How The Salvation Army can use creative arts in trauma ministry
#LoveBeyondTrauma: An opportunity for the church to mitigate the pandemic’s collective trauma The pandemic, and what it’s left behind, challenged everyone in some way, author and speaker J. Scott McElroy said as he spoke to the ongoing trauma during the 2022
The single best way to start practicing self-compassion
My husband, Aaron, and I and our boys, Henry and Mac, are lifelong Midwesterners, but three years ago we moved to Manhattan. We made the move from a house in the suburbs of Chicago to an 825-square-foot apartment on the third
An invitation to an examined life
Do you have a mind that is always seeking to make sense of things? Does your heart have a deep longing for a sense of order and belonging? Have you ever experienced a sense of wonder that thrills to the
5 mental health lessons in Disney’s ‘Encanto’
Have you seen Disney’s “Encanto”? The movie caught the attention of people of all ages and backgrounds over the past few months with its catchy songs and relatable messages. As a Colombian-American mental health therapist, I found the movie’s many layers
Exposing myths about what cures excess busyness—and discovering what really works
Anxiety is the dizziness of freedom. —Søren Kierkegaard If you listen to much of the advice dispensed by friends, advisers and online gurus for people who are overwhelmed and stressed out, the standard tips for beating your crazy busy life often
4 tests to discern God’s voice
As a pastor, I’ve encountered so many stories about people who claim to have heard from God but who really haven’t—or who have misused their proclamation of it. Maybe Tom is sure he’s heard from God that he’s going to
How to find margin and allow for the better yes
Perhaps saying yes isn’t a struggle for you. In fact, you love to say yes. Maybe you’ve said yes so often that now you feel as if you are in the circus. Remember the clown at the circus that juggled
Why you need to uncover your core beliefs
Our hurt, anger, anxiety and discouragement are often the result of a negative thought life. But sometimes, these emotional experiences are rooted in something deeper. Sometimes, they are the result of a deep set of personal beliefs about ourselves, other
5 ways to protect your emotional wellness in the in-between
We’re in the in-between phase of our transition out of the pandemic and this is one situation none of us have ever been through before. We’ll each be navigating in different ways depending on our specific situations—working from home or
Finding the unexpected power of selflessness
When I was but a young, self-proclaimed missionary attending church, my mother would play the piano and we’d sing the hymn Count Your Blessings, which encouraged us to name our blessings “one by one” to “see what God hath done.”
8 ways to boost your hope
Hope is hands down my favorite word. I can live without a lot of things, but hope is definitely not one of them. In fact, if I were forced to choose one word as my word forever, it would be
6 ways to give yourself grace one year into the pandemic
This year, the month of March marks one year from the time our lives were unexpectedly and incomparably disrupted. Isn’t it uncomfortable when we are forced out of our safety and routines? Do you remember the moment when the reality of