I think this is becoming less and less of an issue, with many churches now even having their own counselors. For some though, it is still hard to admit or see that mental illness is real. We are quick to admit an arm, liver, or heart can go bad. We are slow to admit and accept that our brains can have trouble too.

Elijah is possibly the most famous prophet of the latter half of the Bible. He was a powerful man of God, who had a closeness and intimacy with his Creator that many of us strive for. In 1 Kings 18 we are given a recount of Elijah challenging 450 prophets of an idol called baal. Elijah says that each of them will have a bull prepared to be a sacrifice, and that both groups will then call to their gods, and the one who sends fire down will be the real God. Elijah is brave and fully trusting God to deliver him and that God will reveal Himself. Elijah watches the 450 prepare the sacrifice and then call, shout, and eventually plead with their idol to light the sacrifice. During this Elijah asks them to speak louder because their god may be asleep or in the bathroom. Finally when Elijah's taunts and the baal worshippers' cries became silent, the text says, “ but there was no voice. No one answered; no one paid attention.” It was at this time that Elijah stepped up to prepare the altar for his God. He then has the Isrealites soak the sacrifice in water to remove all doubt about the power of His God. After a short prayer, the text describes how fire fell upon the sacrifice and even burned up the water too. The chapter ends with a prophet bringing his siblings to repentance, to a drought ending, and people seeing the spectacularness of the God of Elijah.

So what does this account of God and His prophet have to do with mental illness? In the next chapter, just a few verses later, we see Elijah in a very different way. We do not see a confidant and brave Elijah. We see a depressed and fearful Elijah. Having depression or other mental illnesses is real, and it can strike both leaders and laymen in the church. Having depression does not make us less, even the great Chalres Spurgeon dealt with depressive episodes. We are humans. As we need help with physical and spiritual needs, we should not assume we are weak if we need help with our emotions too. Just like it is not sinful to take vitamins or to place a broken arm in a cast to help it heal, it is not wrong to seek therapy or even take medication. If you do need help, you should find a therapist or mental health expert who is a Christian or works out of a church. For what it is worth, my degree and a lot of my own training comes from a secular psychology focus. I know first hand that the strategies and help of an atheist counselor are not the same or as valuable as what a Christian counselor would give.