False Narratives

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Hey this is Bernie Dick. Due to the current events impacting our friends and family over the world. We would like to share a special message from Salvation Army officer Commissioner Willis Howell before we begin today's episode.

Hi friends, Willis Howell here. I just want to have a quick word with the soldiers the employees the friends of the Salvation Army in the southern United States I can imagine you're likely feeling concern, perhaps even a little fearful in these present uncertain days.

On one hand, worry is a natural human reaction when we face unusual circumstances like this current pandemic but on the other hand, for those of us who have grounded our faith in Jesus Christ, we have another choice. Jesus invites us to cast our cares our concerns are worries on him that he might carry them for us, please don't hear me say that we should be careless in what we do, how we conduct ourselves or the choices we make no, we should follow all the precautions the experts and state officials advised but let's do it as people of faith, not as those who follow fear. You want to know that we have an active task force. Our territorial headquarters keeping up-to-date on the very latest information and development guarding cobra 19 so we can respond in ways that will protect our soldiers, our workers and our clients in order to support our service to our communities and enhance our overall mission.

We're in touch with stated federal outlets and personnel who are helping to guide us in our response as we navigate our way through these next weeks maybe even months. I would encourage all of you to find comfort and strength in prayer, remind yourself and those around of who God is and how he has helped in the past focused on his strength, his character, his promise is power. God can handle anything, including the situation which now affects our communities and our world. I also ask that you join me in taking every opportunity to be the hands and feet of Christ within your neighbor.

There is no better time than this to leave an indelible Christlike heart on those around us. What a rich opportunity. This is friends let's seize it. Let's use this time to find new ways to carefully and prayerfully reach out and meet the unique needs around us. In Jesus name as were told in first Corinthians 16. Stay alert stand firm show courage be strong in whatever you do, do it in love I pray for God to bless you to keep you and your family safe. As you minister and his name your community. Thanks so much. Welcome back everybody to wonderful words of life with our new host Maj. Cheryl Gillam hey everyone, and I am Bernie Dick. We are happy that you have joined us.

Happy first day of spring, and I hope that this episode finds you somewhere warm and beautiful.

We started a new series last week with Ken and Amy are got and in this series were revisiting the topic of mental health.

I think that the most powerful thing about this series is that we can talk about mental health all day long, but here we have two Salvation Army officers been incredibly incredibly vulnerable in sharing their own testimony and her battle this week. The arts are going to be discussing the anxiety triggers that come from false narratives. We assume what other people are thinking when we jump to conclusions we can often spiral out of control triggered by events or presumptions that may not even be true right so if you are struggling with depression or anxiety. We really want to encourage you to speak with someone you can reach out to your local church are the Salvation Army. They would love to help but if you're experiencing a crisis and need to speak with someone immediately. We want you to call 1-800-273-8255.

That's one 802 73 talk. Let us know how we can help or how we can pray for you. Send us an e-mail@radiouss.salvationarmy.org or call one 800-2299 96 the circumstances often dictate their own narrative and we start to buy into that narrative that Satan might even be persuading us and we start to believe things that aren't really true.

Things like, so I said something to somebody or I made the decision and now they're mad at me and they won't ever speak to me again or things like that when they may or may not even be true. They might've forgotten about it the next day, so false narratives are those narratives that we just think you everything is overwhelming and will never get any better. We see that in our profits and especially today were going to be referring to Elijah and the circumstance that he found himself in, so he definitely had a false narrative going on with him. Yeah, it's really weird because Elijah if you remember, he's on top of Mount caramel and he's having the contest with the profits of bail and God you know shows up in a huge way and you would think at this point that Elijah is hey this you God is graded. Everything's going going right. But like immediately after that in first Kings 19 if you were looking in verse three it says Elijah was afraid and ran for his life when he came to Beersheba, and Judah. He left his servant there and while he himself when another day's journey into the desert, came to a broom tree sat under it and prayed that he might die. I've had it looked perfect. He said you had those experiences right yeah I don't know that I integrally wanted to die but I wanted to say okay, there's got to be another way I you know, no I don't want to die but I don't want to continue on this journey that I'm on there.

It's got to be an open door open window somewhere every Monday morning. They say pastors resign, knowing so many times, even we found ourselves in the Salvation Army. Every once in a while clicking on the other other opportunities.

Maybe you like you, I mean we have really bad weeks, no matter what job you're in and you're always thinking that maybe the grass is greener somewhere else. Yes, I was just thinking the same thing and then dear friend of mine posted on Facebook at one point inking about the grass is greener on the other side while start watering the grass on your side and then it becomes green once again and so finding truth about myself. What truth is there about myself in the circumstance that maybe I need to take a deeper look at or bring people along side of me that can coach me into helping me water my grass yeah the what's interesting after that. Once he says that he falls asleep and an angel touches him allows him to eat so is again miraculously receiving food from Angels and then he goes 40 days and 40 nights into the desert and then goes in the hides in a cave at Mount Horeb, which is also Mount Sinai are you this original place of of Israel and just goes hides out there and just wants to die and I think about so many times when we face adversity. We just start ruminating over stuff and that it's just gonna keep getting bad and worse yeah and whenever you say the word ruminating. I think of of a cow you know eating eating the same thing over and over and over again and yet don't we do that we just eat it.

We eat the scenario over and over again and I hope nobody's eating because you're regurgitating your own handmade write the best analogy, that's great. Yeah, that's a great analogy of that we start chewing on our own vomit and the vomit of other people that they placed on us and we start believing all this stuff but but that's where Elijah is.

He's hiding in this cave.

He goes out looking for God, and he has earthquakes in strong winds and in God is not in any of those and then a still small voice speaks to Mrs. Elijah, Woody, what are you doing here.

Well you know I'm thinking about all the stuff that's bad in Jezebels out to get me and you know my church board doesn't like me and my Lawson I saw him. Yes, it's a very safe place for him like getting out of bed sometimes or I'm sky call into work today just because I feel terrible mental health day rent but sometimes that's not the place to be.

I felt terrible this morning, you knew that.

Yeah. And as we talked in the car here. I was reminded about that if somebody can learn from the stuff that I go through and you tell me I ruminate all the time you while you are you still worried about that. If somebody can get help from that that it makes me feel better getting up in the morning and being able to deliver that news. It doesn't mean that it goes away.

But we kind of face. It in a different way and interestingly what the Lord says to Elijah, his go back the way you came back to where you were.

Don't dumb not moving you I'm not taking you away from the circumstances, I want you to go back to where you were. He says anoint has EL the king of Aram annoying Jay who this the king of Israel and anoint Elisha who is actually going to succeed you as profit because there's 7000 in all of Israel who've not doubt bow down to bail. And this is where the whole thing about false narrative right is that we believe were the only one. In fact that's what Elijah says I'm the only one left who is actually serving you and so many times like when we as leaders might even make a decision and we feel like the whole congregation must be mad at us or we make a decision at work and maybe all of our coworkers reminded us. Usually it's the what vocal .5% that may be mad at you, but people understand and there's other people who were actually just waiting for you to stand up and say that and are actually more respectful for you now because you made that difficult decision next week were going to find ourselves by the rivers of Babylon, and with their prophet Jeremiah and looking at patients one at a time. Don't make a decision when you're under stress what it looks like when you're in your eyes. The Salvation Army's mission. The most good.

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