SPIRITUAL IN LIFE OF ELIJAH PROPHET

People have interpreted the Old Testament prophet Elijah in a variety of ways throughout the
ages. The early Church Fathers claim Elijah as a model for monastic life. They point to his
purity of heart, solitude, fasting and silence to justify this position. In one of the most
powerful events of the New Testament, Elijah appears with Moses at the transfiguration of
Jesus. The Letter of James says, “Elijah was a human being as frail as ourselves” (James 5:17).
Different titles of Elijah as prophet, mystic, and avenger have also evolved over the years.
Therefore, a deeper look at the Elijah that appears in 1-2 Kings is necessary to gain the most
accurate and grounded understanding of this prophetic figure. While a variety of themes
emerge about Elijah, the three major issues that will be analyzed here are Elijah’s relationship
to silence, solitude and prayer. Each of these themes reveals Elijah as a prophet who possesses
a deep and intense relationship with the Divine Will at the centre of his being.
Prayer, the dialogue between human and Divine lovers, can reveal much about a person’s
motivations, beliefs and character. It serves as the essence of our relationship with God and
unearths our deepest sense of self. A glance at Elijah’ s life of prayer reveals a deeply trusting
prophet who time and again allows his will to be led by the Divine will, exemplifies the
epithet man of God and reiterates through his faith and his action that Yahweh is God. The
role of prophet as pray-er helps us understand how Elijah relates to this issue. Several sources
that deal with ancient cultic customs claim that the priest and the prophet were seen as
having two distinct responsibilities. Whereas the Near Eastern pattern makes no distinction
between the two, the Israelite reality reveals an important difference. “The Israelite priesthood
was hereditary and hierarchical, whereas prophecy was charismatic.”1 While the priest
performed certain duties the prophet functioned as a pray-er. “Just as the priest became the
specialist in sacrifice, so the prophet was a specialist in prayer; he was peculiarly qualified to
act in this way as an intercessor.”2
Elijah consistently relies upon intercessory prayer as he communicates with Yahweh. “Yet it is
undoubtedly true that the ‘prophet’, as a professional figure, was as much a representative of
the people as the spokesman of Yahweh; it was part of his function to offer prayer as well as to
give the divine response or oracle.”3 The verses concerning the widow’s son who was raised to
life (1Kings 1:17-24) illustrates how the issue of prayer gives credence to Elijah as a man of
God. When Elijah meets the widow whose son has died, she attributes her misfortune to his
visit. “What quarrel have you with me, man of God?” she laments, “Have you come here to
bring my sins home to me and kill my son?” (1Kings 17:18). She blames herself or assumes
that her son’s death is somehow her fault. She believes that Elijah’s presence and witness
draws God’s attention to her household and now God is punishing her sinfulness. Studies
show that the people of the ancient world saw a close connection between sin and any
calamity.4
1 Brown, Raymond; Fitzmyer, Joseph; Murphy, Roland. New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Prentice Hall, NJ. 1990. p. 187.
2 Johnson, Aubrey. The Cultic Prophet in Ancient Israel. Cardiff. University of Wales Press. 1963. p. 59.
3 Johnson, p. 60.
4 Murphy, Roland. Experiencing Our Biblical Heritage. Hendrickson Publishers, Massachusetts. 2001. p. 28.
2
Yet, in the face of this challenge, Elijah immediately takes her son upstairs. In private he cries
out to Yahweh, stretches out his hands in prayer over the boy, begs Yahweh to heal him and
suddenly the boy is cured. Elijah immediately returns downstairs and declares to the woman
that her son is alive. The movement of the boy from public to private and back to public,
places the attention on Elijah and his dealings with God in prayer. Moreover, the motion of
Elijah going up (to an upper room) to communicate his will with the Divine Will reveals a
very intimate and important moment of prayer. Elijah demonstrates passionate, intense and
heart-felt intercessory prayer to Yahweh. The woman’s change in attitude becomes the final
and most important revelation in this story. The mother shows doubt as she initially
questions Elijah as to how he is a man of God. “What quarrel have you with me, man of
God?” (1Kings 17:18). She is sceptical about this man and the issues surrounding Elijah’s
presence in her home. In the end, however, she declares, “Now I know that you are a man of
God, and the word of the Yahweh in your mouth is truth itself” (1Kings 17:24). Both she and
the reader have come to realize Elijah’s special link to God.5 The role of prayer in this story
reaffirms several key points about Elijah. It solidifies that Elijah is a man of God and that the
word of Elijah is the word of Yahweh. Moreover, Elijah’s actions and openness to Yahweh
leave no doubt that Yahweh is God.
Scripture scholars provide varying opinions about the prayer of Elijah as he stretches himself
upon the child three times and invokes the power of Yahweh.
This is the case of contactual magic, such as is well known in the ancient East in
Mesopotamia and in Canaan, where the Ugaritic Legend of Kit mentions the transference
of the sickness of the king into a clay image.6
The claim that this is magic places Elijah in the role as a performer. Someone who carries out
magic follows a certain set of guidelines and rules and the outcome depends on how well this
is done. This leaves no room for the interpretation that Yahweh is the source of this healing.
Instead, contactual magic claims that the health of Elijah transfers to the corresponding
organs of the invalid boy and cures him. On the other hand, another interpretation claims,
Elijah’s prayer shows him as feeling some responsibility for the woman’s distress. His
intercession achieves its effect; the decisive fact is not the seemingly magical action of
stretching himself three times upon the child’s body but the Lord’s gracious hearing of
Elijah’s prayer.7
The argument that this is not magic asserts that it is Yahweh who cures the boy. Elijah’s
prayer creates the opportunity for Yahweh to be seen as God. Another source claims that this
story is a common folktale.8 For example, in the following chapter Elisha cures a boy in a
similar manner (2Kings 1:3). He lowers himself in prayer onto a boy several times and
eventually the boy is cured. While different sources exist for the story of the widow’s son, the
fact that they do not refute the potential of these healings grants the reader the space to
discern this issue and in the end, embrace Elijah as a pray-er, a man of God and one who
5 Balentine, Samuel E. Prayer in the Hebrew Bible: The Drama of Divine-Human Dialogue. Fortress Press, MN. 1993. p. 53.
6 Gray, John. I & II Kings: A Commentary. The Westminster Press, Philadelphia. 1963. p. 342.
7 Conroy, Charles. 1-2 Samuel 1-2 Kings. Old Testament Message. A Biblical Theological Commentaty. Michael Glazier, Inc.
1983. p. 178-9.
8 Laymon, Charles. The Interpreters One-Volume Commentay on the Bible. Abingdon Press, NY. 1971. p. 193.
3
helps reveal that Yahweh is God.
This theme of Elijah as a man of God appears again at the end of his public ministry. The
angel of the Lord sends Elijah as a messenger to Ahaziah to condemn his faith in Baal-Zebub
and not the Lord (2Kings 4:32-37). This story reminds the reader that the prophet takes his
direction from God and not false idols. Elijah relies upon this intimate dialogue with God as
he engages in this conflict. He embodies the epithet, a man of God, and invites Yahweh to
send fire from heaven to destroy the messengers and the additional men. Yahweh carries out
this task and then eventually says to Elijah, “Go down with him and do not be afraid of him”
(2Kings 1:15).
Elijah allows his will to be led by Yahweh’s Will and responds immediately to this instruction.
He does not waver or question this command. Elijah approaches the king and declares to the
king that he is going to die (2Kings l:4). Ahaziah dies soon thereafter which reveals yet again,
the power of the word of Elijah. Elijah’s constant call upon the name of God in prayer
solidifies his prophetic title as a man of God. The high point of Elijah’s prophetic role as prayer
appears in the story of his slaying of the 450 false prophets of Baal (1Kings 18:19-40).
At the time when the offering is presented, Elijah the prophet stepped forward. ‘Yahweh,
God of Abraham, Isaac and Israel,’ he said, ‘let them know today that you are God in
Israel, and that I am your servant, that I have done all of these things at your command.
Answer me, answer me, so that this people may know that you, Yahweh, are God and are
winning back their hearts’ (1Kings 18:36-37).
Elijah draws strength from his deep connection with God. He allows the Divine Will at the
centre of his being to come forth as he initiates this intimate dialogue with Yahweh. “What is
decisive is Elijah’s prayer; in his case there is no need for noisy activity.”9 Through his prayer,
he creates the space and the opportunity for Yahweh to act.
Elijah offers prayer rather than the performance of miracles. He is the opposite of the
striving Baal prophets. The climactic acclamation is not that Elijah is a man of God but
that Yahweh is God.10
Elijah’s actions do not point to himself but to God. In the end, Elijah, through his prayer,
becomes the vehicle through which the hearts of others are led back to God. While his prayer
reveals many deeper insights about Elijah, the theme of silence surrounds several stories,
interpretations and commentaries on Elijah. Through his experience of Yahweh on Mt.
Horeb, silence becomes the avenue through which the will of Elijah meets the Divine Will yet
again. This silence leads to a place of greater awareness for Elijah where he continues the
process of transformation as a prophet. In fear of his life, Elijah walks for forty days until he
reaches Mt. Horeb (1Kings 19:8). He seeks out this special place with the knowledge that
Yahweh established his covenant with Moses here. While in a cave on the mountain, Elijah
does not hear the normal command from Yahweh to go to Cherith or to go to Zarephath or
to go to Ahab. Elijah is familiar with this command and respond dynamic. Instead, Yahweh’s
first words to him are “What are you doing here, Elijah?” (1Kings 19:9). The unique situation
that Elijah faces leads him to answer with an account of his trials and words of distress. Fr.
9 Conroy, p. 184.
10 Gray, p. 342.
4
Killian Healey, O.Carm., and former General of the Carmelite Order states:
It is the encounter of the loyal servant with his heavenly father, a meeting in which the
prophet expresses his bitter sorrow for the defection of Israel and his own failure. Still, in a
personal, moving expression of faith he declares his undying loyalty to Yahweh.11
Yahweh continues with a familiar command. This time he tells Elijah to leave the cave and go
out onto the mountain before Yahweh. These words are similar to the command to Moses on
Mt. Horeb to stand on the rock and await the Lord’s passing (Exodus 33:22). The experience
of Moses helps us understand the significance of this event for Elijah. Moses had received the
Ten Commandments on this same mountain (Exodus 20:2-17) and then upon his descent to
the people of Israel he found them worshipping a golden calf (Exodus 32:1-6 and ff).In utter
dismay and disillusionment, Moses shatters the tablets and approaches Yahweh in search of
direction. Yahweh answers through his renewal of the covenant and Moses continues his
prophetic work. Elijah experiences a similar state of confusion surrounding his situation and
seeks direction from Yahweh. A textual analysis provides a brief interlude. Although it
appears that Elijah responds accordingly and leaves the cave, (1Kings 19:11) he does not go to
the entrance until after the last of the theophanies (self-revelations of God) has taken place
(1Kings 19: 13). The text reveals that it is possible that verses 19:9b-11 are a later addition to
the original story.12 One makes this conclusion based on the repetition of verses 10 and 14,
each repeating the famous line: “I have been most zealous for the LORD, the God of hosts,
but the Israelites have forsaken your covenant, torn down your altars, and put your prophets
to the sword. I alone am left, and they seek to take my life.” With the omission of the
supposed added texts, the story would flow much smoother.
The story of Elijah’s encounter with God continues as a hurricane, earthquake and fire
appear successively before Elijah (1Kings 19:11-13). However, he does not find Yahweh in any
of the three. These traditional events allude to the various theophanies that the chosen people
of Israel experienced. It makes sense that Elijah would wait for Yahweh in each of these highly
charged events with the hope that Yahweh would speak to him. After a very intimate moment
when he shares his frustration and humanness before Yahweh, he waits in hope for an
answer. The prophet who previously prayed for death on his way to Mt. Horeb now seeks
direction and strength from Yahweh. “Then he encounters a uniquely real presence of God –
beautifully captured in the phrase ‘a sound of sheer silence,’ the only occurrence of this
phrase in the Old Testament.”13 A variety of translations exist for this mysterious experience
including a “light murmuring sound” (NJB), “a still small voice” (KN), “the sound of a sheer
silence” (NRSV), and “the sound of fine silence” (NJBC). Furthermore, there are numerous
explanations of this event. One author describes it as “a divine rebuke of Elijah for his
handling of the prophets of Baal.”14 The Anchor Bible says, “The intimation seems to be that
this is the desired mode of discourse between the prophet and the divine presence.”15
Another author claims that the “revelation of God in an intelligible communication rather
than in the spectacular phenomena described marks an advance in man’s conception of God
11 Healy, Killian. Prophet of Fire. lnstitutum Carmelitanum. Rome, Italy. 1990. p. 164.
12 Laymon, p. 194.
13 Farmer, William R. The International Bible Commentary: A Catholic and Ecumenical Commentary for the Twenty-First
Century. The Liturgical Press, MN. 1998. p. 627.
14 Conroy, p. 188.
15 Cogan, Mordechai. I Kings. The Anchor Bible. Double Day. New York. 2001.
5
as personally accessible.”16 Finally, another writer says “this incident represents a transition
from the spectacular theophanies witnessed by early Israel to the quiet transmission of the
divine word to the prophets.”17
While one can develop arguments about all of these interpretations, it is important to look at
what Elijah does immediately after this experience of the Divine presence: “And when Elijah
heard this, he covered his face with his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the
cave” (1Kings 19:13). Elijah’s veiling his face parallels the theophony assured to Moses on Mt.
Sinai (Exodus 33:20). This flashback appears to raise the stakes of this event even more. In
the past anyone who had seen God or heard God’s voice would perish (Exodus 20:19; Deut
5:24-26; 18:16). Now Elijah is faced with the opportunity and challenge to integrate this new
experience of God’s presence. Yahweh asks him the same question from their first encounter:
“What are you doing here, Elijah?” Again, Elijah offers the account of his trials and
tribulations along with his loyalty (1Kings 19:10-14). Yahweh answers this time with three
specific commands for Elijah to complete (1Kings 19:15-18).In the end, Elijah is in the same
place as before this theophonic experience. He does not make any major changes or come to
any deep realizations as a result of this experience of the Divine presence. The three major
experiences of the earthquake, hurricane and fire do not have an immediate effect on Elijah.
According to the Scripture they do not result in Elijah leaving the cave. It’s not until these
events subside and the “light murmuring sound” passes by Elijah that he approaches the
entrance of the cave. The calm after the storm has arrived and Yahweh is in the calm ready to
call forth Elijah yet again (1Kings 19:12). The stillness and the simplicity of silence create the
space for Elijah’s will to connect yet again with the Will of the Divine. Only this time, the call
takes on a totally different form and meaning. The stillness and the silence that beckon Elijah
parallel the change of intensity for the next command that Yahweh gives. Yahweh no longer
needs the Elijah who swaggers on the top of Mount Carmel and slays the 450 false prophets
of Baal. These powerful and extraordinary actions in Yahweh’s name have come to an end for
Elijah. The time for this face of Elijah’s remarkable courage and zeal has passed. This new
mission for Elijah will help settle his fears and strengthen the faith of Israel. His actions, now
grounded in silence, will once again reiterate to Israel that Yahweh is God. Elijah’s prophetic
office is coming to an end so Yahweh gives him the task of anointing Hazael and Jehu and
selecting Elisha as his successor. These two kings will essentially crush Israel to pieces but
Yahweh declares, “I shall spare seven thousand in Israel; all knees that have not bent before
Baal, and all the mouths that have not kissed him” (1Kings 19:18). Those who encounter
God in silence never see or experience the world in the same way. Their old wineskin is often
replaced with new wineskins. They inherit a new set of eyes as they reconnect with society.
They call others to new living based on God’s covenant and word. Elijah, in his brokenness
turns to God for answers. Yahweh, before he commands that Elijah go and anoint three
others, decides to appear in the silence. Kilian Healy says:
Yahweh’s answer to Elijah is the key to the understanding of the passage. It shows that the
prophet was mistaken in believing he alone in Israel was faithful to the Lord. It also points
out that faith in Yahweh was not about to be exterminated. Israel surely will be chastised
from within by Jehu and from without by Hazael, but in the end an Israel faithful to
16 Gray, p. 365.
17 Mays, James L. Harper’s Bible Dictionary. Harpers and Row, San Francisco. 1988.
6
Yahweh will survive. Yahweh is in command, not Elijah.18
Could Elijah have heard this message if he had not experienced the presence of Yahweh in
the silence? While the revelation of the Divine presence in the silence is quite different from
the hurricane, earthquake and fire, so too is this command unlike the previous instructions
that Elijah fulfils. In the end Yahweh’s presence in the silence guides Elijah’s towards his
transformation as a prophet and thus, reiterating that Yahweh alone is God. While silence is
definitive in Elijah’s life, the issue of solitude surrounds him as well. The passages in 1 & 2
Kings show that he spends little time around other human beings. He spends many days,
including forty in the desert, alone and in communion with the Divine. This solitude reveals
a commitment to God first and foremost. It demonstrates an exclusive relationship that
proclaims the absolute autonomy of Yahweh. The solitude in which Elijah lives his life
exemplifies the connection of his will with that of the Divine Will. When we meet Elijah we
first learn that he is a Tishbite from Gilead (1Kings 17:1). While genealogies exist for many
figures in the Hebrew Scriptures, we hear very little about Elijah’s origins, roots or ancestors.
Furthermore, many figures of the Old Testament work together. Abraham and Lot travel
together and Abraham provides support at times. Moses and Aaron share a certain level of
intimacy as they lead the Hebrews out of the desert and into the Promised Land. Throughout
the Scriptures however, Elijah relies solely on himself as he relates to God. He acts alone. His
dedication as a solitary figure draws attention to the Divine Will that dwells at the centre of
his being. Yahweh commands Elijah quite often to go and seek a place of solitude. “Go away
from here, go east and hide by the torrent of Cherith, east of the Jordan” (1Kings 17:2). In
this place, Elijah drinks from the wadi and the ravens feed him plentifully. The Hebrew
Scriptures regards ravens as unclean and birds of prey (Lev 11:15; Deut 14:14; Prov 30:17).
Yet, these unclean birds feed Elijah and nourish him very well with bread and meat twice a
day. Eventually, the wadi dries up because of a lack of rain. It cannot sustain Elijah. Baal,
known as the Canaanite god of rain, should be able to supply ample water but he cannot
perform the one action that defines him. His autonomy and greatness is not like that of
Yahweh. In solitude, Yahweh miraculously provides for Elijah and Baal proves inept.19 Later
Yahweh tells Elijah, “Up and go to Zarephath in Sidonia, and stay there” (1Kings 17:8).
When he arrives, he asks the widow for water and food and she tells him that she does not
have enough provisions. However, the Lord abundantly produces yet again. “The jar of meal
was not spent nor the jug of oil emptied, just as Yahweh had foretold through Elijah” (1Kings
17:16). The message is clear: Yahweh lures Elijah in solitude where he must exhibit a total
trust, perseverance and willingness to be led by Yahweh. As a result, Yahweh can reveal His
total autonomy and overflowing ability to sustain and to nourish.
After Elijah’s victory on Mt. Carmel, he flees for his life from Jezebel into the desert and prays
for his death. “Elijah no longer sees himself as the bearer of a special relationship with
Yahweh and, in utter despair, asked that he die, as do all men.”20 Solitary life can eat a person
alive if his or her focus is not rightly centred. It can lead to utter dismay. Elijah appears to be
in turmoil and his faith challenged. However, the angel of Yahweh appears to him several
times telling him to get up and eat. “He looked round, and there at his head was a scone
18 Healy, p. 165.
19 Keck, Leander. The New Interpreter’s Bible. Volume III. Abingdon Press, Nashville. 1999. p. 127.
20 Cogan, p. 451.
7
baked on hot stones and a jar of water” (1Kings 19:6). Furthermore, while the first angel does
not make it evident, the second appearance of the angel reveals that it is Yahweh who
provides. Strengthened by this food, Elijah spends forty days wandering in the desert and
finally arrives at Mt. Horeb (19:8). Both in the desert where Yahweh sustains through food
and in the cave where Elijah experiences the Divine presence in the “light murmuring
sound,” Yahweh provides abundantly. Elijah accomplishes the majority of his triumphs in
solitude as well. When he challenges the 450 prophets of Baal, he acts alone. When he heals
the widow’s son he brings him upstairs in solitude and prays over him. Elijah triumphs over
his other human opposition including Ahab and Jezebel. This triumph in solitude parallels
that of Yahweh. Jane Ackerman writes:
While Baal was unable to control the rains, did not manifest himself, and had nothing
to say to his devotees, Yahweh spectacularly moved both the natural and supernatural
realms, spoke through his prophet, and most certainly manifested his will.21
Elijah’s ability to act without human assistance and to prevail over human opposition points
to God’s independent greatness. Elijah’s relationship with Elisha also demonstrates his
attempt to maintain this solitary life. He is seen several times trying to separate himself from
Elisha. When Elijah and Elisha set out for Gilgal, he tells Elisha, “You stay here, for Yahweh
is sending only me to Bethel” (2Kings 2:2). This happens two more times as Elijah claims that
Yahweh is sending him to Jericho and to Jordan (2Kings 2:4 and 2Kings 2: 6). Eventually a
chariot of fire takes Elijah bodily away from Elisha into the heavens (2Kings 2:12). His
ascension severed his contact with other human beings. There could be no more powerful
demonstration of Elijah’s adherence to God alone than the miracle that ended his story in 2
Kings.
The Spirit of Elijah dwells in our modern world today. Often times, people only talk about
Elijah as the prophet of courage and of zeal. His willingness to take a stand in the name of
Yahweh and to challenge those who straddle the fence speaks loudly and clearly. This voice of
Elijah needs to be shared and heard by others. At the same time, the image of Elijah as a
mystic who embodies silence, solitude and prayer in order to live out his role as a prophet
must be recognized. The role of Elijah in 1 & 2 Kings reveals the depth, the breadth, the
height and the width of this path. This model must be held up for others as a path towards an
authentic and transparent way of life. In the words of Fr. Killian Healy:
“Each time that Carmel returned to its eremitical spirit, and gave itself more generously to
its contemplative dimension, the Order was blessed with holiness that gave new life to the
Church. Therefore experience is teaching us again that the only safe route to follow is to
renew the eremitical ideal of the Order. We must return in Spirit to Elijah living in
silence, solitude and prayer at Cherith. The prophet is still a relevant model.”22
21 Ackerman, Jane. Elijah: Prophet of Carmel. ICS Publications, Washington, DC. 2003. p. 14.
22 Healy, p, 61.
8
An Elijan Bibliography
Ackerman, Jane. Elijah: The Prophet of Carmel.
ICS Publications, Washington, DC. 2003.
Balentine, Samuel E. Prayer in the Hebrew Bible: The Drama of Divine-Human Dialogue.
Fortress Press, MN. 1993.
Brown, Raymond; Fitzmyer, Joseph; Murphy, Roland. New Jerome Biblical Commentary.
Prentice Hall, NJ. 1990
Cogan, Mordechai. 1 Kings. The Anchor Bible.
Double Day, NY 2001.
Conroy, Charles. 1-2 Samuel, 1-2 Kings. Old Testament Message. A Biblical Theological
Commentary.
Michael Glazier, Inc, DE. 1983.
Farmer, William R. The International Bible Commentary: A Catholic and Ecumenical Commentary
for the Twenty-First Century.
The Liturgical Press, MN. 1998.
Gray, John. I & II Kings: A Commentary.
The Westminster Press, Philadelphia, PA. 1963.
Healy, Killian. Prophet of Fire.
Edizioni Carmelitane. Rome, Italy. 1990.
Johnson, Aubrey R. The Cultic Prophet in Ancient Israel.
University of Wales Press, Cardiff. 1963.
Keck, Leander. The New Interpreter’s Bible. Volume III.
Abingdon Press, Nashville, TN. 1999
Laymon, Charles. The Interpreters’ One-Volume Commentary on the Bible.
Abingdon Press, NY 1971.
Mays, James L. Harper’s Bible Dictionary.
Harpers and Row, San Francisco, CA. 1988
Murphy, Roland. Experiencing Our Biblical Heritage.
Hendrickson Publishers, MA. 2001.
Peterson, William J. Meet Me on the Mountain.
Victor Books, 11. 1981.

Leadership of Jesus Christ

Tons and tons of material have been written concerning leadership. Some very great minds have classified leadership traits in a number of different ways, each having meaning and value to the topic. As leaders, we need to know what the literature has to say, to appropriate specific characteristics to our unique leadership style and become the best leader possible. Good leadership enhances production, develops high morale among staff and minimizes problems that come in the course of doing business.
We have provided and continue to provide seminars on leadership, have mentored individual leaders and have used various assessment instruments to determine individual leadership skills. If you are interested in some of those services, please contact me.
However, I would like to take a few minutes to see how the greatest leader of all times accomplished his job. I believe that if we can in even a small manner duplicate his style in our own lives, we would be better leaders tomorrow than we are today. Jesus, coming from a small town, having no university training, no computer technology, no internet resources formed a small group (call it a corporation, if you want), spent a few short years in moving his product, and in so doing completely changed this entire world forever. Nothing, absolutely nothing was the same after he was finished. His organization has grown and continues to grow today affecting the entire globe.
How did he do it? Yes, he is divine, God in the flesh, holy and with all the Godly attributes, but he did not use that to change the world, he used people. Those people were just like you and I. They were not holy, had all the emotions, failings, discouragement, physical ailments and problems you and I have as we live our lives. And yet, look at what has happened. The success of this small band of people was the direct result of their leader and his ability to lead. Do you want to know what leadership characteristics Jesus used and how we can apply them to our leadership roles? Let's take a few minutes to study his work.
Be uncommonly knowledgeable. First, it is necessary for the leader to have a strong knowledge base. We call it "knowing your stuff." There is no substitute for thoroughly understanding your product. This is a test that if you receive less than an A+ in it, you have flunked. You cannot be successful if your competitor knows more than you. Everything is a specialty, and since everything is in constant flux, a leader must keep current with all the aspects of the product, no matter what it is. The leader must be the expert. Jesus knew what his job was. He knew why he came to earth. He knew where he was headed, and he knew what the results of his work would be. Of course he was God, and God is omnipotent and omniscient. We are not, but the example is still there. Leaders MUST be fully knowledgeable in their field.
Be a visionary Next, Jesus had a vision. He said in John 4:34 that he came to do and finish the work of the Father who sent him. He said in the 17th chapter of John, verse 4 that he has finished the work the Father gave him to do. His vision was clear, it was to bring salvation into the world. He was focused on it, and everything he did was to accomplish his vision. Leaders remain focused on their vision.
Be an excellent teacher Jesus communicated his vision clearly to his disciples. He told them that he had come into the world that the world through him could be saved. He lived out his vision before the disciples so they knew what it was. Sometimes, they didn't get it. Even at the last supper, there was some confusion as to where Jesus was going and why couldn't the disciples go with him. A leader must have a clear vision, be focused on accomplishing it and communicate it well to his people. Remember, Proverbs 29:18 reminds us that where there is no vision, the people perish.
Be an astute recruiter Jesus surrounded himself with men he recruited. He had looked into their hearts and lives and had determined they would be the best he could find. Good leaders need to surround themselves with good people. They should not settle for mediocrity. Note the characteristics of the 12 disciples: they were loyal, trustworthy, could interact well with people, had enormous skills, were dedicated to the vision and mission of their leader, communicated well with Jesus and the team, worked well in the team, were not self serving and could work independently. These men were so dedicated to their mission that they were killed fulfilling it. Isn't it neat that Jesus' administrative team did not think of themselves more highly than they did of their leader? They were singular in following the strategic plan laid out for them.

 

TENDENCY MUSLIMS CONVERT TO CHRISTIANITY

According to Al-Jazeerah’s interview with Sheikh Ahmad Al Katani, the president of The Companions Lighthouse for the Science of Islamic Law in Libya, In every hour, 667 Muslims convert to Christianity.

Everyday, 16,000 Muslims convert to Christianity. Every year, 6 million Muslims convert to Christianity. Al-Jazeerah has since removed the interview and details.

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Islam, SVM News, 1 January, 2007: Millions of Muslim converts to Christianity celebrated Christmas throughout the world. According the reports of the various missionary organizations and news medias.

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The Salem Voice Ministries evangelizing Muslims in  India and many other Muslim nations. There are about 500 evangelists  ministering among Muslims  in different African, Middle East and Asian countries. A vast number of Muslims finding the truth and attaining Salvation of Jesus Christ day by day.

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‘More Muslims converted to faith in Jesus Christ over the past decade than at any other time in human history. A spiritual revolution is underway throughout North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. As a result, a record number of ex-Muslims are celebrating Christmas this year, despite intense persecution, assassinations, and widespread church bombings’. These are the words of Joel C. Rosenberg, the author of the New York Times best selling political thriller.

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He said, he and his wife and kids were lived in the Mideast for three months. During that time, he had the privilege of interviewing more than three dozen Arab and Iranian pastors and evangelical leaders throughout the region. The picture they paint is one of Christianity being dramatically resurrected in the region of its birth.

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More than 10,000 Muslims accepted Jesus Christ as their personal saviour throughout India during the last year. The Bible Society of India publishing thousands of New Testaments for the Muslims with their own terminology and vocabulary in different Indian languages and Tazi language. Pastor Paul Ciniraj Mohamed, the Director of the Salem Voice Ministries is one of the key persons of the Bible translators of the Bible Society of India to reach the Gospel to the Muslims. He is in the midst of persecution. Recently also he was threatened by the extremists to count down his days along with the whole family.

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In Iraq, more than 5,000 Muslim converts to Christianity have been identified since the end of major combat operations, with 14 new churches opened in Baghdad, and dozens of new churches opened in Kurdistan, some of which have 500 to 800 members. Also, more than one million Bibles shipped into the country since 2003, and pastors report Iraqis are snatching them up so fast they constantly need more Bibles.

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Thousands of Muslims turned to Christ and worshiping Lord Jesus in Morocco, Somalia, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Saudi Arabia, UAE and Maldives.

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Around a million believed in Jesus over the past decade in Egypt. The Egyptian Bible Society used to sell about 3,000 copies of the JESUS film a year in the early 1990s. As per the figures taken from the Millennium campaign in 2000, they sold 600,000 copies, plus 750,000 copies of the individual cassette tapes (in Arabic) and about a half million copies of the Arabic New Testament. Ramez Atallah, the General Secretary of the Bible Society of Egypt informed Pastor Paul Ciniraj by email. “Egyptians are increasingly hungry for God’s Word,” he said.

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‘Last Christmas, I had the privilege of visiting the largest Christian congregation in the Middle East, which meets in an enormous cave on the outskirts of Cairo. Some 10,000 believers worship there every weekend. A prayer conference the church held in May 2005 drew some 20,000 believers’, Rosenberg told.

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There were only 17 Christians from Islam in Afghanistan on 2001. But there are more than 10,000 believers at present. Every week dozens of baptisms being held there.

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In 1990, there were only three known Christians in Kazakhstan and no Christians in Uzbekistan, but now more than 15,000 in Kazakhstan and 30, 000 in Uzbekistan. There were only 500 Christians in Iran on 1979, but more than one million Iranians believing Jesus Christ today, most of whom meet in underground house churches.

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In Sudan, more than one million have converted since 2000, and some 5 million have become Christians since the early 1990s, despite a radical Islamic regime and an on-going genocide that has killed more than 200,000. Seminaries are being held in caves to train pastors to shepherd the huge numbers of people coming to Christ. Why such a dramatic spiritual awakening? “People have seen real Islam, and they want Jesus instead,” one Sudanese evangelical leader said.

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In December 2001, Sheikh Ahmad al Qataani, a leading Saudi cleric, appeared on a live interview on Al-Jazeera satellite television to confirm that, sure enough, Muslims were turning to Jesus in alarming numbers. “In every hour, 667 Muslims convert to Christianity,” Al Qataani warned. “Every day, 16,000 Muslims convert to Christianity. Every year, 6 million Muslims convert to Christianity.”

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Stunned, the interviewer interrupted the cleric. “Hold on! Let me clarify. Do we have six million converting from Islam to Christianity?” Al Qataani repeated his assertion. “Every year,” the cleric confirmed, adding, “a tragedy has happened.”

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One of the most dramatic developments is that many Muslims — including Shiites in Iran and Iraq — are seeing dreams and visions of Jesus and thus coming into churches explaining that they have already converted and now need a Bible and guidance on how to follow Jesus. This is the fulfillment of Biblical prophecy of Joel, “in the last days, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your old men will dream dreams, your young men will see visions. Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days….And everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.” (Joel 2:28-32).

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Within few years all of the Muslim nations will come to Christ by the work of the Holy Spirit. Satan knows it, that’s why he tries to discourage and destroy the Christian workers and the believers through the persecution and brutal murdering. But our Lord Jesus will have the final victory. Pastor Paul Ciniraj said.

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Idris Salahudeen, the Pastor of the Salem Voice Ministries said, hundreds upon hundreds ordinary Muslims believing Jesus and secretly converting into Christianity by seeing brutal behaviour of fundamentalists towards Christians. Maybe this torturing is a purification of nominal Christians to have more faith and courage.

THE OTHER DATA

Islamist (Cairo / Abuja) violence is rapidly increasing in Africa. Muslim terrorist groups increasingly operate in countries which were until recently calm and stable. Islamist wildfire spreads. The sociologist Massimo Introvigne, the 2011 representative of the OSCE (Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe) against persecution and discrimination of Christians, sees a targeted strategy behind the phenomenon of Islamic violence . ”The Islamists are convinced that the decisive battle about whether the world is Muslim or Christian will take place in Africa.” Even more importantly, according to Introvigne, “Islam is going to lose this battle. So it responds with bombs. “

It was the Libyan Islamic scholar and director of a training center for imams and preachers of the Koran, Sheikh Ahmad Al-Qataani, who, already a few years ago, in an interview with the Arab-Muslim television station Al-Jazeera, raised the alarm. He did it with a highly explosive statement, very little noticed in the West: “In Africa alone, every hour, 667 Muslims convert to Christianity, 16,000 every day, six million a year.” Introvigne confirmed the figures, which are now the same as in 2006, when Al-Qataani raised the alarm. African Christianity has a great inner strength. The contact of Muslims to Christianity leads millions of Muslims to be baptized. One could say that they “fly” to leave Islam. Despite the associated dangers to life and limb.

The Conversion Movement from Islam to Christianity is not only in Africa

The move to conversion from Islam to Christianity is taking place not only in Africa. The baptism of the former Egyptian Muslim Magdi Allam by Pope Benedict XVI. at the Easter Vigil in 2008 was the most spectacular and most visible element of this movement.  Allam shows how many Muslim converts in addition adopt a typical Christian name. He opted for Cristiano. This refers to the personal name Christian. In his case, however, for Allam there is a broader sense that will say: Magdi “the Christian”–no longer the Muslim–”Allam”.

Empirical studies are not available. Careful observers, as the sociologist Introvigne can have an idea about the numbers, based on various criteria of largely unnoticed and ongoing phenomena. According to the British Times about 15 percent of Muslim immigrants to Europe have abandoned Islam and become Christians. In the UK the number is now estimated at 200,000. In France, every year about 15,000 Muslims become Christians, some 10,000 of them Catholics, the rest Protestants of various denominations, especially of independent churches.

Growth of Islam only by high birth rate in Islamic states – Christianity is growing by adult baptisms

In Africa, as reported by Sheikh Al-Qataani to Al-Jazeera, “Islam has always been the main religion. There were times when 30 African languages ​​were written in Arabic script. “Today’s size relationship between Islam and Christianity make clear how much Islam has declined in recent years. Al-Qataani made a comparison directly between Islam and the Catholic Church, “without counting the members of other Christian denominations”. To increase the Christians by the millions of Muslims who convert to Christianity, said Sheikh Al-Qataani: “These are huge numbers.”

Introvigne confirms the conversion movement against the initially expressed assumption of Al Qataani who could have intentionally over-estimated the numbers to arouse the Islamic world. ”The global growth of Islam is almost exclusively from the high birth rate in Muslim countries where thanks to Western medicine, infant mortality has been substantially reduced,” said Introvigne. Outside the Islamic States of Islam there is a decrease. The growth of the Christians results, in contrast, mainly from adult baptisms. The evangelical Wolfgang Simpson wrote: “Over the past two decades, more Muslims came to Christ than in all previous centuries.”

Father Joseph Hergets evangelization of Muslims

Priests like the Austrian Lazarist Father Josef Herget, the founder of the Institute of St. Justin in Mariazell are among the silent but active missionaries who lead the Muslims from Islam to Christ. They live dangerously. Father Herget wrote back in 1975, when the issue of Islam in the West was being given little weight, his master’s thesis on the topic:Christian preaching in the Islamic world . Another, the Egyptian Coptic priest Zakaria Botros was named “enemy number one of Islam” by Islamic scholars of the Arab-Islamic newspaper Al-Insan al-Jadid.  Botros television broadcasts via satellite from the U.S., in which he deals with the problematic parts of the Koran (Jihad, status of women, stonings, etc.) from a Christian perspective, may lead to secret mass conversions among Muslims. His mastery of the Arabic language and his knowledge of Islamic sources allow him to directly contact an Arab-Muslim audience in the Middle East.

The conversions were suspended, as many viewers of Botros transmitter Alfady after initial outrage was clear that the ulema are not able to convincingly answer to the broadcasts Botros. Botros and Hergets deal with Islam in a different way from the usual Western criticism that focuses on political and social issues and often betrays a condescending racist undertone. This form of criticism is also a caused by the fact that many in the West ignore the Christians of the Middle East and North Africa. Such criticism is seen as prejudiced, external interference, to the vast majority of Muslims. They usually respond downright irritated in the ranks of the Islamists, militias and terrorist groups because too many politically charged issues come into play, in which the West is not perceived as the morally superior side, but mutated into the enemy. Botros and Herget, to stay with the two representatives of the evangelization of Muslims, on the other hand, bring salvation. This is the crucial difference which opens the hearts of many Muslims, and at the same time offers a way out of a spiral of violence with harsh confrontations.

Radical Islam can be defused only by religion, not secularism, materialism and feminism

Raymond Ibrahim wrote in the National Review : “Many Western critics do not understand that it is necessary to defuse the radical Islamism and in its place suggest something Theo centric and spiritually satisfying, not secularism, democracy, consumerism, materialism, or feminism. The ‘truths’ of a religion can be challenged only by the truth of another religion. Father Zakaria Botros fights fire with fire “.

People seem to no longer tolerate the direct or indirect violence. Roman Silantjew, secretary of the Interreligious Council of Russia, said that in the successor states of the former Soviet Union, two million Muslims have converted to Christianity. One of the main reasons for this is the desire for peace, which they find in Christianity.

Two million converts in Russia, 250,000 in Malaysia, 80,000 in Algeria

In Algeria, there were approximately 80,000 Muslims who were baptized, which prompted the country’s government to enact laws against Christian proselytism. In these years, Moroccan media continued to report the baptism of tens of thousands of citizens. People see war and crisis zones in Islam and they decide for Christ, as the representative of an evangelical community in Sudan said.

In Malaysia, according to the Mufti of Perak, 250,000 Muslims have submitted officially to the authorities the application for change a of religion to Christianity. Such a change is only allowed for members of ethnic minorities. On the number of Malays who were baptized in secret, there is no information.

People recognize Christianity as a religion of peace, Islam as a religion of violence

Protestant and Pentecostal communities move quite differently, sometimes very irresponsibly, to the chagrin of the indigenous Christian churches in Islamic countries who are victims of Islamist reprisals. The Catholic Church is more reserved. The Egyptian Jesuit Samir Khalil Samir, a leading expert in the Islamic world and the Pope’s adviser, reported that the Catholic clergy “sometimes even discourages conversions in Islamic states for fear or misunderstanding, ecumenism’. It is otherwise is in European countries. Khalil admits that the situation is not easy. Independent Church communities “come and go, but the Church was 2000 years ago, it is today and it will be tomorrow. “Independent Church groups, because of their small structures being barely palpable, or because they are not officially registered in most countries, are not as vulnerable to attack. The situation is quite different for the Catholic Church and the Eastern Churches. They are officially registered. The authorities know all the Christian places and know what families belong to the church. They are vulnerable to attack because of its visibility and not only in a particular country, but also in other countries.

Differences between evangelical communities and the Catholic Church

The indigenous churches were accustomed coexistence with Muslims for centuries and in a certain form. A form tolerating conversion to Islam, but not vice versa to Christianity. Time and the Islamic sword have made these Christians resign themselves to defend their own area and not to reach out. It is a form of self-defense, which has been firmly entrenched in the mentality of the Eastern Christians, and could only be overcome slowly. Overcoming that worries Christians very much, given the often life-threatening situations.

Missionaries from the outside, however, often lack the necessary familiarity with the cultural sensitivities, which could lead to dangerous confusion among the Muslim population. Between these extremes, it was necessary to find ways of evangelization. Working in this area there are several Catholic initiatives, such as those of the Austrian Father Josef Herget and his Catechetical Instructions.

POSITIVE MENTAL IN BIBLE

Why are mental problems and disabilities on the rise? Could it be that we overlook the Bible's keys to healthy, positive thinking?

The five conditions she listed are major depression, schizophrenia, bipolar disorders, alcohol abuse and obsessive-compulsive disorders. In addition, significant mental-health disorders plaguing humanity include phobias, generalized anxiety and panic disorder. Any of these maladies can be disabling.Dr. Gro Harlem Brundtland, director-general of the World Health Organization, reported in 2000 that "five of the 10 leading causes of disability worldwide ... are mental conditions" ( Bulletin of the World Health Organization,2000, 78).

Worldwide, mental-health afflictions are increasing. The total share of disability caused by them increased from 10.5 percent in 1990 to 12 percent in 1998 and is expected to increase to 15 percent in 2020—almost a 50 percent increase in only three decades. Depression, currently the fifth-leading cause of disability, is projected to jump to second place by 2020.

While treatment options—including medication and counseling—are available, prevention is the better choice.

Why is prevention preferable rather than treating a problem after it arises? Although treatment often works, it usually is much more costly. The costs often include financial losses, physical-health deterioration and trauma to family members—sometimes resulting in family disintegration.

Many mental illnesses can be prevented, and the Bible provides helpful information to that end. After all, it is a handbook from God on what we should think and how our minds should work. Among other things, the Bible tells us how to relieve stress and the kind of stimuli we should allow into our minds. Here are some crucial biblical keys to mental health.

The power of a positive attitude

We start with the obvious merits of simple positive thinking. In Philippians 4:8 the Bible instructs us in proper thinking: "And now, my friends, all that is true, all that is noble, all that is just and pure, all that is lovable and gracious, whatever is excellent and admirable—fill all your thoughts with these things" (New English Bible, emphasis added throughout).

Those who consistently apply these positive words will practice positive thinking, a habit crucial to mental health. "A positive outlook is known to improve recovery from surgery and the immune system's ability to fight off disease as well as aid in cancer recovery, to reduce the fight-or-flight response and hence stress disease [and can] ... restore our tranquillity and turn our unhappy, anxiety-producing hormones into happy ones" (Archibald Hart, M.D., The Anxiety Cure, 1999, p. 217).

The characteristics of an optimistic mind-set include the ability to focus on the positive when the negative seems overwhelming. The key lies in turning a problem into a challenge and then working to meet it.

We also must avoid filling our minds with the negative and degrading aspects of the world around us. The apostle Paul wrote that some things are so shameful we should not even speak of them (Ephesians 5:12
). Yet many of the degrading things to which Paul referred fill our print and electronic media.

If we want good mental health, we should discipline our minds to avoid a degrading mental diet. The principle of "garbage in, garbage out" certainly applies with respect to our minds. The net effect of what occupies our minds—and often comes out of our mouths—will be as pure or as corrupt as whatever we let enter our minds. We jeopardize our mental health when we subject our thinking to mental trash. To remain psychologically stable, we must discipline our minds to avoid thinking in the gutter.

Paul practiced the advice he gave to the Christians at Philippi and exhorted them to follow his example (Philippians 4:9), telling them that if they did so the "God of peace" would be with them. Peace of mind and a clear conscience (Acts 23:1
; 24:16; 1 Timothy 1:5
) are essential characteristics of sound mental health.

Reining in feelings and emotions

Where do feelings and emotions come from? When God created man in His own image (Genesis 1:27
), He included the human personality, which can express godly feelings.

The primary characteristic that summarizes God's very being is love (1 John 4:8
, 16). But Paul describes a greater range of godly characteristics and emotions as aspects of the fruit of His Spirit. They include "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control" (Galatians 5:22-23


, New International Version). The Bible exhorts us to be full of this Spirit (Ephesians 5:18
).

If these traits are dominant in our personality, we are less likely to suffer from mental aberrations. Such a mind will be self-controlled; it will be stable and able to endure the difficulties of life. It will be optimistic, and optimism is a vital part of a healthy mind. "Optimistic people are more able to roll with life's punches and slough off stress—and they live longer" (Bradley Wilcox, M.D., Craig Wilcox, Ph.D., and Makoto Suzuki, M.D., The Okinawa Program, 2001, p. 273).

Conversely, "a person without self-control is as defenseless as a city with broken-down walls" (Proverbs 25:28
, New Living Translation). This person will be vulnerable and driven frequently by negative emotions. His outcome is described in Galatians 5:19-21



. His accompanying problems can include adultery, sexual immorality, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, envy and drunkenness. Living this way exacts an automatic penalty that makes one a candidate for instability, unhappiness and mental problems.

We choose our emotions, and we live with the consequences. The types of emotions that prevail in our minds are a major determining factor in whether we succeed at life itself. "Emotions are a mixed blessing. They are responsible for many of man's finest and greatest achievements. They are also responsible for some of the greatest tragedies in our world" (Norman Wright, The Christian Use of Emotional Power, 1974, p. 13). If we choose healthy emotions, we can be happy and achieve success in life.

Take time out

We live in such a fast-paced world that it is essential to schedule breaks from our routine. "Taking time to rest is not an option in today's world; it is a necessity. Yet more people struggle here than in almost any other area of their lives. It is perilous not to take time to rest" (Hart, p. 118).

Even Jesus and His apostles felt this need. Notice one such occasion in Mark 6:31
: "Then Jesus said, 'Let's get away from the crowds for a while and rest.' There were so many people coming and going that Jesus and his apostles didn't even have time to eat" (NLT).

For mental rejuvenation and avoiding stress overload, we need daily rest. Especially as we get older, an afternoon nap can rejuvenate us. We also need regular vacations if our financial circumstances and work situations permit. Even if one does nothing but stay at home on holidays, breaks from our routines can be beneficial.

In addition, God tells us we need to schedule one day in the week for rest. After completing His work of creation, God rested on the seventh day (Genesis 2:2
). The Hebrew word for "rested" is shabath, the verb form of the noun translated as "Sabbath" inExodus 20:10-11


, where God gave the Ten Commandments to Israel and commanded the Israelites to keep His Sabbath holy by resting on the seventh day of every week.

Too much change

Some mental-health practitioners recognize the value of this weekly practice. "One of the most powerful arguments in favor of pushing for a greater emphasis on rest comes from the Bible ... God rested on the seventh day ... From the outset, the Bible presents us with the idea that rest is important, and furthermore, that a specific time has to be set aside for rest ...

"I happen to believe (and a lot of scientific evidence is accumulating to support this belief) that we were designed for camel travel, not supersonic jet behavior ... Today, however, we are exceeding these limits, not just barely, but by a huge margin. The penalty is an epidemic of stress disease and anxiety disorders, especially panic anxiety" (Hart, pp. 118-119).

About 40 years ago a French doctor who taught at Harvard observed: "If psychiatric illnesses are truly increasing in the Western world, the reason is not to be found in the complex and competitive character of our society but rather in the accelerated rate at which old habits and conventions disappear. Even the marginal man can generally achieve some form of equilibrium with his environment if the social order is stable, but he is likely to break down when the extent and rate of change exceed his adaptive potentialities. For this reason mental diseases are likely to become more apparent in areas undergoing rapid cultural transitions" (Rene Dubos, Mirage of Health, 1959, pp. 208-209).

The Sabbath provides a time to take a break from the world of stress and tension. "... We live in a culture that is constantly feeding us stress-producing messages ... With today's round-the-clock access to news we now can receive a twenty-four-hour-a-day parade of mostly negative information ... The news, in fact, has become so stressful that some health experts ... recommend periodic 'news fasts' to improve psychological health" (Wilcox, Wilcox and Suzuki, pp. 237-238).

(To learn more about the biblical Sabbath, please read our free booklet Sunset to Sunset: God's Sabbath Rest .)

Confront your fears

Everyone is afraid of something. Some fears are healthy, but some are not. When a fear becomes persistent and irrational, it is a phobia. "Specific phobias strike more than one in ten people" (Hart, p. 180). Some major fears are agoraphobia, fear of being in public places, and claustrophobia, fear of confinement or crowded places.

When one has a phobia, he will often anticipate encountering the circumstance that is apt to trigger it, which can set up persistent anxiety. God does not want us to be controlled by such fears. The Bible says, "Do not be afraid of sudden terror ..." (Proverbs 3:25
).

How can we overcome phobias? "They must be confronted, but not in a way that reinforces them. It is possible to overcome almost every phobia. It just takes time and effort. Real-life exposure to whatever situation you might fear is the most effective way to overcome that fear" (Hart, p. 179).

It is often beneficial to seek professional counsel when confronting a phobia that seriously impacts your life, but developing a relationship with God is even more important. In doing so, you can grow in His love, and "love casts out fear" (1 John 4:18
).

Confront anxiety with confidence

Although most people are not phobic, almost everyone has to struggle against worry, which is a form of fear. Our age is the era of anxiety. Everyone experiences some anxiety, and it can be a useful emotion when it triggers us to act to avoid danger. But, if it impacts our life seriously, we must take action to overcome it. "Every anxiety sufferer must learn new ways of thinking and develop methods for changing their former thinking patterns" (Hart, p. 111).

The Bible verifies that this kind of thinking is essential, telling us to "be renewed in the spirit of your mind" (Ephesians 4:23
).

How do we do this? One anxiety-reducing technique is to cleanse your mind at day's end. Evening is "a good time to do a 'mental wash' when you review anxieties that are cluttering your thinking and dump those that are not important" (Hart, p. 204).

The Bible confirms that this is sound advice in a passage that tells us what to do at day's end. "Meditate within your heart on your bed, and be still" (Psalm 4:4
).

Sometimes anxieties relate to meeting our basic needs. Jesus said, "Do not be anxious then, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'With what shall we clothe ourselves?'" Jesus also recommended a cure for these worries: "... Seek first His kingdom and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added to you" (Matthew 6:31
, 33, New American Standard Bible). The point is that, when our priorities conform to God's will, we can live in confidence that He will help us meet our other needs.

A relationship with God is fundamental to overcoming our fears. The Bible exhorts: "Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 2:5), and, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me" (4:13). The only way we can develop the mind of Christ is to first repent of ignoring God's biblical instructions, then be baptized and receive God's Spirit (Acts 2:38
). In doing so we can cleanse our minds and develop new mental habits. "For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind" (2 Timothy 1:7
).

The healing power of humor

As simple as it sounds, the ability to laugh is an aid to mental health. Joy is akin to laughter, and it, too, is part of the fruit of God's Spirit (Galatians 5:22
). "A merry heart makes a cheerful countenance" (Proverbs 15:13
), and "a merry heart does good, like medicine" (17:22).

Humor triggers literal physiological and mental changes in your body. Laughter "touches us at a deep emotional and physical level ... By its very nature it changes our perception and invites us to look at things in a different light. It shows us that life can be silly, even crazy at times, but it still can be enjoyable" (Wilcox, Wilcox and Suzuki, pp. 272-273). One doctor notes that "humor, smiles, and laughter are the very best stress-busters" (Herbert Benson, M.D., Timeless Healing, 1996, p. 277).

A relationship with God provides the deepest and most-abiding joy. "The Bible has much to say about the joy, the sheer happiness, of the redeemed ..." ( The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1982, "Humor in the Bible"). In one study of more than 500 men, "significant associations emerged between the participants' religious involvement and their health ... such as less depression" (Kenneth Cooper, M.D., It's Better to Believe, p. 5).

Physical activity such as gardening, walking and other regular exercise can also benefit your mental health.

Avoid dangerous addictions

People suffering from mental problems—including undue stress—often rely on ingestible substances to help them get through the day. But this kind of crutch can easily lead to a collapse and fall. "Many people who suffer from emotional disorders or mental illness turn to drugs and alcohol to self-medicate, as a way of tolerating feelings that are intolerable. Yet, ironically, this method of self-treating seldom works in the long run and frequently makes matters worse" ( Johns Hopkins Family Health Book, 1999, p. 1225).

Besides addictions to mood-altering substances, sometimes people become addicted to things that are normally proper and healthy. Some, for example, develop addictions to food, sex or work. Though not a problem in moderation and within God's laws, losing control in any of these areas will often lead to greater problems.

The Bible addresses the need for balance and control. "All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any" (1 Corinthians 6:12
). We should have but one addiction—and that is a devotion to love God and our fellow man. The supreme power that should rule over us is God through the Holy Spirit.

A social support system

"... Woe to him who is alone when he falls, for he has no one to help him up," saysEcclesiastes 4:10
. The 17th-century poet John Donne had a related thought: "No man is an island." Good mental health requires contact with other people. One of the first revelations of the Bible is that God designed us to need other people: "It is not good that the man should be alone" (Genesis 2:18
).

The need for emotionally supporting family and friends is scientifically established. "What happens if we have no close relationships? The message that emerges loud and clear from scientific evidence accumulated since the mid 1970's is that having a reasonable quantity and quality of social relationships is essential for mental and physical wellbeing" (Paul Martin, M.D., The Healing Mind, 1997, p. 157).

Human interaction spawns growth and is essential mentally and physically. Proverbs 27:17
tells us that "as iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another" (NIV).

Perhaps the chief benefit of uplifting social contact is that it provides us the opportunity to learn how to love and serve. This is vital to mental health. "I have never met a person who is genuinely focused on helping others who is unhappy or dissatisfied with life ... I can assure you that they are happy because they are directing their attention away from themselves" (Hart, p. 223).

Jesus recognized this and demonstrated that love and service are keys to happiness and mental health. He performed the menial task of washing His disciples' feet to demonstrate that His disciples were to serve one another as He had served them. After washing their feet Jesus said, "Now that you know these things, happy are you if you do them" (John 13:17
, Twentieth Century New Testament). Later in the same chapter He told them, "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another; as I have loved you, that you also love one another" (verse 34).

Jesus earlier said, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself" (Matthew 22:39
). One of the two great commandments in the Bible (verses 37-40), this is a message that is consistent throughout Scripture: We should all be friends. The book of Proverbs extols the benefits of friendliness and neighborliness. "The neighbourly qualities which Proverbs urges on the reader add up to nothing less than love" (Derek Kidner, Proverbs, an Introduction and Commentary, 1964, p. 44).

Obedience to the commands of the Bible and nurturing a relationship with God the Father and Jesus Christ form the foundation to completeness and mental well-being. "This is the end of the matter: you have heard it all. Fear God and obey his commandments; this sums up the duty of mankind" (Ecclesiastes 12:13
, Revised English Bible).