The Promise of a Sound Mind Quotes

“Rejoicing and having a heart of thanksgiving does not mean we deny that problems exist. Though we may be grieved by various trials, the heart founded upon a genuine faith has the ability to rejoice in God through these trials. Once again, the rejoicing is possible by looking beyond our struggles and to the coming promise that will one day be revealed.”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“After enduring many hardships, God took the children of Israel to the edge of the promise. God did not require faith until the time came to inherit the Promised Land. The Lord delivered a faithless people from the land of bondage. He defeated the army which pursued them after they left. He fed them with manna and provided water from a rock. He covered them from the heat by a cloud and met their every need. All the while, God told them He was taking them to the land of promise. Then one day they arrived. Standing on the bank of a river, the people camped while God instructed twelve men to go and spy out the land. It was a test of their faith. Twelve spies explored the land and returned with their report. Their word was, “Everything is just as God described it. The land is truly flowing with milk and honey as God promised. But – there are giants in the land and we cannot stand against them.” As the people heard the report of the dangers which threatened them, they wept in disappointment, and then revolted. They refused to cross the river because of the hardships and trials that looked threatening. What did God do? He sent them back into the desert. They couldn’t inherit the promise because they trusted the circumstances over the Lord. Is this not what we do? How many seemingly faithful Christians turned back because the road was too hard? Indeed it is too hard. It’s supposed to be. God is calling us to go where we cannot go and do what we cannot do by our own strength. Facing the giants on our own leads to certain defeat, for they are greater than we are. But they are not greater than the Shepherd who leads us.”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“Unforgiveness is my declaration that God doesn’t have the right to put me through hardships in order to use me to be an instrument of blessing in His miraculous plan. It is to say my temporary comfort is more valuable than God’s eternal plan. It is to say, I’d rather have short-term comfort than be patient enough to see the salvation of the Lord – and have the blessing of being part of that salvation. I cannot plead for mercy in my own life and then demand justice in the life of others. Consider James 2:13 For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“On the cross Christ declared, “Father, forgive them for they don’t know what they do.” They knew what they were doing to Him, but they were blinded by human nature. Foolishly, they allowed their own misguided ideas to drive their emotions into hatred. Then all they could see was that Jesus was a threat to their desires and personal beliefs. Their understanding did not go beyond the quest for self-fulfillment.”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“So the argument of some is that the story of Jesus and the wicked servant is how the man asked for forgiveness and was denied. While this is true, it isn’t the point of the parable. The point of the parable is that we stand upon grace and God requires us to love others with the love He has given to us. No exceptions are given. He didn’t say the onus is on our brother to ask. The onus is on us to forgive from our heart – not based on our brother’s worthiness, but based on God’s abundant mercies shown to us. God is not required to honor any loophole we think we can find in His word. The issue is we must forgive from the heart, not out of obligation once a set of rules has satisfied us. The servant held his neighbor to a higher standard than God held him to. So if someone wants to hold their neighbor accountable for unconfessed wrongs, fine. They should be aware that they are placing themselves under the same standard of law. Under that standard, they must go through every minute of their lives and identify every sin they have ever committed. They must then confess them to God and find the person wronged or they thought evil toward, and confess to them. This isn’t only actions, but thoughts, sins of omissions, words, and even wicked emotions such as lust, jealousy, covetousness, envy, hatred, and unjustified anger. To demand this method of religion is utterly foolish. A person under this system will never have joy, never have peace, never have unity, and will never experience intimacy with God. God forgives, shows mercy, and pours out His grace through the Spirit. But that can’t be experienced by the one who lives according to the law. That person is still in the flesh and not in the Spirit.”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“Joy, peace, love, and soundness of mind are promises God gives when we follow biblical principles. Always keep this expectation in mind: God’s principles are easy to understand, but hard to live by. Do not allow this to become an excuse for failure, but rather the realization that diligence is required.”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“Everyone has problems, frustrations, and discouragements. Everyone has enemies, or at least people with whom we have conflict. It takes no effort to allow ourselves to be pulled into negative emotions through the things we don’t like. There’s a saying, “Any dead fish can float downstream.” To be carried by our emotions, all we must do is let ourselves go and drift where emotions carry us. If you let your mind wander, chances are it will land on a hurt or something negative and begin brooding. It takes life to swim against the current. Look at the contrast between bitterness and love. These are two opposing forces. One is rooted in the flesh, and one has been given to us by God. Have you ever met a bitter person? Someone who always talks about how they have been wronged, or the things that are wrong in the world? If you spend much time around a negative person, you will adopt negative attitudes. Does a negative person have life? No. Bitterness is a life-sucking emotion. When anger is allowed to rule, it gives birth to bitterness and hatred. These emotions serve no other purpose than to search and destroy. While these may be born from a specific offense, they cannot maintain a single target, and begin attacking our own hearts and minds, and then begin targeting those around us. Negative emotions attempt to rise up, war against our minds, and bring us under its bondage. They are weeds in the garden of our mind. Positive emotions are like fruitful plants, but they cannot thrive when they are being choked out by these weeds.”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“The Bible gives us knowledge of God’s ways, but until we apply it by faith, it is merely words on the pages of scripture.”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“True Christian discipleship is not a guru telling followers what to think or do. It is someone responding to God’s call to share their life with others. A discipler is a disciple who is sharing what they are learning as they walk where God leads, and then teaching others what they also are learning. It’s a partnership of growth between two or more people. The teacher is not greater than the disciple; he or she is merely sharing what God is teaching them with others, so they too can learn how to walk with God on a deeper level. I’m sharing”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health

“When I do what I know is wrong…it is sin which dwells in my members (body of flesh).” It wasn’t Satan oppressing him; it was the sin already present within his own body of flesh[9]. We are warned not to be ignorant of Satan’s devices. This is so we are not deceived into giving him a place. He has no power to overcome the believer, for greater is He who is in you (Christ) than he that is”
― Eddie Snipes, The Promise of a Sound Mind: God's Plan for Emotional and Mental Health