This is my first article as a guest writer for Fresh Hope, so I would like to introduce myself, share a little of my story, and say how I first encountered Fresh Hope.
I am grateful to the Lord that He has brought me to a good place where I enjoy a happy and fulfilling life. I have a mental health diagnosis and have been on a long journey of recovery. I was first diagnosed and hospitalized in 1992. I struggle like all of us, but the difference between then and now is stark. I first found Fresh Hope in 2024 during an online search for resources to help folks like me. I explored the site and found it to be an amazing ministry for people with mental health conditions and their loved ones to find the hope and help they need as they navigate life.
God has been instrumental in my recovery. When I was 10 years old, my mother was hospitalized for the first time with a mental health condition. We had a babysitter, Betty, who told my siblings and me about Jesus and how we could know Him as Lord. That was the beginning of my relationship with Jesus. Even though I drifted away from Him later, that served as an anchor for my life. God was so gracious to send Betty to tell us about Him amid our tumultuous childhood.
God brought me to Texas from Ohio in 1999 where He placed my feet on a path of healing. It was there that I found a church where the elders prayed for me on a regular basis and a particular couple ministered to me throughout a chaotic period of 10 years where I battled with a bi-polar 1 condition. I was hospitalized more times than I can remember. But Lois and Bill stuck with me through it all!
In 2010, I came to a cross-roads through a crisis. Just prior to that He used Christian television to communicate to me that I needed to act on my mustard seed-sized faith, surrender to Him and trust Him with my life. One evening, I hit rock bottom and told God, “I cannot do this life anymore! I surrender to You and I ask You to teach me how to trust You, because I do not know how.” I felt the load from my whole life on my shoulders lifted from me. This decision changed the trajectory of my life from that point forward. I grew in my faith rapidly.
Psalm 34:4-7 “I sought the LORD, and He heard me, and delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant, and their faces were not ashamed. This poor man cried out, and the LORD heard him, and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps all around those who fear Him and delivers them.”
I began meditating on passages in the Bible. Because I was so depressed for 2 years, I had only enough energy to meditate on one verse at a time. I wrote verses on notecards. I began getting up every day and creating structure, as I could not work then. My father passed away and I joined a grief support group. Volunteering at the hospice where my support group was gave me purpose. I found great hope in God and promised Him I would never again consider suicide as a viable option. I could not do that to Him, my family, or my church. I had once been in a church where Scripture was taught in depth. The Spirit of God brought some of them to mind. I found that doing what the Bible told me to do was extremely helpful. When I was overcome with fear, I meditated on 1 Timothy 1:7 and other verses about fear. I verbalized them aloud. I found peace that I would not have otherwise.
2 Timoteo 1:7 (NKJV) “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.”
My therapist suggested I record what had been working for me. I wrote a list of what I called: “Biblical Principles for Change and Growth” as a result.” I will elaborate on some of those in a series of blog posts to follow. Amazingly, much of what God led me to do toward recovery is like what Pastor Brad and his doctor has developed in the 7 Principles of Recovery for Fresh Hope.
Laura Smith lives in Texas and enjoys time spent with family and friends, painting, and outdoor activities. She is a new group facilitator for Fresh Hope for Mental Health. For questions or comments, or to reach her, please email info@freshhope.us.
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