*Bonus Material: “I’ll be praying for you.”
In my last post I listed “have you tried praying about it?” as one of the things I wished you wouldn’t say to me. Now, I don’t want you to take that statement out of context. I was referencing the belief that prayer will make my mental illness disappear, or that I’m mentally ill because “I let the devil in”. I said this in my last post, and I’ll say it again; “My mental illness is not caused by the absence of God, or presence of the devil… it’s a chemical imbalance that I’ll have to live with during my time on Earth, regardless of my relationship with God.”Now, I want to make one thing abundantly clear. I am a Christian. I believe in prayer. I believe that Jesus, the Son of God, is the only way to achieve Salvation. I also believe that no one will ever love me as much as Jesus loves me. Therefore, I would love it if you would pray for me. But, just pray for me, as me. Don’t try to pray my mental illness away, that’s not the way it works. Pray for my piece of mind. Pray for me to always have a close relationship with God. Pray for me to be a good messenger; to bring kindness and joy to others.
Offering to pray for a person is always appropriate, if done for the right reason. So, when you offer to pray for someone, or suggest that they pray, talk to God first, and make sure you are coming from a place of love.
Source: 10 Reassuring Things I Want to Hear You Say: Mental Health Awareness
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Personal Note:
I am grateful for Elizabeth to have written “Harmless Things” You Say That Hurt Me: Mental Health Awareness and providing a solution in a follow-up post Reassuring Things I Want to Hear You Say: Mental Health Awareness. Thank you, Elizabeth.
From the ten things, I chose the topic of prayer because I belong to a strong Catholic upbringing. I feel resigned to matters of life at the moment as I am going through another blow-up of mental instability. I depend on all those who pray for me, care for me and their kindness. Thank you, all.
