Our Children’s Mental Health

Cleaning out my files inevitably unearths treasures. So, when I scanned the single page resting in my hand, I respectfully placed it in a prominent position on a nearby shelf with the expressed determination to share it with you, my readers.

Whether you are a pastor, Sunday School teacher, youth director, academician, coach, nurse, nanny, neighbor, daycare director, parent, or grandparent, the stewardship of younger lives rests upon us. Children populate our families, our churches, our schools, our neighborhoods, and most definitely, our hearts. They bring meaning, energy, laundry, bright smiles, sticky fingers, questions, and yes, heartache. So, when a tender one in our sphere of influence seems caught in the tentacles of fear and anxiety, we feel their pain and are highly motivated to engage.

Here is the shocking reality: American Psychological Association (APA) estimates that15 million of our nation's young people can currently be diagnosed with a mental health disorder. One needs only to listen to the nightly news for confirmation. So, perhaps the resource in today’s blog post, Declaration for Kids, can offer encouragement in building a foundation of strength.

Hear me say, “This is not a substitute for medical attention.” You must use your own judgment to minister individually and carefully to each child.

This content credit goes to IgnitingHOPE. While I have no prior contact with this organization and I do not know how the handout made its way into my file, I honor the heart and truth behind what they offer. Note: slight variations in the content have been made.

Be encouraged as you read, as you share, and as you guide a younger one to declare!

Declaration for Kids

Ignitehope.com

Declarations help us build our faith!

1. My prayers are powerful!

2. God loves to provide for me.

3. I am free from sin and alive in Him.

4. My health gets better every day.

5. God has supernatural protection for me.

6. I am great at relationships.

7. Because God is with me, the people around me experience His love and power.

8. Because of Jesus, I am loved 100% and super blessed/

9. My family is blessed.

10. I recognize and laugh at the devil’s lies.

Hearing truth helps us grow in faith.

1. My words direct my life.

2. God is on my side. I can’t be beaten.

3. I am a leader, I have great ideas, and God makes me powerful.

4. When I speak truth, my faith grows, and I become who God made me to be.

5. I think right thoughts, I speak words of life, and I make good decisions even when it is tough.

6. God will use me today to release His power and love to the people around me.

7. Today will be the best day yet!

To move mountains with Jesus I need to prepare.

1. Because I love Jesus, angels are working for me.

2. Bad things are turned away from me because of Jesus’ protection.

3. I am a person of peace and bring peace to those around me.

4. I tell . . . fear to leave in Jesus’ name.

5. This day is a blessed day. I can’t wait to see how God’s goodness shows up!

Living With Eternal Intentionality®

But Jesus called the children to him and said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these”(Luke 18:16 ).

How do you envision this tool serving as a resource for you in your sphere of influence?

What would you add to the “Declaration for Kids”?

Buckingham Palace But Not for Tea

The summer conference in England ended, and privileges of the empty nest prevailed. After all, who needed us back at home in Budapest?

Energized by our awareness of freedom, Larry and I intentionally hit the pause button on life, donned our walking shoes, and set out like two newlyweds. An exhibition at Buckingham Palace caught our attention.

In honor of Queen Elizabeth II’s eightieth birthday, the Palace offered a rare public viewing—inclusive of a descriptive history— of eighty royal gowns and personal jewelry. Together we toured the spectacular exhibit, and then Larry left for his favorite art museum. Wanting more time to study the gorgeous dresses, I remained behind.

Listening yet again to the audio headset, I gazed at the glitter and glamour, and I read (and re-read) every description provided with each elaborate dress: state dinners, visits with foreign dignitaries, official tours to other nations. As the hour for closing approached, and other tourists slowly exited, I enjoyed the hall all to myself. Only the security guards remained. Wow . . . Alone and surrounded by exquisite splendor on display. I yearned to absorb every detail to recall and savor for a lifetime.

Suddenly, in this setting of grandeur—and without warning—God intervened with a strong sense of His presence. Amid the soft lights, quiet music, and superb representation of royalty, I heard the strains of Edward Mote’s aged hymn play out in my head: “Clothed in His righteousness alone, faultless to stand before His throne.”

Debby, your beauty in Christ supersedes all the beauty displayed before you. Nothing compares to the magnificence of your righteousness in Christ. Nothing. Your true identity as My child is royalty; you stand adorned in My garments of salvation and arrayed in holy attire. I stopped.

Overwhelmed with wonder, and breathless with the encounter, I stood completely still and absorbed this amazing moment with my heavenly Father.

In hushed reverence, my very soul responded with, “Oh God. Thank You. Thank You. You have gently pulled back the curtain for me to see as never before the majesty and privilege of being a child of the King. No other identity compares. By Your grace, I commit myself to grow and live in the fullness of this reality.”

““Identity in Christ holds the foundation and the cornerstone for our lives. Everything spiritually, emotionally, experientially, and relationally builds upon it.” ”

— Living With Eternal Intentionality

My epiphany in Buckingham Palace solidified a conviction: Identity in Christ holds the foundation and the cornerstone for our lives. Everything spiritually, emotionally, experientially, and relationally builds upon it.

In fact, Neil Anderson says, “Understanding your identity in Christ is absolutely essential to your success at living the Christian life . . . Next to a knowledge of God, a knowledge of who you are is by far the most important truth you can possess.”

““Understanding your identity in Christ is absolutely essential to your success at living the Christian life . . . Next to a knowledge of God, a knowledge of who you are is by far the most important truth you can possess.””

— Neil Anderson

A strong identity in Christ becomes a reality when we implement three life-changing principles: Believe what is true, reject what is false, and choose what will last.

1. Believe what is true

The Truth in Psalm 139 emphatically describes our significance.

“You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me” (Psalm 139:1-5).

2. Reject what is false

“If you believe a lie you will live like the lie is true,” says Todd Cook.

Comparison robs us of joy and contaminates our focus. Yet, in our humanness, we gravitate toward comparing ourselves to others. The result leads to feelings of inferiority or inappropriate pride. Both comparisons are rooted in self-focus, which is idolatry. Instead of wearing our wardrobe of royal attire, we find ourselves draped in rags of insecurity and insignificance.

““If you believe a lie, you will live like the lie is true.””

— Todd Cook

3. Choose what will last

By making God’s Truth our choice, over time He accomplishes His work of transformation within our identity. We begin to act with authenticity, finding ourselves liberated to be who He meant us to be in Christ.

God never intended for you and me to become like someone else. His divine design intends to make each of us like Jesus. “For those God foreknew, he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son” (Romans 8:29).

Identity in Christ, a rare and beautiful treasure, must be vigilantly guarded to protect against identity theft. The closer we grow to Jesus, the more we experience who we really are, and the easier it becomes to detect and reject the fakes and frauds within ourselves. Building on this foundation produces security and significance in a vibrant personal walk with Christ.

““Be who God meant you to be, and you will set the world on fire. “”

— Saint Catherine of Sienna

Living with Eternal Intentionality®

“May [you] have power . . . to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge” (Ephesians 3:18-19a).

Does your view of yourself align with God’s view of you? If not, where is there need for change?

God fashioned you as a person, a marvelous treasure. When you became a follower of Jesus, your name was written in the Lamb’s book of life. How does this reality make a difference in your self-perception?

What incorrect thought pattern poses your biggest challenge in believing the truth that God loves you and delights in you?

What change is needed to enable you to live according to your true identity?

Significance, security, eternal worth, and unconditional love are your inherited adornments as a child of God. What is one step you desire to take to clothe yourself in these royal garments?

Please pray aloud in a quiet aloneness with your heavenly Father: Thank You, God, that You created me. Thank You that because Jesus died for me, my name is written in the Lamb’s book of life. I want to define myself as one radically loved by You. Enable me to release any part of my identity that is not my true self in You. Please make me the person You created me to be.

Vulnerability From a Nurse Practitioner

Guest Post by Lauren Coleman Thompson, Family Nurse Practitioner

My job as a Nurse Practitioner at the clinic had just begun; I felt ready and eager to treat hypertension, diabetes, arthritis, or anything else thrown at me. Excited to finally be working close to home—having grown up in a small town of similar size—I longed to get to know people, really sink in roots, and have a positive impact in my community.

Weeks turned to months, and as faces reappeared, I became more and more familiar with the people who came to us for treatment. Great; this was exactly what I wanted.

One patient, in particular, came in more frequently than others, and he always asked to have the callouses on his feet shaved down. Though never a dirty person, his poor feet definitely needed attention. About the fifth time he came in to see me with the request to have his feet worked on, I became frustrated, and honestly annoyed thinking, "I didn't go to school to shave callouses off feet!"

“I didn’t go to school to shave callouses off feet!”

— FNP

Leaving the exam room exasperated, I headed down the hall to the treatment room to gather supplies. About halfway there, I felt the wind completely leave my sails; it was as if the Lord literally tapped me on the shoulder, unannounced. A flood of thoughts hit me at once: Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords, on the day before He was to be crucified, washed feet, feet made dirty from traveling in a desert wearing sandals. He washed the feet of His betrayer; He washed the feet of His best friend, the one who would soon deny Him. At that moment the Spirit spoke to me, "You aren't here for you and your ego; you are here for Me, to do My work; that is why you went to school, that is why you are here."

“You aren’t here for you and your ego; you are here for Me, to do My work; that is why you went to school, that is why you are here.”

— The Spirit of God

After clearing the lump in my throat, I finished grabbing my supplies and returned to Exam 5, propped up his feet on the chair, and shaved his callouses, just like the callouses on my heart had just been peeled away. Afterward, I applied lotion (something I don't usually do) and I told him how Jesus had washed and cleaned His disciples’ feet in the same way. Shortly thereafter, when he got up to leave, I thanked him; he had no idea how much that thank you really meant.

I don't write this to bring attention to myself or to garner praise; I write this because it spoke so loudly to me. Even in the mundane, the everyday activities that are less than glamorous, in the parts of life where one may just be going through the motions, God can and should be glorified.

That patient passed away a couple of years later. But every time I shave callouses, I think about this encounter. With a new perspective, I sit down on the floor, which usually gets sideways looks, but opens doors for conversation. Then, as I am reminded that our Lord and Savior got down on the ground and washed feet, I try to share that with patients as we sit there together.

We make excuses for not speaking about God or witnessing. Yet sometimes it’s just getting on the same level as people, being transparent and real.

God told us to "Go out into the world and make disciples,” to be His hands and feet, to serve one another, to love one another, to live out His life in our actions; and when necessary, to use words.

Jesus provided us a model, even in the hours approaching His death. We talk and joke about what we would do if we only had one day left on this earth; Jesus sat down and washed feet.

Lauren Coleman Thompson, FNP-C

“We talk and joke about what we would do if we only had one day left on this earth; Jesus sat down and washed feet.”

— FNP

Living With Eternal Intentionality®

“And the King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of Mine, you did for Me’” (Matthew 25:40).

Put yourself in Lauren’s shoes there in her clinic. How would you have reacted to the man’s ongoing return to have his callouses removed?

What do you learn from her vulnerability and authenticity? Her change of heart?

When have you had a similar experience where God needed to remind you of His purpose for your life?

Meet Lauren! She is a follower of Jesus, a wife, and a mother. Wise beyond her years, she desires, “To Glorify Jesus in All That I Do!” It is my honor to be her aunt.