Preaching with a purpose

Sometimes when life isn't going too well, we panic and think we will not be able to keep our commitments. This happened with me about three weeks ago. I was feeling very down and thought I would be unable to keep my preaching appointments, starting with todays date. I rang the superintendent minister and he said he was free on the first occasion and could take that service at the drop of a hat. Three days later things had turned around and I am now ready to preach this evening. God is faithful. He called me to preach and he has equipped to do it too. God will be faithful to you to in every circumstance, if you trust him.

As it says in the hymn. We are indeed frail and vulnerable, liable to succumb to some illness or another. We can depend on nothing in this life, except God. He is reliable and if we will submit to him he will see us through all that life can throw at us and even cause us to benefit from the experience. Never depend on money or your health, they can so suddenly desert you. Trust in the Lord.

It's a lovely Spring day here in Devon, England, today. We find it easier to praise God when all is going well, but we also are more inclined to forget him. Sometimes he has to bring us through hard times, because that is when we realise how much we need him. Today let those of us who are free to worship pray for the many, throughout our world, who face great danger if they declare their faith in Jesus.We never know when that freedom will be taken away from us.

One of the advantages of being bi-polar is that it tends to make you creative. I love writing poetry. Recently I have been writing sonnets. Up until now I have written free form poetry, so to have a structure to write to was a good discipline for me and not nearly as restricting as I thought it would be. That is like life,. http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifIf we keep to the structure God has given us we will be free whilst anarchy in our lives leads to chaos. To see my sonnets click the link below. Sonnets and how to write them

I'm feeling great again. Depression never lasts very long for me as I am bi-polar. I really feel for people who get stuck in depression for weeks on end. When you are depressed you feel as if it will last forever, but there is light at the end of the tunnel. If you are depressed try to mix with other people. If you spend too much time on your own you will have a lop-sided view of life. If you mix with others you will see things from a happier perspective. There are lots of people who get depressed and they will understand how you feel, so don't be afraid to confide in them.

Another way to help yourself if you have trouble with depression is to take up a hobby. It might be a handycraft or making models, which you can do on your own, or it might be something social like playing short mat bowls. For the latter see my page on it below. It is a lovely sport and one that takes all your concentration and stops you worrying about life's problems large and small. Short mat bowls

I'm feeling much better. I am having great success with not over sleeping and it really seems to help. It is so easy to crawl into bed and forget the world outside, but really there is so much in life to do and enjoy. I have had no daytime sleep for the last four days and I feel so much better for it. It is a well known fact that too much sleep makes depression worse, so if you have this problem follow my example and cut out that daytime sleep.

If you have mental health problems don't be ashamed of it. If you had a broken leg or diabetes you wouldn't be ashamed. Mental health problems are just another illness. Hold your head up high, you have a debilitating illness which is not your fault. You cope with it the best way you can. When the good days come enjoy them to the full. As much as possible be in the company of people. We all need each other. Try to put some routine into your days and don't sleep in, it makes the problem worse.

People with mental illness can react strongly to the world around them. Seeing what the world is like these days, perhaps those of us with mental health issues are the sane ones reacting to a black world, whilst those supposedly healthy ones are blinkered and shutting out the bad things in life.Perhaps we are the prophets warning that our society is doomed.

I believe in difficult times in life God is teaching me something, in fact drawing me closer to him. He may seem far away in these situations but really he is strengthening us for times ahead. Often we have grown away from him even if only a little and then he draws us back to himself. It may be painful for us but it is working our final good. So take heart if you are experiencing difficult times, God is at work in you.

Whatever problem you have, whether it is mental health or something else , it is advisable to take one day at a time. Today has been a better day. I have kept myself occupied with jobs around the house and avoided too much sleeping. I brushed my shoes and they look so much better. My daughter visited.I taught violin to a friend and this evening the Bible study group met in my flat. That seems like a pretty full day. I also wrote half a sermon for a week Sunday. Definite signs of improvement with only a few anxious moments. I hope you find this helpful in your situation. I would love to hear how you cope with your problems. Also a lot of prayer went into the day.

When you have a problem, such as depression, the main thing is to keep reminding yourself that it will pass and better days will come.I am fortunate to have good friends and family around me who give me support. It is very important to get out and mix with people. It puts life into perspective and most people are very sympathetic. The mornings seem to be the worst time and it is tempting to pull the duvet over your head and stay there. Get up and get moving it's much better for you, but easier said than done.

I'm having trouble because I had to come off a tablet that was making sleep as often as I could. I'm hoping to be put on a lower dose as since giving it up I have had a lot of anxiety. I've been trying to decide if this anxiety is at a normal level that other people have and just put up with it. For instance I was very nervous the morning before speaking at the Women's World Day of Prayer, but I quess that was normal. It is very difficult to decide what is normal however as I can't get inside other people's heads.What is your level of anxiety?

Many of us are aware of the harmful effects of aspartame and so we read our food labels carefully before buying a product. You would think that if a product declared itself to be free from artificial colours or flavours you could safely assume that there would be no aspartame present, in Robinsons lemon drink this is not the case, but you have to read the very small print list of ingredients to discover it is present. So be doubly aware and check all foods.