Marja Bergen

author, mental health advocate, follower of Christ

Category: Abused (page 5 of 8)

Good came from bad

Moreover we know that to those who love God, who are called according to his plan, everything that happens fits into a pattern for good. God, in his foreknowledge, chose them to bear the family likeness of his Son, that he might be the eldest of a family of many brothers. Romans 8:28-29 (PHILLIPS)   […]

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Forgive them, Father

There came a time when the entire truth surfaced. Pain intensified and anger did as well. All that had been her life, the present and the past, stolen. Multiple betrayals. Reputation destroyed. Mental health damaged. Jesus told us to “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44) She had obeyed as […]

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Search me, God, and know my heart

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. Before a word is on my tongue you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me […]

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Who’s to be believed?

  Very sad, but very true. Too many, even those close to her, question the truth of her story. And I wonder, how can a hurting person possibly convince others when wrongdoings have taken place behind closed doors? How can a person with mental health issues possibly defend herself against a powerful leader – a […]

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My church history – 2005-2016

  I’ve spent much time trying to write my Living Room history. There’s a lot I haven’t covered and, as I’ve said, I would like to move on. But I do want to leave this capsulated form of my history. It offers a clearer overall picture of how things went for me. 2005 or so […]

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Never-ending trauma

    You never completely lose the memories of trauma, they say. And I know that to be true. Triggers come at the most unexpected times, even during a sermon at church. There’s not anything particularly different about the sermon. But at times it does lead one’s mind to reliving experiences in your life – […]

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Crucified

  I know I wasn’t going to write any more of my story. I claimed that I had recovered. However, traumatic memories don’t go away so easily. Writing whenever I felt bad was helpful. But yesterday bad memories – especially one – came back, leaving me weeping in church. And I had nowhere to go […]

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Beyond memories: creating a new reality

  (Written in January 2017) Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?” Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times.” Matthew 18:21-22   Jesus knew all about forgiving. He came to do a […]

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Wrapping up (2019)

It’s time, really time, to put an end to my story. I’m glad to have found better wellness through the telling. But today I’m tired of thinking about so much sadness and ugliness. I want to start enjoying the new me. And so, I’ll wrap up with this: I strongly believe this account had to […]

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But did I hurt someone? (2019)

I’ve been talking about how I felt back in 2010 when I said or did the wrong thing. I also remember several posts ago when I felt great pain and shame because I knew I had hurt someone. I’ve known many times when I had to beg God for a pure heart and a steadfast […]

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