Thankful Thursday

For more participants of Thankful Thursday, visit Iris at Sting My Heart.










Yesterday, I participated in my first Word-Filled Wednesday. It's a very wonderful experience~ I am greatly encouraged to read of so many precious portions of God's Words and how these have encouraged various people in different stages of their life. Truly, we do not live by bread alone but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God! And the photos are all so beautiful. Do visit Amy at The 160 Acre Woods for a list of people participating on Word-Filled Wednesday and read these encouraging verses and see the lovely photos.

Today, I am participating in my first Thankful Thursday :-)

I have so many things to be thankful for daily that I thought it's good for me to start putting them down every Thursday otherwise I will forget. It's good to count our blessings daily and to remember that God is working all things for His glory and our good, and the good of His church. God is gracious to me though I am a forgetful person. I realized that even in very difficult, painful and dark days, we can find something to thank God for because He is our Redeemer and our God. His love and mercies is from everlasting to everlasting, and underneath us is His everlasting arms.

The last few weeks have been very tiring, stressful and busy weeks for me. I have many things to thank God for.

1. I thank God for giving me grace to know Him, love Him, walk with Him and serve Him. Knowing God through our Lord Jesus Christ is the best thing that has happened to me in this life and it is still the best thing that is happening to me daily. Thank God for saving me from my sins and giving me a new life in Christ.

2. I thank God for the joy of worship and fellowship last Lord's day. It is always refreshing to be in the house of God to participate in public worship together with God's people and to enjoy their fellowship.

3. I thank God for giving me strength and wisdom to cope with the challenges daily. There have been many challenges over the last few weeks and I will not have the strength to cope if not for the Lord's strengthening me day by day. I often feel very tired and weak but thank God for sustaining me daily. I have found that God's grace is sufficient for me each day as He has promised! Thank and praise Him!

4. I thank God for giving me joy in Him despite physical tiredness and mental stress. My flesh and my heart fail me at times, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion for ever. In Christ, I am able to rejoice daily and accept all things as from His loving hands.

5. I thank God for enabling me to complete 2 freelance assignments on time. Thank God for wisdom and strength to do my best for these freelance job assignments. One of my customer gave a very kind and encouraging comment to acknowledge her appreciation of my work. I am so encouraged by God's goodness in helping me to do a good job.

6. I thank God for providing more freelance job assignments for me. Thanks to those of you who have been praying for me. Thank God for His faithfulness in hearing and answering our prayers. I have just been given new freelance assignments! Truly, the Lord is our Shepherd and we shall not want (lack). He provides for our every need. Thank you so much for your prayers and encouragements!

7. I thank God for family and friends who love, accept and care for me in big ways and little little ways. These mean a lot to me. I thank God for all of them, and they are tokens of God's love for me.

8. I thank God for all of you, my dear blogging friends. It is such a joy and privilege to know all of you and to be able to share our experiences and encourage one another through our blogs. I have never expected this when I first started my blog in February 2008. This has been one of the best experience I ever have in making online friends. You are tokens of God's love for me too and I am greatly encouraged. Thank you once again for being my friends and for being such a blessing and encouragement to me. May God bless all of you abundantly!

I pray that God will give me a thankful heart daily no matter what I am going through. I am a pilgrim here, sojourning on a pilgrim journey towards the celestial city. I pray that God will enable me to set my heart and affection on things above and not on things below here. I pray that I may be able to serve God and glorify Him here, and be used of Him as an instrument to draw sinners to know His saving grace and be an encouragement to fellow Christians who are precious in God's sight and redeemed by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.

In this life, I may face many different and difficult challenges, my bipolar may also give problem through manic or depression. But God's love remains unchanging and His grace is sufficient for me. He is lovingly working all things for His glory and my good, and the good of His church. I pray that He may give me a thankful heart always so that I can praise Him in all circumstances.

How about you? How has the Lord blessed and helped you through the past week? What are the things you are thankful for? We serve such a great God. Let us unite our hearts in thanksgiving to such a loving and faithful Saviour Who never leave us nor forsake us, and nothing shall ever separate us from His love.

All praise and glory be to God!

Word-Filled Wednesday

For more Word-Filled Wednesday participants, visit Amy at The 160 Acre Woods.




















It's Wednesday 8.00am now in Singapore. Thank God for a new day to live for Him :-)

I have decided to participate in Word-Filled Wednesday. I saw it on Michelle's blog and have been greatly encouraged by her postings. This is my first post.

Thank God that He is our refuge and strength and He has promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us.

Thank God that He is my refuge and strength through these recent weeks as I strive to cope with the various stress and strain from the many challenges I am facing daily. God's presence with me has been a great consolation and strength as I learn to live for Him, love Him and serve Him and others. I thank God for the joy of trusting in Him and the strength and grace He has given to me, as I walk with our Lord Jesus Christ. It is so wonderful to belong to our Lord Jesus Christ and to know His love and faithfulness in so many ways daily. All praise and glory be to Him.

I enjoy photography. I took this photo at East Coast Beach, Singapore. Do visit my Around Singapore blog, if you have time, to look at more photos and places in Singapore.

Hope these 2 verses will be of encouragements to you today and everyday. Have a blessed day!

How to tell family or friends I have bipolar disorder?

If you have bipolar disorder or other medical conditions, do you tell your family and friends about it? Why and why not? If you do tell them, how do you do it?

Sometimes I wonder how best to tell my family or friends that I have bipolar disorder. I am not sure whether they will understand or whether they will accept me or reject me. The people I love, and who love me, will see me at my best. When my symptoms reappear, they may see me at my worst. Bipolar shapes my thoughts, feelings and actions. My behaviours can at times be very confusing to myself as well as my family and friends, as I am very different when I am manic and when I am depressed.

My diagnosis with proneness to bipolar disorder (manic-depressive illness) was a relief to me personally as it helps me to understand my confusing past, and to know that my condition is actually a medical condition that can be treated and not due to a weakness in my character or my lack of faith in God. So I am now able to seek medical and other helps to manage this condition so that I can live a more stable and useful life.

I realize through my recent relapses, the importance of having the support, prayers and understandings of my family and friends, besides professional helps from Doctors, Counsellors and Support Group. So whenever possible, I will share with them my condition. I give them articles, pamphlets and books to read about bipolar disorder so that they will understand that my behaviour is not always under my control. It will also help them to understand why I am sometimes so different. Thank God that so far my family, church friends and other friends have mostly accepted me. I lost some friends along the way but I am learning to move on in my life and to make new friends.

Some months back, a church friend told me that he used to wonder why I was at times very warm and friendly but at other times very cold and indifferent. After understanding my condition and different mood swings, he was able to understand why. He is very compassionate kind and understanding. He even offered me a listening ear should I need to talk to someone when I am feeling down.

My Doctor suggested to me recently, that I should tell my family and friends that I am like a bear :-) For certain period of time in a year, I will hibernate :-) Bears hibernate during winter in which they pass the winter in inactive.

But not all my family members or friends are that keen to really know what is bipolar disorder and how it affects me and my relationship with them. I guess some are too busy with their own life while some simply think it is not an issue. I am thankful for those of my family and friends who are willing to take time to read up more in order to understand what is bipolar disorder and how it may affect me, my life and my relationship with them. I am thankful for their willingness to also talk to me to understand what I have gone through and what I am going through now. They have become very understanding, kind and supportive and I thank God for all of them. Some friends are kindly helping to recognize early symptoms of my manic or depression. They are also helping me to look out for early signs that I am overly stressed or strained as they know that these will trigger off my depression. I really appreciate their help because very often they will notice these signs and symptoms earlier than me.

I am reading and trying my best to understand bipolar disorder and how it affects my thoughts, feelings and actions. I am learning to recognize triggering factors, recognize early symptoms of possible relapses, what can make it worst, what can help to get better, what are the medical treatments and other helps available, so that I can live a more stable and useful life.

It is only in understanding bipolar disorder that I can learn to manage it. And when my family and friends understand bipolar disorder, they will be more able to understand me and help me. They will be more forgiving and understanding when I do inappropriate things during manic or depression. My church friends will also be able to pray more specifically for me.

I have found the following articles on the internet, mostly in public domain, to be very helpful in helping myself, my family and my friends to understand what is bipolar disorder.

Note: You need the Adobe Reader to read these PDF files. Download Adobe Reader to view and print the PDF files.

From the website of National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). NIMH is part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

About NIMH Publications

* They are free.
* They come in HTML (the standard Web format) and PDF (Portable Document Format).
* Some are “easy-to-read” (short introductions to a topic). NIMH also publishes booklets (detailed information on mental disorders and research) and fact sheets.


1) Bipolar Disorder



A detailed booklet that describes Bipolar Disorder symptoms, causes, and treatments, with information on getting help and coping. Date: 2001 (rev)

Contents:

• Introduction
• What Are the Symptoms of Bipolar Disorder?
• Suicide
• What Is the Course of Bipolar Disorder?
• Can Children and Adolescents Have Bipolar Disorder?
• What Causes Bipolar Disorder?
• How Is Bipolar Disorder Treated?
• Do Other Illnesses Co-occur with Bipolar Disorder?
• How Can Individuals and Families Get Help for Bipolar Disorder?
• What About Clinical Studies for Bipolar Disorder?
• For More Information
• References

a) Download this Free Booklet : nimhbipolar.pdf

b) Read the full article on this blog under "About Bipolar Disorder".

2) A story of bipolar disorder (manic-depressive illness): Does this sound like you?

An easy-to-read booklet with a personal story of bipolar disorder — includes a checklist of symptoms and tips on getting help. Date: 2002 (rev)

Download this Free Booklet: A story of bipolar disorder.pdf

The article starts by asking "Are you feeling really “down” sometimes and really “up” other times? Are these mood changes causing problems at work, school, or home? If yes, you may have bipolar disorder, also called manic-depressive illness. " Then it goes to tell the account of James’ story on how he was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. It said:

Many people who have bipolar disorder don’t know they have it. This booklet can help. It tells you about four steps you can take to understand and get help forbipolar disorder.

Four steps to understand and get help for bipolar disorder:

1. Look for signs of bipolar disorder.
2. Understand that bipolar disorder is a real illness.
3. See your doctor. Get a checkup and talk about how you are feeling.
4. Get treatment for your bipolar disorder. You can feel better.

Download this Free Booklet (A story of bipolar disorder.pdf) from National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and read further.

If you are reading this and you have bipolar disorder or other medical conditions, do you tell your family and friends about it? Why and why not? If you do tell them, how do you do it?

Hiding in the Rock that is higher than I

Thank God for another joy and privilege to join in public worship this morning. It is always very refreshing to me, after a busy week, to quiet down and enjoy worship and fellowship. Although I read the Bible and pray daily in my personal devotion, going to church and worship with my church friends is always something I look forward to.

This morning I derived much encouragement and instructions from the preaching of God's Words, prayers, singing and Christian fellowship. We sang Psalm 61 which is one of my favourite Psalms, and in particular verses 1 to 4.

Psalm 61
Scottish Metrical Psalm

1 O God, give ear unto my cry;
unto my pray'r attend.
2 From th' utmost corner of the land
my cry to thee I'll send.

What time my heart is overwhelm'd,
and in perplexity,
Do thou me lead unto the Rock
that higher is than I.

3 For thou has for my refuge been
a shelter by thy pow'r;
And for defence against my foes
thou hast been a strong tow'r.

4 Within thy tabernacle I
for ever will abide;
And under covert of thy wings
with confidence me hide.

Matthew Henry commented

"God's power and promise are a rock that is higher than we. This rock is Christ; those are safe that are in him. We cannot get upon this rock unless God by his power lead us. I will put thee in the cleft of the rock, Exodus 33:22. We should therefore by faith and prayer put ourselves under the divine management, that we may be taken under the divine protection."

At times life becomes overwhelming. Sometimes because it is so busy and full of activities, and at other times because I myself struggles with mood swings ie manic or depression. My body and mind still can't seem to synchronize very well. I have so much I want to do with every waking hours, and then when night comes I feel so drained. At times I began to experience mood swings. Stress and strain seems to have such negative effect on my body and mind. Managing daily tasks and challenges, and at the same time managing mood swings so that they don't escalate into manic episode or plunged into depression episodes, takes much patience and awareness. And for me, much prayers.

I am reminded afresh that when life circumstances or my own feelings or mood overwhelmed me, I can go to God in prayers. I can pray that He leads me to the Rock that is higher than I. This Rock is the Lord Jesus Christ. He will guide me through His Words and lead me along the path that I should go, and He will give me strength to face the challenges daily so that I may live for His glory.

The challenges in my life draws me nearer to the Lord as I learn to cast my cares upon Him, and experience His love and faithfulness in taking care of me daily. Thank God that when I feel overwhelmed, I can rest in this Rock that is higher than I. I am learning to do so day by day, and it gives me courage to face each new day, with various challenges, knowing the Lord is with me. Thank God!

I look forward to this coming week where I can once again look to God for grace and strength, and experience His goodness and mercies in many wonderful ways, as I seek to know Him, love Him and serve Him and others.

Hope you have a blessed week ahead :)


My friend, HH Sau, took this lovely photo at Saipan.

Psalm 61:1-4
1 Hear my cry, O God; attend unto my prayer.
2 From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.
3 For thou hast been a shelter for me, and strong tower from the enemy.
4 I will abide in thy tabernacle forever: I will trust in the covert of thy wings.

An unexpected door of usefulness through bipolar and depression

I have never imagined that my struggles with depression and bipolar over the years will one day be used of the Lord to open a door of service and usefulness for me. Ever since I started this blog in February, I have been receiving comments and emails from people all over the world who have been helped in little little ways either by some posts or resources on this blog. Thank and praise God!

When we struggle with depression or bipolar or other mood disorder and illness, sometimes we feel very useless and wonder if we can live a life that is normal and meaningful again. But actually, we are all made differently and very uniquely. God has made each one of us for a particular purpose. And no one can take our place in this world. It is comforting to remember afresh that our existence here is not by chance or accident. We are made by God to serve Him here with the unique gifts and talents He has given us.

Thank God for giving me small opportunities to serve Him through this blog which is not only therapeutic to me as I journal my thoughts and feelings, but give me great joy to share God's goodness and mercies with others.

Recently, my blogging friend, Marja shared about how we are in some sense of the word "indispensable" as persons of value and worth to the people whose lives we touch and we are of great importance to God. No one can replace us because each of us is unique in who we are and in what we have to offer. Marja is joyfully serving the Lord through her blog and a ministry called "Living Room", a place of mutual encouragement and sharings for people with mood disorders.

Susan also wrote in "The search of meaning" that she felt her suffering from bipolar depression and surviving more than 120 depressive episodes is her unique mission. Despite how "lost" she sometimes feel during a depressive episode, the truth is that she knows a lot about coping with depression and she has learned a lot about wellness. Susan shares many useful findings and experiences on her blog "Bipolar Wellness Writer".

What an encouragement to remember that we are all unique and we have many opportunities daily to make a difference in someone's life. Our sufferings, trials and infirmities have taught us many precious lessons. God uses these to mould us and make us the person we are today, so that we can in turn help others through sharing our experiences with them. We become more compassionate and caring people, and better able to support and encourage others who are suffering. That in itself is a unique calling and mission. It opens a wonderful door of usefulness for us despite our own conditions.

There are alot of people who are going through much struggles and pain with depression, bipolar and other illnesses, who are plunged into confusion and despair daily. We may never know how our experiences of surviving our own difficult struggles over the years can bring some hope to such despairing soul. We can comfort them with the same comfort which God has comforted them. We can also encourage them and share with them the various resources we have found to be useful and helpful in our restoration and maintenance. We can share with them the many precious lessons we have learnt over the years. And sometimes we need not say much but just be there with them and let them know someone cares, or pray with and for them. And if we can help just 1 person, our sufferings will not have been in vain.

Pastor David P Murray who made a series of very encouraging videos on "Depression and the Christians" noted that even mental illness is a talent that should be invested for God and it is usually broken people that God uses the most. He said :

Like all affliction in the lives of Christians, mental illness should be viewed as a “talent” (Matt.25:14ff) which can be invested in such a way that it brings benefit to us and others, as well as glory to God.

Dr James Dobson, the Christian psychologist, observed that “nothing is wasted in God’s economy.” That “nothing” includes mental illness.

Mind over Mood, while not written from a Christian perspective, illustrates the possible “benefits” of depression thus:

“An oyster creates a pearl out of a grain of sand. The grain of sand is an irritant to the oyster. In response to the discomfort, the oyster creates a smooth, protective coating that encases the sand and provides relief. The result is a beautiful pearl. For an oyster, an irritant becomes the seed for something new. Similarly, Mind Over Mood will help you develop something valuable from your current discomfort. The skills taught in this book will help you feel better and will continue to have value in your life long after your original problems are gone.”

It is usually broken people that God uses most. In Passion and Purity, Elisabeth Elliot quoted Ruth Stull of Peru:

“If my life is broken when given to Jesus it is because pieces will feed a multitude, while a loaf will satisfy only a little lad.”

I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

Psalm 139:14