THE IMPORTANCE OF LISTENING To listen to others is to be shown the respect every human being deserves, even if a person does have bipolar disorder. Not to be heard indicates that you’re not considered to matter. From my blog, on March 9, 2012: I’m delighted. My new medication has helped me stabilize well. No […]
Read More...REJECTION – AN EXAMPLE OF SPIRITUAL FOOD – Some devotional material does not necessarily comfort or encourage, but helps us gain understanding about Jesus—a perspective we might have missed. I wrote the following in 2018. It could very well draw readers closer to him as they see him as a kindred spirit who knows their […]
Read More...MY NEED FOR HIS COMPASSION – MY STORY – Part of my personal journey with stigma: I learned the excruciating the pain of being considered a good and faithful servant of God for many years, and then suddenly to be treated as “evil.” I learned how hopeless it is to report a wrongdoing to authorities, […]
Read More...EXAMPLE OF SPIRITUAL FOOD – Stories like this about individuals to whom Jesus brought healing can do wonders for those who are feeling the effects of stigma. Ask a person you’re supporting to put themselves in the place of the person in this story, and they will most likely be able to relate to her. […]
Read More...STIGMATIZED . . . STILL? MY STORY 2011 was a busy year for me as a mental health advocate, offering quite a few speaking engagements, something I welcomed, even though I was sometimes nervous about it. I’m just so very grateful that God has given me the passion and the desire to speak. So grateful that […]
Read More...WORD ABOUT ME SPREAD – MY STORY Word about me as a person who could speak about mental health and faith issues started to spread. In 2005, shortly after joining the Brentwood Park congregation, the Canadian Mental Health Association, BC Division (CMHA, BC Div.) asked me to write about mental illness and the Church. This […]
Read More...COMING OUT – MY STORY In you, Lord my God, I put my trust. I trust in you; do not let me be put to shame, nor let my enemies triumph over me. No one who hopes in you will ever be put to shame, but shame will come on those who are treacherous without cause. Psalm 25:1-3 […]
Read More...HEALING I’m very grateful to Light Magazine for publishing my article, Following a Radical Jesus: Addressing the Effects of Stigma. I hope you will have some time to read it. You might be moved to ask, “But what does it all mean to me as a follower of Christ?” To answer questions this article might […]
Read More...A RADICAL JESUS Jesus went throughout Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and healing every disease and sickness among the people. News about him spread all over Syria, and people brought to him all who were ill with various diseases, those suffering severe pain, the demon-possessed, those having seizures, and the paralyzed; and he healed them. Matthew 4:23-24 […]
Read More...Part 2 of my story I woke up in a ward with many empty beds. I was the only one there. Looking at the chart on the nightstand, I found out I was at Crease Clinic. This place had a bad reputation. In fact, it was the object of many cruel jokes. I pulled the […]
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