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Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Christian Education Needed for the Hard Topic of Depression

Before I get to the sad, sob stories of life, 
thought you may could use a little of this:


Not everything,
but it sure helps:)



Today I am sharing thoughts by 
Sheila Walsh in her book, 
"The Heartache Nobody Sees."

A few words to the Christian community from Sheila,

I will never forget an encounter with a woman who was about the 
age of my mother.  She showed me a picture of her daughter.
"She would have been thirty-five this week," she began.
"She worked full-time in a large church but had been struggling
with depression for some time.  She asked the pastor
for a short leave of absence to get some help.
He told her they didn't believe that a Christian should 
seek help from a psychiatrist.  My daughter killed herself.
She loved God, but killed herself."

Too many people do not understand the nature of depression,
equating it with having a "bad day." Those who speak not
always out of lack of compassion, but out of a lack 
of understanding have inflicted much cruelty.

I know how hard it is to see the look of disapproval, disappointment,
and dismissal in the eyes of others.  People have told me that I 
shouldn't be in public ministry until I am "fixed."
People have questioned my very faith in God.  Some comments
are intentionally hurtful; others are spoken out of misunderstanding
about the nature of brain chemistry.

Sheila, popular Women of Faith speaker, has 
a God-given passion for reaching out to women who are privately carrying 
around broken hearts.  

She asks, 
Are you lonely but too ashamed to open up?
Are you a victim of well-meaning friends who have told you to get over it?
Have you tried to heal yourself, to tidy up your pain with a quick fix?

My thoughts...

The biggest hurt of all is being hurt by a body of believers.
I shutter to think "Body of Christ" because 
how do we truly exemplify Christ if we don't
bear with one another, edify and lift each other up?

After a series of cutting, binge eating and purging, 
one of our teenagers was diagnosed with bipolar depression.
She tried to commit suicide three times.  
The last attempt, she almost succeeded.

 When she was coming out a man of faith said, 
"Did you know if you had succeeded, you would have died
and gone to hell???"

Did she need to hear this at this particular moment?
Did her family need this???
Where is grace???

Ann Graham Lotz wrote a book, 
"Wounded by God's People."

Lord, help us to be the hands of 
Jesus reaching out with compassion to those who hurt. 

You will find hope in the pages of her book, 
"The Heartache No One Sees."


Yelp, anyone care to come along?
We all need one. 

Bonnie:)

In the coming weeks, I will share with you things that
have helped me to make it through the rough days.
Hope you'll join me.  Even if you are not struggling with these issues,
maybe what I write will help you help someone who is.

5 comments:

  1. Amen, Bonnie! Thank you so much for sharing about this need of Christian education in this area. You already know my thoughts on the matter from yesterday. I am encouraged that you will share the things that have helped you through the rough days. Big Hugs...oh...and I have a close friend who has been battling cancer this past year. He would wholeheartedly agree with you about the beach! :)

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    1. The beach is my special time every year to spend the morning on the beach with the Lord and sundown in reflection and quietness. All day sit (lately it's been under an umbrella:) and with shorts on) and read and listen to the sounds of the waves. Ahhhh. Heaven.

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  2. This is really a great post, Bonnie. And please let me know when you are planning to hit the beach...I'll be there too...lol! Seriously, it is one place where I feel the presence of the Lord, like none other :)

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    1. Oh Debby, isn't it the greatest place to feel the presence of the Lord. I forgot to tell Dianne one thing, I put in my ear plugs and listen to my music.

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  3. The beach indeed fixes everything..at least for me it does..I will have to check that book out..as I told you earlier, Christ would be ashamed of his fellow believers who shun sickness/illness.. at least I believe he would. Blessings (and tons of hugs)

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