The Lord is calling on each one of us to be the people who reach out . He can ’ t directly benefit us that way . He needs us to do that . You hear that ? He needs us to do that .
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That ’ s the power of the Men ’ s Retreat . Be part of that . It is a great place to share your struggles with other men who support you and who struggle too . There is such a power in the truth . Equip yourself with the truth . Defend yourself the best you can with that .
The Heavenly Doctrines say that the Church that has Divine truths from the Lord has power over the hells . Power over the hells . I encourage people to read the Word every day . I think that ’ s a powerful thing you can do to be in the Lord ’ s presence because it ’ s not just a book with words on it . It ’ s the Lord Himself . He ’ s there with you as you read it . It ’ s connecting with His power , even if you don ’ t understand what ’ s being said or get the point . To connect with that . I think of it as suiting yourself up with armor so you can go out and live your life . Life is hard .
The Writings teach : “ Nothing is of greater importance to us than knowing what the truth is . When we know what the truth is , and know it so well that it cannot be perverted , it cannot then be steeped in evil desires and have a deadly effect .” ( Arcana Coelestia 794 )
So that ’ s important . And reach out . The task I want to give each of us this week is to reach out to five different people . It could be through Facebook or on the phone or in person . Whatever you do reach out to someone and just say , “ Hey , how are you ? I was thinking about you .” Whatever it is , reach out to somebody .
Research confirms that people with support from family and friends is a key part of helping them with their mental illness . It provides a supportive network that supports them and gives them emotional help . It can feel very hard to reach out . And it can feel very hard to ask for help .
I want to read an excerpt from an article someone shared with me . The author wrote about how hard it was to call the Suicide Prevention Hotline . I want to read part of it . I think it highlights what we struggle with . It says :
“ A few days ago I found myself on the phone with the suicide prevention lifeline . . . embarrassing to admit . I felt guilty and ashamed , and I didn ’ t have the strength to call anybody in my regular support network of friends and loved ones . My mind was fearful I would be a burden on them . It ’ s this shame and guilt that makes this such a deadly issue . Our minds tell us to hide , to pretend it isn ’ t there , and not to ‘ bother ’ the people we would effect if we were no longer living – and who would do anything to help us .”
The Lord is calling on each one of us to be the people who reach out . He can ’ t directly benefit us that way . He needs us to do that . You hear that ? He needs us to do that .
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