Sections
thumbnail_image how do we journey with people who are struggling with mental health? How do we maintain our faith when God seems so far removed? What role do church communities play?
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ISSUE: Volume 28, Number 1, Winter 2016

Piece by Piece: Towards Mental Wellness

Mental wellbeing depends on a delicate balance of factors including genetics, emotional and spiritual health, and stable life circumstances. Since these elements rarely align, many of us experience periods of languishing mental health. For those with clinical mental illness, there is a long-term struggle that requires a holistic, daily approach to care. 

In the midst of such turmoil, how do we find the energy to get out of bed in the morning? How do we maintain our faith when God seems so far removed? What role do church communities play? And how do we journey with people who are struggling with mental health? These are just some of the questions we explore.

Illustration by Brian Liu

Issue Contents

Profile

When I Am Weak, Then I Am Strong

When Pastor Matt Kitchener found the courage to share his struggle with depression with his church leadership and congregation, he encountered unexpected grace, healing, and rest. more

Profile

A Cry beyond Lament: Reflections on Jeremiah 20

How do we pray when our cries of anguish seem to fall on deaf ears? Tim Boland makes a case for honest lament and finds surprising consolation in Jeremiah 20. more

Arts & Theology

Summertime Blues

In this brief and compelling narrative, Kurt Armstrong recounts his battle with depression in the midst of a job gone wrong. more

Arts & Theology

Poetry by Sarah Crowley Chestnut

Sarah Crowley Chestnut's evocative poetry explores the rich and troubled interplay of suffering and grace. more

Arts & Theology

Life among the Deadwood: An Interview with Maria Gaudin

Artist Maria Gaudin on Life among the Deadwood, a new exhibition exploring the necessity of hope in the midst of grief. more

Field Notes

Wilma van der Leek

"I feel whole. I’m not healthy all the time, but I feel that my whole self is being drawn to something better." Wilma van der Leek tells the story of a breakdown that set her on the path to healing. more

Field Notes

Hilary Guth

"I had to shift my thinking from 'I’m going through a difficult time' to 'okay, this is just what’s normal for me.'" Hilary Guth explores the challenges of faith and life with anxiety and OCD. more

Field Notes

Julie Alexander Johnson & Norm Johnson

"A hospital social worker suggested that we simply choose to forgive each other for all that had happened in the preceding years. I learned more about the power of forgiveness by following that suggestion than in all previous Christian teaching I’d received on forgiveness." more

Books & Media

Discovering Genesis: Content, Interpretation, Reception

Iain Provan here offers readers a compact, up-to-date, and student-friendly introduction to the book of Genesis. more