Self Harm And Despair

“What a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death?” 

Romans 7:24 (NLT)

Seven ways to find peace when you’re struggling:

1. When shame tries to define you, remember what Jesus did. “So now there is no condemnation for those who belong to Jesus Christ. For the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you through Christ Jesus from the power of sin that leads to death.” Romans 8:1-2 (NLT)

2. When your mind is spinning, ask the Spirit for new thoughts.

“The law of Moses could not save us because of our sinful nature. He did this so that the requirement of the law would be fully accomplished for us.” Romans 8:4 (NLT)

“Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires. But those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so.” Romans 8:5-7 (NIV)

3. When temptation knocks, say no by the power of the Spirit.

“But you are not controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by the SPIRIT if you have the SPIRIT of God living in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ living in them does not belong to Christ.”

Romans 8:9 (NLT)

4. When fear creeps in, remind yourself who your Father is.

“Those who are led by God’s Spirit are God’s children. For the Spirit that God has given you does not make you slaves and cause you to be afraid; instead, the Spirit makes you God’s children, and by the Spirit’s power we cry out to God, ‘Father! my Father!’ God’s Spirit joins himself to our spirits to declare that we are God’s children.” 

Romans 8:14–16 (GNT)

5. When you feel hopeless, lift your eyes to what’s ahead.

“Since we are his children, we will possess the blessings he keeps for his people, and we will also possess with Christ what God has kept for him; for if we share Christ’s suffering, we will also share his glory. I consider that what we suffer at this present time cannot be compared at all with the glory that is going to be revealed to us.” 

Romans 8:17-18 (GNT)

6. When bitterness seeps in, believe God is still in control.

“We who have already experienced the first fruits of the Spirit also inwardly groan as we passionately long to experience our full status as God’s sons and daughters—including our physical bodies being transformed. For this is the hope of our salvation.” Romans 8:23-24 (TPT)

Four Reasons I Can Trust God in the Pain:

• The Holy Spirit is praying for me. 

“The Spirit helps us with our weakness. We do not know how to pray as we should. But the Spirit himself speaks to God for us, even begs God for us with deep feelings that words cannot explain. God can see what is in people’s hearts. And he knows what is in the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit speaks to God for his people in the way God wants.” Romans 8:26-27 (NCV)

• God is using it all for good. 

“And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28 (NIV)

• God wants me to succeed!

“So what can we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?”

Romans 8:31 (NLT)

• God will provide what I need. 

“Since God did not spare even His own Son but gave Him up for us all, won’t God, who gave us Christ, give us everything else?” Romans 8:32 (NLT)

7. When insecurity presses in, cling to God’s unstoppable love.

“I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from His love. Death can’t, and life can’t. The angels can’t, and the demons can’t. Satan can’t separate you from God. Our fears for today, our worries about tomorrow—even the powers of hell can’t keep God’s love away. Whether we’re high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:38–39 (NLT)