mindfulness Archives

Are you Trying to Control the Uncontrollable?

We face struggles, so we try to control the uncontrollable, but this brings even more stress. Better to stay in the zone of what we can control – ourselves. It was out of my control. The decision on how they would treat me was beyond my control. Have you ever […]

Getting Well Staying Well Spiritual Practices

Your Rehearsal can Change your Mind

Our self-talk can keep us depressed and anxious, but we can learn new thinking tracks. Your rehearsal can change your mind. I always marvel at how the experts seem to effortlessly do something that I would difficult. My earliest experience of this was watching shearers shear our sheep on the […]

Helping Others Spiritual Formation

When You See Into Their Mist – Who They Are Becoming

There is a mask or even a mist that we can see something quite wondrous when we see behind or through, but it takes awareness to see the vision of what they are becoming. There is a drive I take every week to a farm and garden out in […]

Depression & Low Mood

Money Falling From The Sky and a Hope Deferred

When hope is deferred, our heart grows sick, but when we see and know the hope fulfilled in the now, we can build resilience to the struggles of the day. People traveled long distances hoping to get some of the money ‘falling from the sky.’ A few nights ago, I […]

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Anxiety & Stress

The Cup. Paying Attention To What Fills and Drains

We are like a cup in which energy both fills and drains. But we can grow by paying attention to the cup and understanding the fillers and the drainers. It was always a challenge to get them to care for themselves. They were always giving out to others, and I […]

Spiritual Formation

A Mountain in Your Life? Where does your Help Come From?

When we keep looking at the mountain of struggle, we can feel crushed, but when we know someone greater than the mountain is with us, we can find the help we need. Mountains move when we meditate on God’s goodness. Where I live, I’m surrounded by mountains. They’re not very […]

comparisonitis compulsion compare yourself to others depression anxiety

Getting Well Staying Well Mental health

Comparisonitis – The Compulsion to Compare Yourself

Comparisonitis kills joy. Comparing yourself to others robs you. Instead, explore who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. I’m just recovering from a severe case of comparisonitis. I think I caught the most recent dose from the Internet, but this disease has […]

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Spiritual Practices

How to Grow the Practice of Stillness for your Mental Health

Thoughts and feelings can whirl you away from being centered. The practice of stillness can calm the mind and bring back clarity. The Bible has verses to help us on the way. Sometimes I feel like I am on a long bungee cord. I run off to do this and that. […]

Getting Well Staying Well Spiritual Formation

Sharpening: A Spiritual Habit for Better Mental Health

Life will blunt your edge. The knocks, the scuffs, the micro-abrasions and who you are gets dulled. Having a daily sharpening practice keeps your mental health having a fine edge. I was getting frustrated. I was cutting down a tree with my chainsaw, and it was taking forever. The teeth of […]

Getting Well Staying Well Mental health

How to Restore your Soul when Feeling Flat and Drained Out?

Feeling flat and empty can become an invite to feeling full of depth and not a step into depression. Focusing in on something and someone bigger than ourselves can revive a flagging soul. There are times when I feel flat. Life feels meaningless and like it’s one cyclical trip of […]