- Abundant Life, emotional health, Emptiness, Fear, Self Awareness, self worth, Self-Acceptance, True self
The Five Wounds of a People Pleaser
I think most of us struggle with being a people pleaser at some point. Our development as adults requires that we let go of the fear of man as the Bible calls it. We first individuate from our parents, a task that takes decades. After that, we must carve out our identities, choosing what we will and will not stand for as a person. Often this process means eliminating friends along the way, determining which relationships are toxic and which are life-giving. C.S. Lewis famously said that man’s strongest drive was to belong to a group. In essence, humans are herd animals. And like sheep, each of us has gone…
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Divorce and Your Abuser: Taking the Long Road Home
Divorce is not the short cut society pretends it is. I am a person who likes to be efficient with my energy so I am always looking for life hacks. But God, despite my preferences, has led me the long way round over and over. I am currently reading through the Bible through the eyes of John Wesley, truly an exercise in taking the long way. But reading through Exodus 13, I finally understood why it was that my routes through life appear so circuitous. The Hebrews are preparing themselves for an escape from slavery. They make their preparations and sacrifices. And Jehovah leads them in a puzzling direction. …
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Depersonalization: Living Apart from Ourselves
Depersonalization and derealization according to the definition that pops up in my Google feed: …involves a persistent or recurring feeling of being detached from one’s body or mental processes, like an outside observer of one’s life (depersonalization), and/or a feeling of being detached from one’s surroundings (derealization). Most people have episodes of depersonalization that occur sporadically throughout their lives. It is only when these are prolonged and begin to interfere with every day functioning that the professionals get involved. My observations on this topic are personal and not professional, though I have helped quite a few people identify and move through this phenomenon in ministry. The experts tell us that…
Healing Through Art & Words
