This another question posed by Adrian Warnock in his post: Suicide and Religious Faith following on from his question about mental illness which I posted about in mental illness and my faith. This week, his question is: Research suggests that religious faith protects against suicide. Why do you think that is in light of how your […]
Gentleness and Stigma
May 5, 2013 By 3 Comments
To acknowledge ourselves as having a mental illness can make us vulnerable. If you read the website of Time to Change, the anti-stigma campaign, you can read about others who have experienced discrimination because of their mental illness, who have been told that they are “faking it” and that they have a flaw in their […]
Concerns about Age
May 2, 2013 By Leave a Comment
There’s not a joy the world can give like that it takes away When the glow of early thought declines in feeling’s dull decay; ‘Tis not on youth’s smooth cheek the blush alone, which fades so fast, But the tender bloom of heart is gone, ere youth itself be past. -Byron, Stanzas for Music [1] […]
Well-Beloved
April 28, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Recently, we bought our cat some food. She didn’t like it (cats!) but the name struck me. It was by a brand called James Wellbeloved. What a wonderful name! I would happily give up my (rather cool, I think) surname to be called Wellbeloved, it’s even better than the surname of someone I know, who […]
Holy Wit?
April 15, 2013 By 1 Comment
A little while ago I wrote about sorrow, mentioning 2 Corinthians 7:10-11 which talks about “Godly sorrow” and how feeling haunted by our sin can lead us to repentance, which should then lead us to an understanding that we are forgiven. I there spoke about how I can find it hard to let go of […]
As I Walk Through the Valley
March 27, 2013 By 2 Comments
I have loved Psalm 23 since I was given a copy of it after my grandmother’s death, when I was eight. I memorised it then, and sometimes, when I am not really able to think of things to say, I recite it to God. One line that has always stood out for me is verse […]
Stripped Bare
March 19, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Standing before the throne of God can be a terrifying experience. All the pious platitudes, the polite faces we put on in church circles don’t matter any more. My respectability is seen to be a sham, I cannot hide my face. All that I am – good and bad – is open, is in the […]
Thoughts on Prayer
March 15, 2013 By 4 Comments
Ideas of what I should, and should not, pray about are a problem in my life. I freely confess that I am not a good “pray-er” – I never seem to know what to say, I am sure I fail to say things I am supposed to, and I can’t even manage to close my […]
He Came in the Storm
March 11, 2013 By 4 Comments
I often like to use biblical passages to reflect, allegorically, on our (my) Christian life. One of these is the famous time when Jesus walked on the water – related in Matthew 14:22-33, Mark 6:45-52 and John 6:16-21. The disciples had just witnessed the feeding of the 5,000 when Jesus told them to go ahead […]
Peace, be still
March 5, 2013 By 2 Comments
I am frequently not at peace. Anxiety twists and torments me, makes me run through my head over and over the same worries and fears. Anxiety makes me fear, and fear turns to depression in me. My soul is troubled by many horrible thoughts, by destructive thoughts, by the haunting idea that I am not […]
