By Nancy Virden (c)2021

Values Stir Your Hope

Thinking about our values, who we want to be, is a guide for our choices and our emotions. Writing down what is important to us and keeping this list available where it can be seen forces us to make one decision each day- to stick to the status quo or read the list.

If we are depressed, do we want to be hopeful or would we rather stay depressed? Do we want to enjoy life, or spend it hiding? Maybe we are experiencing undesirable emotions or behaviors. What would motivate us to change? Do we want change at all?

I have much going on right now and anxiety is annoying. Not only have I been hospitalized twice in the last four weeks (for a rare chronic disease and for Covid), I am thinking of selling my house and boarding elsewhere. Major change upsets my stomach which can set off physical illness.

When I see depression or anxiety symptoms activating I can turn my focus by asking, What kind of person do I want to be? What step can I take today toward becoming that person?

I do not want to be depressed or anxious. Out of self-protection, I saw a new counselor today to help me remain calm. I also want to avoid indecision so I’ve prayed and asked other people’s opinions.

These are minor issues compared to feeling so hopeless one wants to die. The concept is the same though. Deciding what we value and acting on that is a huge step out of hopelessness. -COMMENTS WELCOME

Today’s Helpful Word

Colossians 1: 9-14
And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding, so as to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing to him: bearing fruit in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God;  being strengthened with all power, according to his glorious might, for all endurance and patience with joy;  giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.

If you are feeling suicidal, or concerned about someone who is, in the U.S. call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or for a list of international suicide hotlines, go here.

If you are suicidal with a plan, immediately call 911 in the U.S. or go to your nearest emergency room. In the EU call 112. (For other international emergency numbers, go here ). Hope and help are yours!

Always the Fight Ministries (ATFM) has been displaying compassion for those fighting mental illness, addiction, or abuse since 2012. Nancy is the founder and voice of ATFM and openly shares her emotional resurrection from despair. NOTE: Nancy is not a doctor or a mental health professional, and speaks only from personal experience and observations. In no way is this website intended to substitute for professional mental or behavioral health care.

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