2026 – 03 -2026 by Marja Bergen

What happened to it? Who is offering it today to those who most need to hear it?

For years, Jesus and his love were the foundation of Living Room, the ministry that brought spiritual mental health to those suffering from the stigma of mental illness. Founded in2006, it was by 2010 promising to become a movement with sixteen groups having formed across Canada, a couple of those being in the US. At last count, three of these original groups still remain in 2026.

Despite their efforts, ministries teaching church support for those suffering from mental health challenges make them feel they are set apart—needing care from those who are thought to be mentally stronger. What they needed was the support of their peers because their peers were the only ones who can understand their needs.

In the year 2006, I was deeply moved by the following words we sang in church:

Take my life and let it be
Consecrated, Lord, to Thee.

I found myself opening my heart, earnestly surrendering my all to God, committing myself to the challenging work he called me to. I wanted to give my life for it. I did so when I was starting Living Room, and I still do today in 2026, now promoting a global version of Living Room.

I wrote the same words again 2018 on MailChimp; when the global ministry of Living Room was let go by the organization that had merged with it when my mental health had failed in 2014. It was extremely painful for me to see the work I had been called to abandoned by those who did not understand the spiritual needs of people with mental health challenges! —the need for constant reminders of the unconditional love of Jesus.

I am glad that three groups kept the ministry going and are still carrying on. They are examples of what is possible for faith-based peer support. I pray for the continuation of their work as I strive to bring the message further—not for Christians alone—but globally, as first intended.

But my calling to serve as a peer supporter was taken from me by those who meant well but did not understand the importance of the peer support Living Room had offered from the beginning. I was deeply wounded and suffered for many years with the memories of things said and done.

But God’s call on me never stopped. I continued sending out my Living Room messages—having first started this in 2013—and continue doing so today in 2026. The MailChimp emails I send out twice a week carry the Living Room message onward to hundreds.

And yet I wondered how I could make sure that the spiritual needs of people with mental health challenges would continue after I am gone? This is why I shared my story in all its fullness in my book ONE SUCH AS ME? The writings include the entire history—details gathered from blogposts, daily journal entries, and emails. I include the many prayers I offered up as I began the ministry and carrying on its work until I retired from my group in 2015. The book was originally published in 2024, hoping that it might inspire others to continue the work. It is currently available from Amazon.

But my work did not end there. Even before the publishing of this book, I was carrying Christ’s message to the world via my LinkedIn platform. My son kindly helped me create a new Living Room webpage as a part of the website I’d had for many years.

I reached out to all those around the world who need spiritual mental health support. People of all faith traditions need to know about the unconditional love of Jesus—the man who lived 2000 years ago bringing healing, especially to those most vulnerable people of the world. He didn’t come for people of one faith alone. He came for all those he created. We are all important to him. Every one of us.

Through actions and words Jesus shows how we too can love and accept—even those with religions that differ from our own—Muslims, Christians, Buddhist, and so on, no matter how they worship—even those we don’t fully understand. Jesus left a beautiful example of how we can live in peace with those who differ from ourselves. I learned that the Living Room faith-based mental health support I founded in British Columbia, Canada in 2006 could carry a message that would be welcomed around the world.

For this reason, I feel strongly that Living Room should be a movement—free-standing, without controls or interference from a church or religion, or any other non-peer organization.

I currently have well over 900 global connections on LinkedIn—most of whom are interested in the pursuit of mental health, especially via spiritual means.

Those who are especially touched are the hundreds of Rohingya refugees, part of the 1.2 million stateless people now living in one of the world’s largest refugee camps in the world. The greatest number of them fled from genocide in 2017 in their native Arakan (part of Myanmar). They found refuge in Bangladesh where they still live today in abominable conditions—forgotten by the world.

But the Rohingya are a resilient people, hanging onto their faith traditions despite all they have lived through, never giving up hope of returning to their homeland with dignity intact. Hundreds of these Rohingya refugees who connected with me heard my stories of Jesus and how he accepted and loved the most vulnerable. Through the stories I told them about Jesus they found comfort, strength, and hope.

Although I’m a Christian woman and those I corresponded with are Muslim men, I felt respected and appreciated by them. They recognized me as someone who has compassion for them and would stand with them in their great struggles. I tried in every way to amplify their voices, hoping this would help the world listen and hear the story of the generations of suffering they’ve undergone and still do. I hoped that—somehow—justice would be served.

Global Living Room is alive in the world, and not only amongst the Rohingya people. Seeds have been planted in many places. They are seeds waiting to be watered and fed by those who follow me—those who care about the spiritual mental health support of the most vulnerable people of this world: —victims of stigma, persecution, and genocide.

Please pray for those thousands who need such spiritual mental health care—the countless vulnerable people in this world of today. Pray for the children who want a future of carrying forward the traditions of their fathers and mothers.

marja