Now more than ever I hear people asking the questions,
“Why am I discouraged? Why is my heart so sad?”
Well so did David. Which he followed by, “I will put my hope in God! I will praise him again!” Psalms 42:11 NLT⠀
He was a man after God’s own heart.
He wrote SONGS OF REJOICING, yet he fought depression and discouragement.
The man who took down the biggest giant in history, battled the giant of mental health.
Today I want to share my interview I posted a few months ago by Pastor Jeremey Nippard he is a man after God’s own heart, with a message that BEARS REPEATING.
He’s the Formission Director with the Pentecostal Assemblies of Newfoundland, and when he spoke out about his own battle with mental health, he also challenged us ALL to EMBRACE THE NEED, and help take down the biggest giant in our society!
Don’t Buy The Lie You Are Alone
“I’m about to share something with the world that I have only ever shared with my closest confidants, but I think in this season, we can’t afford to ignore this subject…”: In September of 2020, I had a panic attack. I have experienced minor episodes in the past, but I knew by the duration and severity that this was something new and potentially disruptive.
“I pulled out my whole arsenal of coping skills (I’ve built up a repertoire over 13 years – ministry demands it): prayer, solitude, family time, productive work, hobbies, music, nature, writing. Everything helped in the moment, but nothing seemed to change the frequency or intensity of the attacks. I worked through. I put on a brave face. I initially did everything leaders are always told that we should do, except one thing…”, and I would posit that this one thing is the most important thing.” Pastor Jeremey Nippard
Want to read more about Jeremy’s story, his battle with mental health, and how God helped him? Click here.
If you or someone you know is battling with mental health struggles, and would like some additional resources, check out the Sanctuary Course that pastor Jeremy mentioned in our interview, as well as these practical tips that help you stay focused.
6 Tips to Help You Stay Focused
Oftentimes when we deal with anxiety, we lose sight of what’s important in our lives. We allow anxiety to take over our thoughts, and forget about what we should truly be focusing on. Pastor Jeremy is offering 6 small tips that not only have kept him on track, but it has allowed him to take back control of the anxiety that had tried to take control of his life. I pray that if you need to take back control of any area of your life, that these steps will be of great value to you as they have been to Pastor Jeremy.
- Live in God’s Story every day.
- Dwell in Christ every day.
- Love family tangibly every day.
- Reflect gratefully on my life, thoughts, behaviors every day without judgment.
- Exercise every day.
- Reach out to a friend every day
Connecting with family and friends, being grateful, exercising and putting God first all come together to help us fixate on what’s important. And of course, to not let anxiety take over and rule our lives.
About Jeremy
Jeremy has been a pastor for almost 15 years, and lives in Paradise, NL with his wife, Cheryl, and two children, Christyn and Carter. Christyn and Carter are such interesting and curious leaders that Jeremy wrote a book about them. You can find The Book of Zorb at most literary retailers.
He is also the Director of Formission with the Pentecostal Assemblies of Newfoundland and Labrador (PAONL). Jeremy believes wholeheartedly that healthy leaders and disciples in healthy churches will lead to a healthy, disciple-making movement. To connect with pastor Jeremy or find out more about Formission visit www.formission.org, or on Formission’s Facebook page.
Confidence - Sanctus Real
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