Mental Health Meets Faith
The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. (Ps. 34:18) I was sick to my stomach over Tuesday’s news. 22 lives lost. 19 precious babies. 2 teachers. 1 troubled 18 year old boy. I have no children of my own, but I cherish my 3 beautiful nieces. My husband and I are looking forward to having a baby of our own. As such, I have been doing a […]
What are some of the elements of your favorite movies? Is it the suspense? Is it the feel-good vibes? Is it the true story content? What about the storyline of the overcoming underdog? When it comes to our lives, we all direct our own stories, or movies, if you will. For fellow Christians, we might ask, “Hold up. Doesn’t God direct our story?” I think the answer to that is yes and no. God loves to direct our lives, with his permission. He doesn’t […]
At the start of this year, as I began to read through Genesis, I came upon these familiar words, “By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day, he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done” (Gen. 2:2-3). I started to think about the idea of sabbath. In the […]
You become my delicious feast even when my enemies dare to fight. You anoint me with the fragrance of your Holy Spirit; you give me all I can drink of you until my heart overflows. So why would I fear the future? For your goodness and love pursue me all the days of my life. Then afterward, when my life is through, I’ll return to your glorious presence to be forever with you! (Psalm 23:5-6) In many ways, Thanksgiving […]
This morning as I was driving to church the beauty of the day struck me. The sky was amazingly bright and blue. I found myself thanking God and filled with joy. Along the ride, I began to notice that up ahead were massive gray clouds that appeared as a wall before me. Even though I was surrounded by blue sky, clouds loomed up ahead. As I arrived at my destination, at first glance, I could no longer see the sun. Dark […]
As I am writing this, it is September 29. I started graduate school this month. With the start of school, many of my lofty goals have gone out the window and much of my time is spent with a highlighter and a book in my hand. Although in my academic past, I have prided myself on being able to do it all and to achieve with flying colors, I have come to the rude awakening that this time […]
Recently, in our corner of the world, we had a hurricane threat. I’m not one to pay much attention to all the weather hype, but the messages we were experiencing were intense. Protect your property and your life. Make sure to have food, fuel, etc. for at least three days. Expect to be without power. News channels reported a potential direct hit by said hurricane. The day before the storm I was working my retail […]
I like to hold on to things. Whether it be a relationship, a past season, reveling in the good times or processing through the bad, I have a difficult time letting things go. These past several months, I have been learning a lot about the art of letting go. There are times in our lives when God is asking us to close the chapter behind us and turn the page into the new thing He […]
This past week God has been speaking to me about narratives. As people, we love the power of storytelling. While we might become disengaged when it comes to the facts, we connect with stories. We are engaged, intrigued, inspired. Of particular interest as of late, is the stories we tell ourselves. Whether we realize it or not, there is an ongoing narrative that goes on in our minds. Our narrative strings each event together, every […]
Recently, I left Home. I use the word Home loosely, as a reference to a place I’ve become quite familiar with and one in which I’ve spent much time throughout my life. It’s been a place of safety, one in which I’ve found comfort. Although it has changed throughout the years, it is a place of predictability. In some ways, it has been a place of stability. I run this place, nothing escapes my notice […]