GOD IS MORE PRACTICAL THAN YOU THINK | Elijah & Mental Health (Part 4) | John Giftah

0:01 Speaker 1: Do you ever look around and think, Wow, the world is a crazy place and it just seems to get crazier and crazier. Ease your mind and take a break. This is Fuel for the Soul with John Gifta. We're a hub for inspirational Christian sermons, practical keys for Christian living, and Christian discussions and interviews. You'll be inspired to live the life that you were created for. Your host is a top ranking podcaster, best selling author, world record holder, aerospace engineer, life coach, evangelist and founder of John Gifta International.

0:41 Speaker 1: Welcome to Fuel for the Soul with John Gifta.

0:46 Speaker 2: Hello everyone, Welcome to this edition of the Fuel for the Soul with John Gifta podcast. All through this week, we're looking at various lessons that we can take away from the life of Elijah found in First King seventy nineteen, revolving around his crisis with depression, so that we can have the best mental health filled life that God has intended for us. And I want you to stay tuned because I'm going to release a special episode with Rannie Jacob on the aspect of mental health so that we can have the best mindset and the best you know life that God wants has to live, especially keeping the mental aspect in mind as well.

1:22 Speaker 2: So one of the things I wanted to understand is that when we look at the moment when Elijah is in a very bad shape mentally and emotionally, he's just got a tread in his life and he's running. He is in isolation. He's spent an old day running into the wilderness over and over again. I really challenge you to go back and check out the recent episodes, and here's a moment. It says that he lay down and slept under the juniper tree, and after a while an angel touched him and said to him get up and eat.

1:53 Speaker 2: He looked and by his head he saw a bread cake baked on hot cold, and a pitchure of water. So he ate and drank and lay down again. And then after a while the angel of the Lord woke him up again, saying, get up and eat, for your journey is too long. And he got up and he ate and drank. So I wanted to understand something very important here when Elijah was not in a good place mentally and emotionally as well, because there's a lord that goes from you when you're going through something like this and also physically right.

2:28 Speaker 2: See, I want you to understand, this is not a moment when the Lord spoke to him or gave a word, or the Angel didn't come and tell him, Oh, Elijah, oh e of little faith, Elijah, Oh Elijah, you you just brought fire from heaven and look at you. Shame on you, Elijah. That's not what the angel said. The Angel did not say, oh, e of little faith. The Angel did not say, you are shameless, Elijah. What did the Angel say? Get up and eat? Get up and eat? See. I wanted to understand. One of the things that is so underrated in our walk with the Lord as a Christian to live the holistic Christian life that we're called to live is the importance of just taking care of ourselves, to make sure that we eat well and sleep sometimes.

3:17 Speaker 2: See, when you are in that trouble, normally, what would people say, Oh, you gotta get up, kneel down and pray. That's what most people would say. You got to pray. Oh you have a mental blockage, pray you. Oh you're not well emotionally, pray. But you see, I'm not denying the power of prayer. Okay, not denying the power of prey. But what I want you to understand is sometimes you see from the scripture that God is more practical than most Christians. God didn't ask Elijah to sit and pray to fast. God provided for him to eat and sleep.

3:56 Speaker 2: Sometimes the message for you and for me to get out of that depression, to get out into the better mental space and emotional stay and a better place in your physical is just to actually get good food and to sleep and take good rest. Because you're worried, you're anxious, you had a long day, you went through so much. You need to take care of your health. You need to take care of your body. Because sometimes when you are able to eat well and when you're able to get good sleep, you actually get into a better place mentally so that you can make a better rational decision that God intends for you to make.

4:41 Speaker 2: The reason why many Christians, though they love the Lord, they want to do the right thing, they're still stuck in depression. They're still stuck in a very bad shape mentally and emotionally, is because they're forcing themselves to do something like let's fast and pray, let's seek the Lord, or they sit in condemnation. Oh why they're not able to pray properly when if you're tired, you can't pray. You need sleep. If you are in a very low place emotionally and mentally, you need to take rest. You need to deal with a burnout.

5:23 Speaker 2: If you're in a place like I often tell people this, Okay, if a person is hungry and you say, don't worry, I'll pray for you, or you know you just should not you mentioned or live by bread alone. If you give those kind of statements, it's not going to help them at that point. If they have a physical need, what should you do? Feed them right? Then they will be in a position to listen to you. But what most Christians do, Oh you're hungry, I'll pray for you, like I'm sorry, or you tell them or you should pray.

6:00 Speaker 2: Man, that person doesn't even have the strength to open their mouth.

6:07 Speaker 1: You.

6:08 Speaker 2: If you are in a position to actually give them some food, it will help them. So when they are in the physical need, giving them an overrated spiritual advice or you need to pray, you need to have faith, it's not going to help. God did not give him just a lecture saying how could you be like this. Elijah, the Angel did not give him a message saying, the Lord is displeased with you. Elijah, the Angel did not give him a word saying I wanted to fast and pray for twenty one days. Elijah, No, the Angel provided for help.

6:47 Speaker 2: Sometimes when you're in a bad place physically, emotionally, mentally, whatever you need to get your physical aspect, they can care of. Half your problems will get solved if you just eat properly and sleep properly. If you are not in a place where you are able to make rational decisions, if you're if you're not in a place where you're not able to pray, you don't have the strength. Don't force. Don't force. In fact, I appreach a lot about the power of prayer, and there is aspects of prayer. I think I'll share about that soon in all the podcast again, but I mentioned about this that you know, even in the book of Exodus, I think Exodus two and Exodus six, it talks about moments where even the grown of the Israelites where prayer in itself.

7:44 Speaker 2: Like imagine, if you're groaning in hunger, that's it, that's a prayer in itself. Guys, if you're in a physical need or whether you're in that maybe in a very bad place emotionally and and your innermost being, your heart is haking and you're in that pain. That's also prayer. And in that moment, what you need is not some superficial act of Oh God, I'm going to pray, I'm going to act like everything is fine. No. Sometimes I love God to just meet your need over there, or take care of yourself so that you will be able to meet the need that you require.

8:27 Speaker 2: Like for example, like I said, if you're hungry physically, you know you need food. If you're hungry emotionally, you need some support. If you're hung if you're hungry mentally for example, like you need some you need the writ intake. So I want to pray in Jesus name, God will give you the discernment to look at your life and say, Okay, I prayed, I did this, I did that. But what is God asking me to do in the season? What is God leading me to do right now? Maybe have that rhythm where you take care of your body.

9:08 Speaker 2: If you're always in that overdrive where your work textral trying to be like a superman, you're like you know what, I can do everything I can. Sometimes people miscot I can do all things through Christ to strengthens me in the sense like oh, you know what, I'm going to sleep for only two hours. I'm going to work like this, I'm going to do that. What is going to happen? You're going to be very cranky. You won't be able to have discernment, you won't be able to make rational decisions. Because God designed for you to have adequate sleep and eat nutritious food.

9:38 Speaker 2: But if you're not doing that, what's going to happen? It will start telling upon your body.

9:47 Speaker 1: You know.

9:47 Speaker 2: There was a time I want to close with this over the pandemic when the podcast started ranking up the charts and all of that. There was a point where it was so obsessed, like oh, you know what, I'm so excited as well, like after a long time seeing something moving in my life. So I was working and I was running the podcast, which I still do even now, but to a point where I was overdoing things. Okay, I was overdoing even in terms of perfection. Now, I'll be honest with you. I'm doing this daily. So sometimes if I stammer or certain things, I just ignore.

10:23 Speaker 2: When I post the podcast, I don't overdo the editing because I know my limits, right. I want to help people with and also those of you watching listening understand the limitations I have. I have a full time corporate job and I'm running the ministry. It's not easy. And what I wanted to understand is that I overdid to a point where I would sleep only for three to four hours a day. It felt like I was doing so much for the lot, but it started showing up on my health where I couldn't think properly I was.

10:55 Speaker 2: I generally became very slow. My whole body became very uptight. I was not will to move. I was putting on weight because everything and ive my work as well as all the content on the ministries on the laptop, everything is sedentary. It affected me and that's when I remember somebody said this to me, John, You're literally burning both sides of a candle in one go. You got better watch out. And I started taking intentional steps. You know. I take care of my physical body. I go for swimming every day.

11:29 Speaker 2: I take care of my mental and emotional and spiritual side. I speak in tongues, I worship, I pray, I read the word. I go for walks with you know, like just worshiping God, looking at nature. I do that so that I can balance my life. And I really challenge you to do that, because maybe the biggest word for you this season is not to pray more or read the Bible more. Maybe it's just that you will eat on time with good nutritious diet and sleep well so that you can fulfill the purpose that God has in store for you.

12:09 Speaker 2: I really challenge you to share this with someone and leave a comment, and I will see you back very soon. God bless you.

12:17 Speaker 1: You've been listening to Fuel for the Soul with John Gifta. We hope you were blessed and inspired to live the life that God has for you. Make sure to subscribe to the John Gifta YouTube channel for regular uploads of sermons, skits, interviews and more. Follow John Gifta on Instagram for regular inspirational posts, and don't forget to check out the best selling books written by John Gifta, Who Am I which will help you understand your identity and the latest number one best seller Unveil your Purpose, helping you discover your purpose and to start walking in it.

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