He made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! Philippians 2:7-8 My book I Will Not Hide will soon be on its way to the […]
Read More...So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. (Romans 14:19) After leaving I said, “I know how I was hurt. But tell me how you were affected. I’d really like to know your side.” But an answer did not come, not for me. “I’ll talk to your counselor or your […]
Read More...I ended the last post saying: “It’s just that people too often forget to act out the meat of Christ’s message: To love our neighbour and to love God. It’s all about love, isn’t it? Let us not forget to love each other.” The above came from the depth of my heart. This message from […]
Read More...The friend I talked about in the previous post was a person I loved dearly. And I can see in this story how she tried to be there for me, despite her own illness. I tried – within my own limitations – to be there for her as well. But I was better able to […]
Read More...I’ve learned a lot since I wrote the previous post. Yes, I was emailing my pastor too much, though he had assured me it was OK. It would have been a good time for him to set limits when I had asked. When supporting a person with emotional needs, boundaries will be necessary if it […]
Read More...You have searched me, Lord, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Psalm 139:1-3 Many of us living with mental health issues find it hard to realize […]
Read More...Don’t set those with mental health issues apart. I hope you’ll check out my article, published last week on Church for Vancouver. You’ll find it at http://churchforvancouver.ca/when-pastors-are-too-kind-dont-set-those-with-mental-health-issues-apart/ And no, I don’t usually look as stressed out as all that 😊 marja
Read More...Our pastors as supporters Ministry leaders are often the most affected by the needs and demands of people with mental health issues in the church. They tend to be kind-hearted with great willingness to help those who are suffering. For them setting boundaries in the spiritual care of these people is especially important. Someone I […]
Read More...Fences make good neighbours? Lord, this photo of a fence with flowers growing on either side is helping me learn some important lessons about boundaries that I didn’t understand before. For a long time, the concept of boundaries didn’t make sense to me. It hurt when I was shut out of various people’s lives. Oh, […]
Read More...Respecting boundaries Lord, this morning I emailed a brief note to a friend. I thought I was getting pretty good about respecting her boundaries, trying not to email more than every couple of days or so. We had not formally discussed that this should be a boundary, yet it’s what seemed to work best. But […]
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