Religion Mental Illness

Each day men and women diagnosed with mental disorders are told they need to pray more and turn from their sin. Mental illness is equated with demonic possession, weak faith, and generational sin. As both a church leader and a professor of psychology and behavioral sciences, Michael S. Stanford has seen far too many mentally ill brothers and sisters damaged by well-meaning believers who respond to them out of fear or misinformation rather than grace. Grace for the Afflicted educates Christians about mental illness from both biblical and scientific perspectives.

Combining insights from mainstream science, psychology, and subtle healing modalities, this book provides a truly holistic approach to recovery. Renowned author and spiritual healer Cyndi Dale shares an impressive array of techniques for resolving challenging energetic and spiritual issues. Trauma and pain caused by environmental, physical, psychological, and spiritual forces can have major effects on every aspect of your life. Join Cyndi as she shows how to align with spirit guides, work with the chakras, locate hidden inner wounds, release other peoples' energies, and much more.

In 2012, Steve Austin, then a pastor, nearly died by suicide. His experience launched him on a journey that opened his eyes to the widespread problem of mental illness and how those who live with it are often treated in congregations. He began to wonder: If church folks had talked openly about mental health, therapy, suicide prevention, recovery from abuse, and other difficult issues, would that have changed his story? In Hiding in the Pews, people with mental illness - some of whom might be pastors themselves - will find comfort as they learn they are not alone.

Mental Illness & Christianity plays like a friend is encouraging you over a cup of coffee, she just happens to have the bible verses ready so that the conversation can be led by God’s word. If you’re looking for God’s way in a relationship with someone who sparks frustration or strife in your life, this book will give you some things to think about as it pertains to your role, using your spiritual gifts, and being sanctified in his truth.

Over his decades of experience as a therapist and mindfulness meditation practitioner, Dr. Christopher Germer has learned a paradoxical lesson: We all want to avoid pain, but letting it in and responding compassionately to our own imperfections are essential steps on the path to healing. This wise and eloquent book illuminates the power of self-compassion and offers creative, scientifically grounded strategies for putting it into action.

Break the cycle of anxious thinking and rumination that are at the root of insomnia. In this much-needed guide, a trained mindfulness expert teams up with a behavioral sleep specialist to present evidence-based meditations in an innovative four-week protocol clinically demonstrated to address the emotional stresses and anxieties that lie at the root of sleep issues. Following this guide, listeners will learn to unwind their mind, relax their body, feel less tense, and finally get the sleep they need.

For Christians, particularly those in vocational ministry, the stigma surrounding mental illness and mental health often creates an atmosphere of secrecy where the enemy's lies reign. Julie Busler understands the pain of mental illness and has learned that trials not only humanize us but increase our capacity to be used by God. In Joyful Sorrow, she invites us into her own journey where a mental breakdown took her from being a missionary to a suicidal patient. With vulnerability and grace, Julie demonstrates that even in the sorrow of mental illness, joy can coexist.

God cares deeply about you and your mental health. Author and mental health advocate Chris Morris has battled depression and suicidality his entire adult life. Even coming to Christ didn't change this, which is something many fellow Christians don't seem to understand. He still had to face the grief of unrelenting illness, the shame of struggling, and the pain of poor guidance. In this compassionate and engaging book, Chris shares how he overcame these challenges and invites you to do the same—no matter your diagnosis.

The book bridges the dangerous divide between faith communities and those living with the stigma of mental health challenges. Faith leaders seeking greater understanding for those with troubled minds as well as those impacted by brain illnesses (including loved ones) will benefit from listening to Roberts narrate his personal and pastoral journey through bipolar disorder.

Human bodies are puzzling, and mental illness plagues millions of people living in the world today. Sadly, most churches do not truly address the issue of mental disease and, as a result, Christians often believe that God can resolve a person’s mental issues, including actual disorders. People need to know it is okay to take medication, go to therapy, and work with medical doctors to treat their mental ailments and disorders. But that doesn’t mean that we should ignore help from God.

Hope Amid Hopelessness is a true story about the loving, merciful, caring, all powerful, ever present, gracious, just, sovereign, personal Abba Father (God) working in the lives of Jim and Laura Hansen. As Jim cared for Laura while she struggled with major clinical depression that later led to borderline personality disorder, he realized quickly that he could not fight this battle alone. Turning to his Abba Father, he sought understanding, knowledge, and wisdom from the only source that could truly help.

A Discordant String in God’s Harp investigates Satan’s attempts to disrupt or harm God’s people and God’s church in modern day times. This is not an exhaustive study, but I do try to pinpoint how church members who lack money, power, and social influence can be cut off from church leadership by Flatters who have more influence in church operations and in church dealings with the community. Besides talking about the poor, I also discuss in much more detail the various influences and disruptions mental illness can have on Christians.

In a conversation spanning half hour segments numbering seven on the same number of separate days this religion writer talked with the Reverend Doctor Lawrence Michael Cameron, OAC. The subject: Mental Illness. That is the Reverend Doctor's business and has been for 25 years as a pastoral counselor. We talked by phone to his home in Indiana from mine in Mill Valley, California. An advocate for the mentally ill, Doctor C, as he is affectionately known, bent his comments to let the listener know of his favorable sense of hope for mentally ill people and their treatment.