Listening for the Echoes of the Past

It was one of those magic moments that will stay in my memory forever, I can still hear the echoes now.  The Pisa Baptistery is famous for its perfect acoustics. The guide stands on the other side of the baptistery and sings a few notes, pauses then sings a few more, […]

Seven Steps to Change your Default Thinking Patterns

Seven Steps to Change your Default Thinking Patterns

When you are trying to change a default thinking habit or behavior, it is like learning to drive on the other side of the road. It’s hard work. Whether you drive on the left or the right, changing your thinking is difficult. It must be very frightening for foreign drivers […]

To the Power of Being Known

To the Power of Being Known

Have you ever been found,  found out, or found wanting? We all want to be known. Artist: David Hayward This picture comes from the story of the Men caught in Hypocrisy. Jesus went across to Mount Olives, but he was soon back in the Temple again. Swarms of people came to him. He sat down […]

How to Develop a Compass for the Brain A hand writing in a small, pocket-sized notebook with a pen, representing the "Thinking Compass" technique for mental health recovery.

How to Develop a Compass for the Brain

When the stress loading becomes too much it is very easy to lose your way. What we need is some sort of Thinking Compass. Mental Illness is one of the worst fog generating experiences you can have. Your brain can play tricks on you. Your perceptions can change, sometimes quite […]

Never Borrow Sorrow from Tomorrow

Never Borrow Sorrow from Tomorrow

Never Borrow Sorrow from Tomorrow Deal only with the present — never step into tomorrow, For God asks us just to trust Him and to never borrow sorrow, For the future is not ours to know, and it may never be, So let us live and give our best and […]

Do You Ever Want to Clean other Peoples Windows?

Photo Credit: andyaldridge via Compfight cc A young couple moves into a new neighbourhood. The next morning while they are eating breakfast, the young woman sees her neighbour hanging the wash outside. “That laundry is not very clean; she doesn’t know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry […]

Who do you Want on your Mental Health Recovery Team?

There is no ideal community. Community is made up of people with all their richness, but also with their weakness and poverty, of people who accept and forgive each other, who are vulnerable with each other. Humility and trust are more at the foundation of community than perfection. Jean Vanier […]

7 Reasons Why Waiting Patiently is Good for you.

The word patience comes from the Latin verb ‘patior’ which means “to suffer.” Doctors waiting room, patients waiting, some less than patient. ‘He is normally not like this, we have been here an hour’. The patience of the patient is wearing patently thin! I find waiting difficult. I think most […]

Uncomfortable about Going to Church 11 Ideas to Help

Uncomfortable about Going to Church? 11 Ideas to Help

So many people avoid being part of a Church service because it just makes them feel uncomfortable. Feelings of anxiety, panic, and being judged are just some of the challenges. Yet they have a deep desire to be part of a worshipping community. They want to know God and they want […]

Church Warning Label: Hype is Dangerous

I was seated in the second row from the front. The speaker and his ‘bling blonde’ wife were seated directly in front of me. He got up to speak and for the next 30 minutes (seemed longer) he worked the crowd. Pacing across the stage, dripping clichés, pausing for effect, urging more commitment and telling […]