I know it’s hard for those who don’t have mental illness to understand. I, and many of us, feel small next to our supporters. I don’t think they consciously set themselves above us, yet we feel lower. We feel inferior. For me it was like my supporters were father and mother, me the child. I […]
Read More...As a person who had studied and meditated on Christ’s life, the following words from Philippians 2:5-7 must have helped inspire Dr. Schweitzer to become the servant of God he was: “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with […]
Read More...Before we move to the next topic—Women’s Rights—I’d like to draw your attention back to William Wilberforce and Charles Dickens. You will note that both individuals—as well as the others you will read about—lived with a focus on others, rather than themselves alone. They gave of themselves, thinking little about their own pleasures or […]
Read More...Jesus said, “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?” Luke 9:24-25 Do those words puzzle you? What on earth did Jesus […]
Read More...Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow. Isaiah 1:17 The radical changes Jesus brought into the world could only have been possible through his great love. In fact, generally speaking, probably the greater the love, the greater will be the […]
Read More...Dear readers, This is the third of a series I’m writing about Jesus. When I think about Jesus and all he was, I see so much that could inspire and motivate, making us want be like him—to do what de does and say the kinds of things he said. I’m eager to write about […]
Read More...…if you spend yourselves in behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. Isaiah 58:10 In the early days of Living Room* I spoke much about what I called other-centeredness – the opposite of self-centeredness. This […]
Read More...Why is it so hard for people with mental illness to have friends who don’t have a mental illness? Why do supporters fail to see that we need friends as well as support? Why don’t our supporters share their lives with us, in the way we do with them? Sometimes it seems as though people […]
Read More...LIVING ROOM MEMORIES 212 (December 12, 2008) In spite of the snow that kept a lot of people from attending our party, we had sixteen people. It was a wonderful, intimate time. Good food and good visiting. We finished all of Janice’s turkey and almost all the stuffing. It was so good. One of our […]
Read More...LIVING ROOM MEMORIES 53 (March 21, 2007) Monday was a dark day, mostly spent in bed. But yesterday morning, though it started out dark, I was able to ignite a spark in that darkness. This small spark led to a good day. I needed to go to Costco to buy some things and thought of […]
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