CHURCH SUNDAYS COMMUNITIES GIVE ALPHA CONTACT US Faith in Adversity A mental health resource in times of the Covid-19 crisis. At times of crisis we can become weary, burdened with anxiety and full of fear. We have put together this resource to help you process and respond to how God is leading you in this season. Our prayer is that as you draw close to the Father, He will draw close to you, and your faith would be strengthened. “When I was in distress, I cried to the Lord; he brought me into a spacious place.” (Psalm 118:5) 10 ways to be kind to yourself Connect in with church Be part of your Community each week Find your prayer rhythm Practice Sabbath Have a relational touchpoint every day Limit screen time, maybe try a new hobby Limit your intake of news Exercise everyday Keep to a daily routine Have a gratitude ritual God’s word tells us “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest” Matthew 11:28 “Humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God… Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you” 1 Peter 5:7 “Do not fear for I am with you, do not be afraid for I am your God” Isaiah 41:10 A pattern to follow Taken from Hebrews 10:22-25 1. “Let us draw near to God” We are invited into His presence Prioritise time with God and recognise that we are entering a safe and loving space. As we come before Him humbly in prayer our hearts may be full of pain and fear. We can manage our emotions by – Firstly identifying them and acknowledging them to ourselves and then to God. – Speak them out and release them to God. The psalms are full of heartfelt cries to God out of deep pain and anxiety. Psalm 16, 20, 28, 55 – Write down the things that are causing you stress and anxiety and hand them over to God for His safekeeping. 2. Come “with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith” We are the children of God (Ephesians 1:5) Come with an open and honest heart with the confident assurance of our salvation. Come with a thankful heart for all that Jesus has accomplished on the cross on our behalf. 3. “let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess” We have a certain hope for tomorrow (Proverbs 23:18) Remind ourselves that our hope and trust is in the Almighty God who rules the heavens and the earth and will one day restore us fully to Himself. Declare His words of hope over our situations. Psalm 46 “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear” 4. “For he who promised is faithful” Our God is faithful (2 Thessalonians 3:3) Remind ourselves that God is trustworthy and cannot lie and His promises are true. 5. “Let us consider how we may spur one another on towards love and good deeds” We are influencers. Think about how we can act out and reflect the goodness of God and encourage others to do the same. (Ephesians 4:2) 6. “Let us not give up meeting together” We need Christian fellowship (Acts 2:42) As noted above we can meet together online and draw strength from one another. We need one another. We are on this journey together. 7. “Let us encourage one another” We are family and in this together. (1 Thessalonians 5:11) Ask God to show us how we can encourage one another during these challenging times. May we find our comfort at this time in the God of all compassion who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can in turn comfort others in trouble with the same comfort we have received from Him. May we use this time to dig deep into Jesus and His love for each one of us so that we can radiate that love all around us. His love never fails. Useful Resources 1. Ruthless elimination of hurry – John Mark Comer 2. Garden City – John Mark Comer 3. Lectio 365 devotional 4. Rooted devotional 5. Email us to find a community 6. Central Counselling Service 7. Rest creative resource Quick Links Communities Sundays Sunday Teaching Vacancies Contact Data Privacy Subscribe to Central Weekly Twitter [twitget] Contact Central Church Central Hall 2 West Tollcross Edinburgh EH3 9BP t: 0131 447 9787 e: hello@centralchurch.co.uk Scottish charity number SC005871. Central © 2021. Website by daysix