They wanted me to try harder. But when you’re in a dark hole of depression, or you don’t have the skills, energy, or even understanding, it can feel like yet another stone of struggle to carry. Confusion reigns, and the self-loathing chatter begins. It cycles around and around in the […]
Feeling overwhelmed can feel like you’re caught in a flood, but you are not alone. Reach out. I shut down. What was coming at me was too much. The brain was emotionally overloaded. I think I am a very sensitive person. Nothing wrong with that. My sensitivity helps me […]
We are created for connection, so feeling rejected can be harsh and cold. God gathers up the rejected. I think I was the only one who saw him shrivel away under the rejection of others. He had tried to do something different. He wanted to be part of the […]
The most vulnerable point of change is at the beginning, but if we can catch the little foxes that spoil the vine, those things that would want to kill new growth, then we can find the change. It’s spring here in New Zealand, and for grape growers, it’s the riskiest […]
You step out to make a change, but then it stops. There is sabotage, a self-sabotage, but with good listening we can see movement forward One of the saddest things you can see is when someone sets out to change some aspect of their life, they get to a certain […]
It’s a place of desperation. I need God’s help, but where are you, God? I’m tired, in pain, broken, alone and lost. I want the struggle to be over. Right here and now. I’ve been judged, and the stones are being thrown. I’ve judged myself, and I’m drowning in guilt […]
Perhaps it’s the little ones where we should give our focus. What would a church for the ‘little ones’ look like? There is a church that I drive past most weeks, and as I do, my heart sinks. Years ago, I went into this church building several times and […]
We need a place. A church, a nest, a fire of warm burning coals. A place for the growth of mental health. Is it possible? Trigger alert: This post contains the word ‘Church’ in it. 😊 Please push through. The story goes that there was once a man who had […]
It was a curious piece of tapestry. What happened there? Why did the artist weave this in? Perhaps for our Providence. When I was pastoring in a church community, one of the roles I had was to officiate at funerals. Often, I would know very little about the deceased. […]
I want to know. How are you? Where are you? Then I can be with you where you are. God can not help a pretending or hiding heart. They were the words that I listened for over the radio in the mid-90’s. ‘How are you? Where are you?’ These […]