Mental Health In The Psalms: 30 Series

MENTAL HEALTH IN THE PSALMS: 30

PSALM 30:1-12

#mentalhealth

[Gather kids up front first]

INTRODUCTION 1… VeggieTales: God is Bigger than the Boogeyman… youtube.com/ watch?v=LK72_--ZsM4

CHILDREN’S SERMON

INTRODUCTION 2

We are continuing today a series of three sermons (this is 2 of 3) where we are focusing on the Psalms and mental health. Last April (2023) we focused on this same topic with the Psalms and I feel led to continue our conversation about mental health and the Scriptures. It is not a topic that is spoken about often in Church, but is a worthy topic for us.

Over the years, many Christians have left mental health to psychoanalysts and human-centered therapists to the detriment of generations of Christians. We sometimes divide mental health and spiritual health as two different areas of life. The mental and the spiritual need not be mutually exclusive. Not everything a psychologist or psychiatrist may offer is terrible or even untrue, but God has much to say about mental health because our mind is an integral part of how God Almighty made us. We are physical, emotional, mental, and spiritually integrated beings.

An emphasis on the mind and mental health exists in the New Testament and even in the ministry of Jesus. Let’s just take a look quite quickly at the Gospel of Mark for example:

READ MARK 3:20-21 (ESV)

“Then He [Jesus] went home, and the crowd gathered again, so that they could not even eat. 21 And when His family heard it, they went out to seize Him, for they were saying, “He is out of His mind.”

READ MARK 8:32-33 (ESV)

“And He said this plainly. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him. 33 But turning and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, “Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”

READ MARK 12:29-30 (ESV)

“Jesus answered, “The most important is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’”

I cannot help but see in Mark 3 that Jesus’ family was concerned for His mental health as He began His ministry which was physically and emotionally taxing. In Mark 8, Jesus sees in Peter unhealthy thought patterns that were leading him away from God and towards Satan and Jesus wanted to correct them immediately. And even in Mark 12 Jesus cites the most important command from the Old Testament (Deuteronomy 6:4-5) as focusing on God with our hearts and souls and also our minds!

Not only do we see this emphasis on the “mind” in the life and ministry of Jesus, but the word “mind” itself is used 139 times in the Bible, including Romans 12:2 in the New Testament:

READ ROMANS 12:2 (ESV)

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.

My point is simply this: We should not ignore mental health for it is an integral part of how God fashioned us as human beings. Because God knows us best as our Creator and as the All-Knowing Almighty, we should absolutely understand God’s Word for us about mental health.

TRANSITION

The Book of Psalms in the Old Testament is an ideal book to dig into mental health because the psalms often share with us unfiltered thoughts, raw emotions, and a mind that is awash with the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. Our Psalm today is Psalm 30. Some of the words may sound familiar from the video I showed a few moments ago.

Let’s read God’s Word.

READ PSALM 30:1-12 (ESV)

“I will extol You, O Lord, for You have drawn me up and have not let my foes rejoice over me. 2 O Lord my God, I cried to You for help, and You have healed me. 3 O Lord, You have brought up my soul from Sheol; You restored me to life from among those who go down to the pit. 4 Sing praises to the Lord, O you his saints, and give thanks to His holy Name. 5 For His anger is but for a moment, and His favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning. 6 As for me, I said in my prosperity, “I shall never be moved.” 7 By Your favor, O Lord, You made my mountain stand strong; You hid Your face; I was dismayed. 8 To You, O Lord, I cry, and to the Lord I plead for mercy: 9 “What profit is there in my death, if I go down to the pit? Will the dust praise You? Will it tell of Your faithfulness? 10 Hear, O Lord, and be merciful to me! O Lord, be my helper!” 11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; You have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, 12 that my glory may sing Your praise and not be silent. O Lord my God, I will give thanks to You forever!”