In the midst of working through mental health battles, it can be easy to focus our attention on all the things we think need “fixing.” But quite often, our battles can be an invitation to dive further in what it means to be loved.

In this episode, we share a bit of our journey of learning to be loved, while showing in Scripture and in application what that journey can look like for you.

Video Broadcast:

Recommended Resources: 

* Experiencing God’s Love as Your Father

* Exposing the Rejection Mindset

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* I Will Not Fear Book

* The Heart Healing Journey

To support future resources: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link

 

Perfectionism is a major driving influence for Christians that have not been equipped in the ways of grace and love. It keeps performance driven Christianity, law based living and religious legalism working at high levels.

As you work through the journey of addressing religious OCD or scrupulosity, you will need to process freedom from perfectionism.

Video Broadcast:

Recommended Resources: 

* Experiencing God’s Love as Your Father

* Exposing the Rejection Mindset

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* I Will Not Fear Book

* The Heart Healing Journey

To support future resources: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link

Disclaimer: The content published is for informational purposes. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your mental health professional or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding your condition. Never disregard professional advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read in our material.

The resources given are not designed to practice medicine or give professional medical advice, including, without limitation, medical direction concerning someone’s medical and mental health. Any resources given are not to be considered complete and does not cover all issues related to mental and physical health. In addition, any information given should not replace consultation with your doctor or any other mental health providers and/or specialists.

What does the healing journey look like when it comes to working through the battles of religious OCD or scrupulosity? In this session, I want to talk about the big picture as some of the daily mindsets that can lead us into greater healing and freedom.

I pray I can be a voice of encouragement as you learning to compassionately embrace the journey of love and grace that awaits for those battling religious OCD or scrupulosity.

Video Broadcast:

Recommended Resources: 

* Experiencing God’s Love as Your Father

* Exposing the Rejection Mindset

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* I Will Not Fear Book

* The Heart Healing Journey

To support future resources: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link

Disclaimer: The content published is for informational purposes. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your mental health professional or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding your condition. Never disregard professional advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read in our material.

The resources given are not designed to practice medicine or give professional medical advice, including, without limitation, medical direction concerning someone’s medical and mental health. Any resources given are not to be considered complete and does not cover all issues related to mental and physical health. In addition, any information given should not replace consultation with your doctor or any other mental health providers and/or specialists.

 

The subject of scrupulosity or religious OCD is one that is near and dear to my heart. For I have had to personally work through many aspects of that battlegrouind. So I do not address this from a distance, but as someone who has had deep struggles with OCD. I pray that my learning and healing journey will be an inspiration to yours. 

Religious OCD and scrupulosity is also a struggle that many well meaning Christians struggle with. Many do not know what it is or that they even struggle with it. To be honest, it took me years to realize that the main pattern of torment and trouble revealed that I was obsessive and compulsive. You can hear more about my personal story in other episodes. 

Religious OCD triggers a great deal of conflict, guilt, uneasiness, anxiety and inner torment over a lot of spiritually related issues that end up weighing heavily on people’s hearts. And because the OCD points to areas of religious nature, which involve important issues of religious devotion, salvation, purity, holiness and eternity, it can be easy for a person to become swept away by the storm of religious OCD or scrupulosity. 

Video Broadcast:

 

What is Religious OCD or Scrupulosity?

With religious OCD or scrupulosity, you become fearfully preoccupied with doing what is right and making sure your spiritual condition is settled, correct and properly lined up. But that driving conflict and disturbance grows and intensifies. You may act on some religious rituals or acts that temporarily seem to bring relief to your inward torment, but over time, the unsettledness continues and does not relent. 

With religious OCD, there is an obsession over a spiritual or religious issue that becomes magnified and taken on as a heavy burden to resolve.

These religious obsessions can be: 

Intrusive thoughts that are impure or disturbing. 

Blasphemous thoughts 

Committing the unpardonable sin

Doubts about your salvation

Fearing you may have lost your salvation

Backsliding 

Introspective searching for sin in your life. 

A heavy sense of moral wrong 

A driving feeling of “not enough” spiritual devotion

As one seeks to “fix” these obsessions, they will seek to find relief through what can become a compulsion. 

Compulsions: excessive routines, behaviors or mental acts to reduce anxiety, guilt and discomfort. Neutralize the issue. Some are outward actions. Some can be in your head. 

Checking . . . checking salvation, checking sin issues, checking feelings, introspection

Confession, repenting, praying

Reassurance seeking

Researching, investigating, the subject of obsession

Mental arguments, spinning, ruminating

Excessive talking out 

One may get momentary relief by utilizing one of these practices, but this habit becomes a compulsion. Meanwhile, the obsession often finds a way to come back and grow. 

The feelings of unrest and things not being “just right” increase over time, driving you into an endless loop of obsessions that rise up in your mind. You end up chasing those feelings, which lead you into constant compulsions you attempt to engage in order to find peace. 

Some Initial ROCD Observations

There are some upfront observations you need to be aware of when it comes to Religious OCD or scrupulosity. 

* Shame blankets the hearts and minds of those who battle scrupulosity.

* If you battle scrupulosity, you won’t get the help you need unless you are ready to receive it.

* ROCD strugglers wrestling with a lot of confusion, because their obsessions and compulsions lead them into constant loops. They are often exhausted, depressed and feel deeply defeated.

* Telling someone with religious OCD to just “get over it” or “stop thinking that way” ...

One the deep cries of many believer’s hearts is to experience the Word of God in ways that empower and strengthen every area of their life, including mental health.

In my journey of healing and freedom, I needed to learn how to read the Scriptures so that I could recieve the life changing truth. The problem is that I spent many years spinning in confusion and being tormented over how I interpreted the Bible.

In today’s episode, I want to talk about the subject of reading the bible to empower your mental health journey. I also spent time address live questions that come through in the live broadcast.

I pray it blesses your journey and increases faith, hope and love in your life.

Video Broadcast:

Recommended Resources: 

* Experiencing God’s Love as Your Father

* Exposing the Rejection Mindset

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* I Will Not Fear Book

* The Heart Healing Journey

Training Course: Experiencing God’s Word

To support future resources: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link

It can be easy to focus on the symptoms or arguments that OCD battles bring up. In the process, we can lose sight of what our hearts need. In this video, I want to redirect your attention to experiences of the heart that are needed in the midst of your OCD battles.

Video Broadcast:

Recommended Resources: 

* Experiencing God’s Love as Your Father

* Exposing the Rejection Mindset

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* I Will Not Fear Book

* The Heart Healing Journey

To support future videos: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link

 

I have a deep passion for experiencing empowerment when it comes to mental health. Today I want to talk about ten emotional habits that can hinder and work against the fruitfulness of our mental health.

Video Broadcast:

Recommended Resources: 

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* The Heart Healing Journey

To support future podcasts: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link

 

For the OCD mind, it can be hard to make sense of the thoughts that come your way, especially because there are corresponding emotions connected to those thoughts. These emotions become incredibly hard to interpret and process. You are left with a great deal of conflict on what you should do. 

The emotions can lead you to narrowly focus in on the symptoms, while neglecting what you really need. 

Many times, OCD sufferers can go into swings when it comes to their emotions. They can either suppress their emotions, which creates an avoidance pattern.  Or, they can saturate themselves in unnurtured emotions, leading them to patterns like victim thinking, self-pity and hopelessness. 

As a result, they lack true joy and a sense of peace at all. They are lost in the thoughts they are trying to fix. They get so lost in their head, they cannot connect to their hearts.

In today’s broadcast, I will talk honestly about the emotional battles of OCD as well as recognizing some important insights to the healing journey.

Video Broadcast:

OCD Distortion #1: Perfectionism

OCD Distortion #2: The Struggle with Doubt and Uncertainty

OCD Distortion #3: The Meaning of My Thoughts?

OCD Distortion #4: Overestimating Threats 

OCD Distortion $5: Hyper-Inflated Responsibility

ODCD Distortion #6: Control Issues

Join the OCD Help Mailing List

Recommended Resources: 

* Experiencing God’s Love as Your Father

* Exposing the Rejection Mindset

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* I Will Not Fear Book

* The Heart Healing Journey

To support future videos: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link

Control is a big part of OCD. If you have struggles with OCD of any kind, you will need to deal with control issues in your life. Control becomes an extension of the fears that drive your OCD. 

Video Broadcast:

OCD Distortion #1: Perfectionism

OCD Distortion #2: The Struggle with Doubt and Uncertainty

OCD Distortion #3: The Meaning of My Thoughts?

OCD Distortion #4: Overestimating Threats 

OCD Distortion $5: Hyper-Inflated Responsibility

Join the OCD Help Mailing List

Recommended Resources: 

* Experiencing God’s Love as Your Father

* Exposing the Rejection Mindset

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* I Will Not Fear Book

* The Heart Healing Journey

To support future videos: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link

 

It is our deep passion to help believers experience greater mental health in their life and journey. Mental health should not be a side subject that is only discussed by those struggling with severe cases of mental health battles. We all need mental health help. In fact, God’s ways are designed to improve, heal and enhance how we think, process our mood and our approach to life. 

But what is mental health? What does it look like to live mentally healthy?

Why are we often afraid to talk about this subject, when everyone in your congregation has areas of mental health they need to address?

On top top of that, God’s word has so much to say about our mental, emotional and social health. So it’s important that we learn what it means to live mentally healthy and process these insights in our heart journey.

Video Broadcast:

Recommended Resources: 

* Experiencing God’s Love as Your Father

* Exposing the Rejection Mindset

* God Loves Me and I Love Myself!

* I Will Not Fear Book

* The Heart Healing Journey

To support future podcasts: 

* Consider a one-time donation.

* Become a monthly supporter.

* Join a free month of Audible Audio Books and get 1 Free Book!

* Support our ministry work by shopping at Amazon with Our Link