received Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Repeat the statements on this list and believe these truths about yourself. Let your identity be based on what God says.

I am the salt of the earth (Matt. 5:13) and can preserve and enhance peace and love.

I am the light of the world (Matt. 5:14) and can shine God’s truth and love.

I am a child of God (John 1:12), and I believe and have received Christ into my heart (Eph. 3:17).

I am part of the true vine, a channel of Christ’s life (John 15:1-5), so I can grow the fruit of the Spirit.

I am Christ’s friend (John 15:15), and I trust that He will never leave me and will help me (Heb. 13:5b-6).

I am chosen and appointed by Christ to bear His fruit (John 15:16).

I am a slave of righteousness (Rom. 6:18), and Jesus Christ makes me righteous (1Cor. 5:21).

I am a child of God: God is spiritually my Father (Rom. 8:14-15; Gal. 3:26; 4:6).

I am a joint heir with Christ, sharing His inheritance with Him (Rom. 8:17).

I am a temple, a dwelling place of God. His Spirit and life dwell in me (1 Cor. 3:16; 6:19).

I am united to the Lord and am one spirit with Him (1 Cor. 6:17).

I am a member of Christ’s Body (1 Cor. 12:27; Eph. 5:30) and have His divine power for life and godliness (2Peter 1:3).

I am a new creation (2 Cor. 5:17) and reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5:18; Rom. 5:10).

I am reconciled to God and am a minister of reconciliation (2 Cor. 5:18-19) to share the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ.

I am a child of God and one in Christ (Gal. 3:26-28).

I am an heir of God since I am a child of God (Gal. 4:6-7).

I am a saint (Eph. 1:1, 1 Cor. 1:2; Phil.1:1; Col. 1:2).

I am God’s workmanship, His handiwork born anew in Christ to do His work (Eph. 2:10).

I am a fellow citizen with the rest of God’s family (Eph. 2:19).

I am a prisoner of Christ (Eph. 3:1; 4:1).

I am righteous and holy (Eph. 4:24).

I am a citizen of heaven, seated in heaven right now (Phil. 3:20; Eph. 2:6).

I am hidden with Christ in God (Col. 3:3).

I am an expression of the life of Christ because He is my life (Col. 3:4).

I am chosen of God, holy and dearly loved (Col. 3:12; 1 Thess. 1:4).

I am a child of light and not of darkness (1 Thes. 5:5).

I am a holy partaker of a heavenly calling (Heb. 3:1).

I am a partaker of Christ; I share in His life (Heb. 3:14) and divine nature (2Peter 1:4).

I am one of God’s living stones, being built up in Christ as a spiritual house (1Pet. 2:5).

I am a member of a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession (1 Peter 2:9,10)

I am an alien and a stranger to this world in which I temporarily live (1 Pet. 2:11).

I am an enemy of the devil (1 Pet. 5:8) and can stand firm against his schemes (Eph. 6:11).

I am a child of God, and I will resemble Christ when He returns (1 John 5:18).

Conlusion

Your self-image reflects your mental health. I encourage you to read the above list over the next month to imprint your heart and mind with these truths. Ask God to show you the lies you believe, then put them out of your mind and heart as you put in the above truths. If you need to talk to someone, I am available to talk to you. Contact me through my email.

You can read my other Mental Health posts here.

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My latest book, Unlocking God’s Promises, explains 18 categories of promises that are relevant to each of our lives. It also includes the promises in Psalm 91.

If you find this website helpful, you would like to read Breaking Mental Strongholds, which expands on my website book and includes many of my posts.