Our Voices – A New Focus

My ministry has inadvertently been undergoing a gradual transformation since I first started raising mental health awareness in the church, leading support groups, and publishing devotionals and other writings. It had always focussed on giving comfort and encouragement. And it still does. But increasingly I have felt God leading me to build confidence in those living with low self-esteem. I want to inspire such people to be able to stand strong and realize that they have worth that’s equal to others.

Most of us are good at giving support to people in need. But support alone does nothing to boost self-esteem. It is every bit as important to help them build confidence so they can better help themselves. Instead of talking about their needs, we have to give them a chance to have their own voices heard. Speaking with their own voice would help the world start seeing them from their own perspective.

For years my work has focussed on ministering to people with mental health issues. But I’ve recently started including people who are disadvantaged in other ways: people suffering with disability (mental and physical), abuse, poverty, all those the world tends to look down on.

The culmination of this emerging ministry is my book, Justice for All: The Courage to Overcome. This history book is expected to be in bookstores in a few months. Through its stories of leaders who have overcome great injustices, readers are inspired to live courageously, thinking more positively about who they are and what God made them to be.

Twelve of history’s greats, from William Wilberforce to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, give examples of how individuals can overcome injustices. The reflections scattered throughout the book will inspire readers to understand how they can overcome the injustices they personally live with. This work is important. It calls for a radical new way for vulnerable people to think about themselves. It is about them realizing who they are in God’s eyes. It is about making more meaningful lives possible.

Is that possible? I believe it is. With God, all kinds of things are possible.

Marja