Although most parents and people around us try to love well, sometimes they miss the mark a bit. Sometimes people are fighting their own insecurities so much that they lash out at others to try to make themselves feel better. Of course, that doesn’t work, and instead leaves a person feeling even less loved. Sometimes we can even take the feeling of being unloved to the extreme of being unlovable.
My Shepherd and Contentment
I recently heard a man say that he dealt with life throughout the day by reciting Psalm 23. He said it was the best antidepressant he had found. I think if it had been anyone other than Mike Wells’ old mentor from India, I might have ignored this because so many formulas have been thrown at us they sound hollow. But this wasn’t a formula to him—it was a way of refocusing.
Failure
How many times have you found yourself stewing on all the failures of your day, or your life? This obsessing on stupid decisions, words spoken and actions left undone, will lead us eventually to feeling as though we are failures. There is a big difference between failing sometimes and being a failure. And I haven’t found that beating ourselves up is the answer to that distinction.
Beauty, Body Image and Physical Obsession
Someone recently asked me what I told people with body image issues, and those who obsess on their physical flaws. This is a very common problem. People define beauty by a certain cultural standard and then measure their own physical appearance by that standard, and usually can find a lot lacking. In this process, they can often even create problems that aren't there, and thus twist their mind to see an unreal perspective.
The Both/And Reality of Grief
In the Bleak Midwinter
January and February are not my favorite months of the year. They are still definitely winter, but the fun of the Christmas season is over and they often just seem bleak and cold to me. I thrive in spring and summer—the green shoots coming up that I’ve planted and nurtured, the warmth of the air and the smell of new life.Recently, though, God’s been reminding me of the importance of winter.