By Scott Box

I produce music in a backyard studio. I have some skills, but professional music producers blow me away with their final products. Nevertheless, when a musician or singer goes into the studio to record, I’ve learned that an artist cannot hide from the microphone. They are exposed by a device that captures every saliva-sloshing click of the tongue, note sung out of tune or pick of the wrong string. And yet, the artists keep coming back. The urge to create and express themselves through a new (or even old) lyric or a melody is hard for many to resist. 

My work in the studio has revealed an important concept that applies to our mental health storytelling adventures. 

Studio work and music production expose the performers in a way they become “naked” and highly vulnerable. The process is humbling—even the most talented people in the world splat terrible notes in a recording session. There are many talented studio musicians in every city, but few one-take wonders exist, especially when the music gets technical. Writing and producing music is a process that takes varying degrees of refinement for every song. It takes dedicated practice. But it’s also fun, which is why this exercise in music production is a discipline that keeps many people coming back for more. Shaping the lyric to a melody or a melody to a lyric, finding the right voices or instruments and arranging the song into its final shape is intoxicating, but not for the faint of heart. It is very taxing. Additional burdens include the mixing, mastering, distribution, marketing, live performances, and critical response. It’s all baked into the cake. The revelations of the recording process and the recorded product can make inexperienced and even experienced people feel unworthy of the burden and cause paralysis.

Your mental health story is of exceptional value to the people in your community. Your story is not something you can selfishly keep to yourself. People suffer needlessly because so many “broken” people like you and me don’t get “naked” in front of them. Hang with me on this, please. We think the microphone is going to reveal things that are humiliating and painful. Yep, it does. We believe we should have everything perfect before we risk sharing it with others, but we don’t need to be perfect. Yes, we will need thick skin, which comes with the calluses of practice. 

Remember, in this example, a singer gets better by singing into a mic and listening to their tone, pitch, and delivery. Doing it over and over is called “practice” for a reason. Nowadays, there are many cheap ways for singers to practice recording their voices. In the same way, there are more opportunities than ever to practice identifying and shaping our mental health stories. I don’t use social media much in this season of life, but I used to. Social media is a good outlet for starting and maintaining a health journal. Is it risky? Sure is. Is it a great way to practice inviting people into your adventure? Of course. Is there a way you can host people who are sick and desperate toward Jesus and toward hopefulness? Uh-huh. Is social media the right venue for your story? Maybe not. But I encourage you to find a place to start practicing your storytelling skills—even if it’s only in a private journal you write a couple sentences in for the next three months. Because sharing your story doesn’t help only other people. It helps you, too. Inviting others into your story can give deep meaning to YOUR pain and remind YOU of God’s promises, His wild provision and His purpose for YOU. 

Like a musician working on a new song in a studio, shaping my story and inviting others into it has become hard to resist because of how impactful it is to others AND for me. I know other people benefit when I practice sharing my gritty stories about managing Bipolar disorder and following Jesus. But I never realized how beneficial the experience would be for me. Pain has helped me write powerful songs. But my pain and your pain can also release extraordinary stories about the challenges of managing mental disorders or living with people who wrestle with their mental health. The world needs our painful and gritty stories to tell heroic stories about Jesus. You may feel very exposed and vulnerable, but your story matters and can keep someone from suffering. But you have to take the risk to approach the mic.

Yes, be calculated. Don’t be thoughtless with who you grab to help you practice. Look for a friend who can be a story “producer” for you. Tell them that you’re reaching for the microphone and that you’re going to start practicing. You’ll feel exposed, but that’s the point. 

So there you go—My advice for this month is to “get naked.”

Scott and Kariann Box live in Redmond, Oregon. Scott serves as Pastor of Development at Shiloh Ranch Church and has been a worship leader for over twenty-five years. Kariann works as a Realtor in Central Oregon and supports Scott’s…creative spirit. They have two children, a one-hundred-pound Labradoodle and a four-pound Shih Tzu without teeth. Scott is the author of HEROIC DISGRACE: Order out of chaos. Hope out of fear. ― A Worship Hero Story 

by Peggy Rice

Just last week, my Fresh Hope Support Group co-facilitator and I had the privilege of hosting some staff from the Fresh Hope Leadership Team, visiting us – and working – here in Colorado. We had a wonderful time, showing them the sights of the mountains right out our front door, doing some shopping, worshipping together at church, and eating lots of good food.

But my favorite times were when we were in the car, or sitting on the couch before bedtime, or gathered around K’s kitchen table, and we prayed for each other. Quick but meaningful prayers. Like, “I have to make this call. Please pray for me.” And we did. Or, “I’m nervous about my meeting tomorrow. Please pray for me.” And we did.

I realized, as I was driving down a twisty road with the vehicle full of women passionate about Fresh Hope, that in just the few days we were together, we had bonded. Really connected. And I think that’s because a) we love Fresh Hope and b) we prayed together.

It became very clear to me that we need people like this in our lives. We all need folks who “get” us. Friends who will drop everything to pray for us. A tribe, if you will, of like-minded followers of Jesus, who have walked hard journeys and come out strong in the Lord.

That’s what Fresh Hope for Mental Health offers through Support Groups – Fresh Hope, Refocusing Widows, Trauma Healing. These are all groups designed to support others in their journeys. As peers. As people who have walked the journey ahead of them, and are giving back by reaching back to those behind them on the same path.

This is what Fresh Hope for Mental Health offers through Hope Coaching – one-on-one with a peer, someone who will listen and ask hard questions and help the Hope Seeker begin to see a way forward from a place of hopelessness. Not because the Hope Coach has the answers – no! But because the Hope Coach is a peer – someone who has “been there.”

This peer-to-peer approach is what makes Fresh Hope unique in the world of Mental Health help. The Ministry is anchored in the hope we have in Christ, and is managed by people with lived experience who’ve been through the Fresh Hope training and want to offer a listening ear and an opportunity to give back.

I’m realizing as I grow older (I just turned 60 this year) that I need people in my life like this. People who are walking a similar journey. Or who have walked ahead of me on that path. I need people who will speak Truth into my situation, who will point me to Jesus, who will pray with me, who will empathize because they understand first-hand.

And I also need people on that path who are behind me. To whom I can offer encouragement and support. To whom I can extend empathy, because I understand first-hand.

If you’re looking for those kinds of relationships, I strongly encourage you to check out Fresh Hope for Mental Health Support Groups. We have them all over the world, and online. Folks can come and go in a group, but I’ll be honest with you – you’re more likely to get better, and feel better, when you’ve connected with the folks in your group. That takes a little time – you need to check it out, then go back, then go back again. That’s how relationships are formed – through time and repetition. And the power that comes when we pray together, or for each other, or both.

To learn more about Fresh Hope for Mental Health and the peer-to-peer services we provide, check out freshhope.us, and click the tab “I’m looking for.”

Peggy has been involved with Fresh Hope as a Group Facilitator for 5 years and as the Hope Coach trainer for 3. You can reach her at peggy@freshhope.us

By Mark Soppitt

Have you ever felt disappointed by God’s seeming lack of response to your trials and hardships? Or by His apparent distance in a situation you find impossible or overwhelming to deal with? Have you ever felt abandoned by God in your hour of need? If so, you are not alone. There are times in the Bible when others felt abandoned, too.

In Psalm 13:1-2 David cries out to God:

How long, Lord? Will you forget me forever?

How long will you hide your face from me?

How long must I wrestle with my thoughts

and day after day have sorrow in my heart?

How long will my enemy triumph over me?

In the garden of Gethsemane, Jesus cried out to God:

At about three o’clock, Jesus called out with a loud voice, “Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” which means “My God, my God, why have you abandoned me?” (Matthew 27:46 NLT)

During my time as a pastor, I remember struggling with intense feelings of abandonment at times. When life got too hard, or I faced a situation with no apparent solution, and I had tried everything I knew to do. It didn’t feel so intense when there were others close by who I could draw on for support and wisdom. Yet, when I felt alone through my struggles and hardships, the feelings of abandonment were sometimes crushing. This came to its climax when I moved with my family to a new country, with a new church, a new culture and a fresh set of challenges I had not experienced before. Eventually, after several years, I slipped into a severe and prolonged depression, disappointed with God, myself, and others. I left the ministry unable to work or function in any meaningful way. The sense of abandonment I felt was overwhelming, and I just retreated into myself as a form of self-protection. Many years passed before I felt safe and well enough to enter the ‘unpredictable and scary world’ again. Like King David and Jesus, I felt abandoned and deserted by God. 

One of the challenges we face as human beings is that we live in a natural world where we see, hear and experience things in concrete ways. We know when a mountain is near because we can see it or walk up it. We know we drink coffee because we can see, smell, and taste it.

 It’s much harder to believe in something when we can’t use our natural senses, yet we still believe in things we can’t see, hear, feel, touch or smell. We can’t see electricity, though we can witness its effects when a light is turned on. We can’t see the air yet know we live because of the oxygen we breathe. There is an element of faith in these things.

It is the same with God. We can’t see Him, yet we often see or sense the results of His presence, such as when He answers our prayers, meets a need, or speaks to us clearly when we read the Bible. Faith grows through such experiences, yet it can be much harder to maintain our faith in His goodness, presence and power when He is silent or appears not to care. 

As David and Jesus show us, we are not alone in such times.  We should not be so surprised when we feel it ourselves if it happened to them. So, how can we get through these feelings?

Later in Psalm 13:5-6, David expresses hope in God:

But I trust in your unfailing love;

    my heart rejoices in your salvation.

I will sing the Lord’s praise,

    for he has been good to me.

Instead of withdrawing from God, he pushes towards him. His prayer starts with expressing his true feelings but ends with trusting God’s unfailing love and expecting salvation. He reminds himself of the history of God’s goodness in his life. His life progresses as he moves towards God in prayer, and his outlook on life becomes more positive. By the end, he is rejoicing and singing. What a turnaround. 

The same is true of Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane. It may seem like total desolation, but Jesus honestly expresses his feelings to God. He is not moving away from God when He feels deserted but towards Him. 

Maybe you feel abandoned by God and are thinking about giving up. I know how you feel! Honestly. Here are a few things I learned on my journey that may encourage you to press towards God rather than move away from him.

Scripture suggests that David experienced some abandonment as a child. Psalm 27:10 says:

Though my father and mother forsake me, the LORD will receive me.

Perhaps we can see this example when David’s father, Jesse, seems to forget about David when he presents his sons before the prophet Samuel (1 Samuel 16). Only when Samuel asks whether Jesse has any more sons after seeing seven of them does he remember David out in the fields. When we experience feelings of abandonment or the reality of this, particularly as a child, it can leave us with a heart wound, which makes us vulnerable in later life.

 It doesn’t even have to be an actual event. When we perceive it and believe it, it becomes an influential lie that can resonate loudly. This was my case, and I needed to experience healing from God in this area. The effects of my belief had some devastating consequences, and I felt constantly lonely, expecting that other people would also abandon me. I began to dismantle the lie by discovering Scripture that spoke to my feelings of abandonment, and as I renewed my mind, I faced the world around me with more confidence and faith. Hebrews 13:5-6 says:

“…God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”

John 14:16-17 says:

And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever— the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be[ in you.

I began to shape prayers that broke the stronghold of wrong thinking and spoke the truth. I would pray:

 “I renounce the lie that I am all alone and abandoned. I announce the truth that God will never leave me or forsake me. He is my helper, and so I will not be afraid. I announce that I have a helper and advocate with me forever, and the Spirit leads me into all truth. He lives in me, and He lives with me. I will not be afraid when I feel lonely or abandoned because I know I am not alone. The Lord receives me, and I will trust in His unfailing love and rejoice in His salvation.”

As I washed myself in the Word of God, my thinking changed, affecting my feelings. So, when I feel abandoned or lonely now, I can say this prayer with faith.

Another thing I realised I had to do was to release God from my disappointment in Him. He never does anything wrong, but we can feel and believe it and hold it against Him. This leads to the very separation we are trying to avoid, as we don’t trust Him and feel resentful toward Him. We must forgive people for the wrongs we feel (whether they happened or we just perceived them), so we must express our forgiveness or release of God. Bitterness and unforgiveness build walls that separate and do us harm. Forgiveness and release enable us to remove the walls of separation and mistrust and restore fellowship.

If you feel that God does not care and has abandoned you, I hope you will be encouraged to move towards God in prayer, as David and Jesus did. If you feel resentment and bitterness towards Him or others, forgive and release them and have a clean slate to bring hope and life to your future. So many things can damage our faith journey, yet God gives us the answers to keep walking and grow stronger. He wants to meet with you in your pain and for you to know that He is with you. He does care, and He is near. He does not lie, and as you create your own prayer of faith, may you discover the freedom to live life to the full. 

Mark lives in Niagara Falls, Canada with his wife, Janet. They have 5 children and a dog and enjoy exercise, public speaking, and motivating others. They have walked through many years of navigating mental illness and its effects on their marriage, their children, and pretty much every aspect of their lives. Through Living Well Coaching, their desire is to connect people to Jesus’ unlimited resources, and help them build resilient, healthy, and fruitful lives that glorify God and reach their full potential. You can follow them on social media: INSTAGRAM @livingwellcoaching; FACEBOOK livingwellcoachingniagara or their website Livingwellcoaching.ca

By Scott Box

My friend Toby and I were the only two remaining in the back room. The music band, Sunday morning leadership, and the pastoral team had finished the pre-service prayer and had left the room to make final preparations and adjustments for the church service. Toby was scheduled to make a brief announcement before officiating the offering (we still pass baskets at our church). I looked at his bald head and bright Hawaiian shirt and grinned. Toby is a joyous curiosity. I know a bit about Toby’s past as a United States Marine and Special Forces operator who has been shot at multiple times in his life, had guns put to his head out in some Middle Eastern desert and done his share of shooting back. Also, he once stole a hymnal from the US Marine Chapel in Quantico, Virginia, to give me as a gift. I love Toby. I also love sharing my ministry work with him as a leader in a wonderful church in Central Oregon. 

As I was about to step out of the back room, I offered Toby a clarifying comment about the timing of his arrival to the platform later that morning so he and I would be in sync (I lead music for the church). Toby interrupted me mid-sentence. He was turned sideways and bent over, refreshing and adjusting new water bottles onto a short bookshelf. He calmly spoke, “I got it, Scott. This morning, s***(expletive) doesn’t start until I say so.” He raised his head to make eye contact with me. The gleam in his eye told me he was having some fun but was also dead serious. He understood his mission and had the transitions under control—and that, basically, I needed to “back off.”

I immediately belly laughed and offered a, “Sounds like we understand each other, Toby. It ALL starts when you say so, babycakes.” 

Ahhh, side-note: As a pastor, can I tell you how refreshing it is when someone just “says the thing.”—no games?! It’s wonderful. I love people like Toby. 

That is the way it needs to be with people like you and me, too—we are people who are learning to manage mental health challenges—no games. There is too much to lose. And while we don’t have to “say the thing” quite the way Toby did—grin—we need to speak the truth to ourselves and others about the challenges and joys of the fight (or surrender) for health. No games.

I won’t take too much time to differentiate, but as we learn to manage our health, are we honest about our challenges? Are we taking the time to acknowledge and celebrate our joyful accomplishments? Do we make healthy decisions when we celebrate? Are we sure we should be fighting, not surrendering (to Jesus)? More specifically, I mean, do we suppose that succumbing to our vices or self-medicating is better than gathering a small God honoring and loving team to help us fight for our lives? 

Are we willing to “say the thing?” 

Action plan: 

Take a minute and write a single word or three on paper or in a note on your computer or phone. Speak the truth to yourself. Are you broken? Write “broken.” Are you complete? Write “complete.” Are you fighting? Write, “fighting.” Are you surrendering? Or are you lost, and your head is blank? Are you simply surviving? Write these words or others, then share them with someone you trust. Maybe plop the words in front of their face and wait for them to look at you curiously. Then, “say the thing.” Risk putting the words you wrote into spoken sentences. Attempt to explain YOU to someone who loves YOU. 

When I am bold enough to “say the thing” and live it, it’s a great way—the best way—for me to harness my bipolar disorder for good by bringing Jesus into my story and His heroic wholeness to the world in me and around me. My family and friends (generally) thank me when I “say the thing.” “Saying the thing” welcomes God and others to become partners in my gritty story. “Saying the thing” keeps me from deadly isolation. “Saying the thing” is humbling and, ironically, selfless—heroic. 

Remember that I am encouraging you to “say the thing,” but I’m also telling you not to tell your friends and family to “back off.” Do the opposite: “Say the thing.” to invite Jesus and others into your story, your nightmare, your adventure. The truth is, Jesus is in control, but when it comes to this aspect of your mental health, my friend Toby is right, “s***(expletive) doesn’t start until (you) say so.” Your mental health is no game. 

So what are your words? Plop your words in front of someone’s face to invite them in. “Say the thing.” Live heroic. 

(***Next month, let’s talk about how we begin to identify, craft and release our gritty mental health stories to the world around us. We’ll get very specific and practical in September, baby!)

Scott and Kariann Box live in Redmond, Oregon. Scott serves as Pastor of Development at Shiloh Ranch Church and has been a worship leader for over twenty-five years. Kariann works as a Realtor in Central Oregon and supports Scott’s…creative spirit. They have two children, a one-hundred-pound Labradoodle and a four-pound Shih Tzu without teeth. Scott is the author of HEROIC DISGRACE: Order out of chaos. Hope out of fear. ― A Worship Hero Story 

By Mark Soppitt

While still a young and inexperienced pastor, one day, I told my wife I felt lonely. We had moved to a new town to begin this significant life change, leaving many of our old friends, yet not going far. So, I was surprised by the words coming out of my mouth. How could I be lonely? People surrounded me, and my call to pastor meant I spent much time with them. That evening, we joined a discipleship group for young leaders, with two guest speakers discussing how we hear God speak. At the end of our gathering, one said, “I know this is strange, and I can’t see that this would apply to anyone here, but I keep getting the word ‘loneliness’ in my mind. I wonder whether God is highlighting this issue in anyone’s life?” I could have jumped a mile! So could my wife, who gave me a big nudge. Timidly, I said it was me, and they prayed for me. Through that prayer, something changed, and I no longer felt that haunting loneliness.

The issue of loneliness in North American society is drawing more and more attention. In 2023, the US Surgeon General Dr Vivek Murphy declared a national loneliness and social isolation epidemic, warning that as many as half of US adults were at risk of adverse physical, mental, and societal health outcomes as a result.

What is loneliness?

Loneliness is a subjective feeling conveying that the relational connections we need with others to live well are absent.

US Surgeon General Dr Vivek Murphy describes loneliness in the following way: “Loneliness is like hunger or thirst. It’s a feeling that we experience when something we’re lacking for survival is missing from our life. And if we respond to it relatively quickly, it may go away. But just like hunger or thirst, it’s when it persists for a long period of time, when we’re not able to figure out how to address it, that is when we start to worry.” ¹

Who does it affect?

There are some good reasons why loneliness may affect those suffering from mental illness more than those who do not. Depression and anxiety make us less likely to want to connect with others. I know as a pastor suffering in this way, I didn’t want to see anyone, at times, even my closest family and friends. For a season, I turned up after the church service began and tried to leave before anyone could talk to me at the end. When I got home, I would often hide in my bedroom. That was a very bleak time, where I thought being alone was my protection from the internal and external struggles I faced.

Trauma is another life experience that can leave people isolated as we try to make sense of events that shatter the soul and leave the ability to connect with ourselves and others so very difficult. The notion of safety and normality is replaced with a sense of dread and fear of the worst happening again. Memories can be blocked entirely as a self-protective mechanism, and yet powerful emotions still find their way to the surface to wreak havoc in a world that seems so much more dangerous than before. 

Grief and loss can be another cause of loneliness, as loved ones are no longer there, and others avoid those grieving because they don’t know what to say. Growing older can restrict one’s mobility and social networks. Losing a job, retiring, moving to a new country or locality, or being single are also potential causes of loneliness. Technology in society plays a part in loneliness, as more people work and shop from home or make superficial ‘friends’ through social media. 

What is the antidote?

Genesis 2:18 reads, “The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him,” and conveys the sense that God created us with a need for others in our lives, be it through marriage and relationships, family, or community. In the famous words of the 17th century Dean of St.Paul’s Cathedral John Donne, “No man is an island.” 

We were created for unfractured relationships and community, as the Trinity enjoys within the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. God created us in His image or likeness, so the desire for relationships is in our DNA. We were made for companionship. Yet, finding and retaining mutually life-giving relationships is challenging in our broken world. We may have needed better role models or found healthier friendships. We may have suffered tremendous pain and harm through people and resolved never to be so vulnerable again.

Whatever the cause of our loneliness, like natural hunger, it begins to make its voice heard. And, much like our need for food to stay healthy, when we lack meaningful connections over a long period, the risk of harm to our health increases. 

How can we move away from a lonely life?

1. Recognise that God is everywhere and wants us to know He is with us. In Psalm 139, David writes, inspired by the Holy Spirit, “Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there;   if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.” Unlike any created being, God exists everywhere all at once. There is never a place we can find ourselves where He is not. Sometimes, we need healing in this area, either because of trauma or upbringing, so that we can enjoy the fellowship of God we were created for. Jesus calls us ‘friends,’ and He had close friends on earth, as well as being one with His Father. God promises that He will never leave or forsake us (Heb.13:5) and will not leave us alone as orphans but come to us (John 14:18). 
2. Find Community. It can be tempting to stay isolated due to fear, past experiences, feeling different, or other reasons. However, finding places where we can grow good friendships and meet people is crucial. Churches, social clubs, sports teams, gyms, hobbies and places to volunteer all offer such opportunities. When we emigrated to Canada, my family and I joined our local YMCA gym and began taking group exercise classes. During my time of depression and burnout, it provided camaraderie without being too much to handle. I was surprised by how much good this one thing did for me and my family. Eventually, I became a group fitness instructor at the YMCA to give back some of what I had received to others. We don’t need to throw ourselves into unsafe groups without boundaries. We just need to find places to belong and feel welcomed into.
3. Forgive and be forgiven. One significant challenge to overcoming loneliness is letting go of past hurts and wounds and being willing to get up again when knocked down. Sometimes devastating things happen, and we get caught up in them. I don’t believe in the phrase “everything happens for a reason.” I cannot explain some of the horrendous things that happen to people. Yet, I know that God will come and heal the brokenhearted and can restore what was stolen from our lives. Forgiveness has tremendous healing power as we choose to let go of the chain that binds us to that person or people. It is not forgetting horrible things but rather choosing to leave justice in the hands of the eternal Father, who will judge the living and the dead one day. If you find it hard to forgive yourself for what you have done to others in past times, know that the blood of Jesus covers our mistakes and offers a door to a new start. If God is willing to forgive you, what stops you from forgiving yourself?

If you are lonely, I hope you will find ways to rediscover life-giving relationships that mirror God’s friendship and companionship. Know that you are not alone. Many people feel they need to improve at making good relationships. Is there one step you can take today to move away from loneliness? 

1. “Dangers of Loneliness” ABC News online article by Youri Benadjaoud, June 12th, 2024, 11:26 AM ET ↩︎

Mark lives in Niagara Falls, Canada with his wife, Janet. They have 5 children and a dog and enjoy exercise, public speaking, and motivating others. They have walked through many years of navigating mental illness and its effects on their marriage, their children, and pretty much every aspect of their lives. Through Living Well Coaching, their desire is to connect people to Jesus’ unlimited resources, and help them build resilient, healthy, and fruitful lives that glorify God and reach their full potential. You can follow them on social media: INSTAGRAM @livingwellcoaching; FACEBOOK livingwellcoachingniagara or their website Livingwellcoaching.ca

By Catherine Boyle

“I wish my church had something like mental health ministry.”

“It would be so great if my pastor could get your mental health resources.”

“I’m a volunteer and I’d like to start a mental health ministry. Can you help?”

These are the kinds of comments we receive from people who reach out to Key Ministry, often individuals who are faithful volunteers and members of their church. These individuals are alike in that they have often been personally impacted by their own mental illness or that of a loved one, and they know from experience how important it is for their church to help people navigate the suffering and challenges of mental illness. Too often they also have the experience of not being heard or believed. This is why Key Ministry is hosting our first Mental Health and the Church conference, September 26 – 27, 2024, in Cleveland, OH. 

Over the past 20+ years, we have been honored to help influence the disability ministry movement. In the past two decades, the Church as a whole has reached the point where disability ministry is now not only to individuals with disabilities, as objects of ministry, but is now much more often ministry with individuals with disabilities and their families. We are humbled that God has allowed our Disability and the Church conference to play a role in this ministry growth and the mindset shift that has taken place in so many congregations.

We very much desire that the same thing take place in the mental health space.

Pastor Brad Hoefs and Fresh Hope have been longtime Key Ministry friends and colleagues. We are delighted that Brad will be one of the main stage speakers at Mental Health and the Church, speaking from a pastor’s perspective on why churches need to offer peer-led mental health support. 

Fresh Hope is a great example of the incredible value of peers in mental health ministry; Key Ministry has discussed the vital role of peer leaders in various forums, including a recent mental health-focused monthly video roundtable discussion. In addition to Brad’s message, there will be messages from many other peer leaders, people who have ‘been there’ and have taken the challenges in their lives and translated those experiences into wisdom and blessings for others. Our speaker lineup includes well-known individuals likeKay Warren, Kelly Rosati, Dr. Mark Mayfield, Rachel Medefind, Dr. Chris Hulshof, Dr. Phillip Monroe. But like our Disability and the Church conference, this event will also feature other individuals you should know, people with excellent ideas and approaches that can equip and sharpen your mental health ministry.

Jesus said, “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.” There is much wisdom gained through the challenges and suffering that is common to mental illness. The Mental Health and the Church conference is the first of what we hope will be many opportunities to harness the hard-won wisdom among the speakers at MHATC2024. Each of these presenters will “comfort with the comfort they have received,” to equip you and your church to effectively come alongside individuals and families needing extra support in their relationship with Christ due to mental health challenges. We hope to see you there! For questions about the event, contact catherine@keyministry.org. 

The world is a hurting place. The pain is all around us. And it can feel overwhelming at times.

I remember taking a walk through my neighborhood – just around a few blocks in our subdivision. As I was walking past doorways and driveways, I was struck by the thought that I had no idea what was going on behind those walls. I didn’t know if there was a family in that house, or a widower, or a single upwardly-climbing business woman. I didn’t know if there was pain in that family, if they were enduring heartache or physical pain or the struggle of a loved one. I had no idea. And all I could do was pray. Pray as I walked past each garage door, that God would touch those in that house with His love and peace. That He would bring someone into their lives – is it me, Lord? – to show them the love of God, the salvation that Christ brings to a hurting world.

The reality of living on this side of heaven, being “at home in the body” (2 Corinthians 5:6), on this earth, is that there is pain. Sin brought ugliness into God’s perfect creation. Sin brought death, and dying, and illness. Including mental illness. I’m not saying that I was diagnosed with a mental illness because I’m a sinner. No! I’m saying that mental illness can be a result of living in a sinful world.

I see so many of my friends and acquaintances in pain. Parents grieving as they watch their child struggling. Folks with memories that haunt them. Couples who’ve lost a pregnancy. Marriages full of fighting and strife, or no communication at all. People who are lonely. People who are depressed. Or anxious. The pain is great.

“Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about.” Wendy Mass, “The Candymakers”

So what can we do when we’re overwhelmed by the pain of this world? Our own pain, as we struggle in our battle against our mental illness. Or the pain we feel as we watch our loved one struggle in this same way.

There are two things we can focus on – knowing God’s character, and knowing what God says about you.

Knowing Jesus – who He is, what His character is, what He’s done for us by His death on the Cross, and by rising again to eternal life – knowing these things about Jesus, not just in our heads, but believing them in our hearts, brings peace to the chaos of the world that sin has created.

And the Bible tells us that “The Son (Jesus) is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, …” (Hebrews 1:3a NLT). If you want to know what God is like, look at Jesus. Read the Gospels – the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, and study Jesus. What delighted Him? What angered Him? Where did He show compassion and kindness? Who were His friends? What did He say? What was He passionate about? All of the answers to these questions will reveal who God is.

Then take it a step further. What does God say about how He feels about you? You are loved. You are cherished. You are redeemed. You are His adopted child. You are wanted. You are the apple of His eye. He delights in you. He rejoices over you with singing! (For more, look at “Who I Am In Christ,” Victory Over The Darkness by Dr. Neil Andersen.) These are truths from God’s Word – how He sees you – not in the pain of your sin, but by the redeeming blood of Christ in your life.

There are lots of daily practices we can engage in to help our mental health – we’ve discussed those many times in this weekly blog. But something that we can all do, and always do more of, is learn more about God, and more about what He says about how He sees us. A couple of things will happen:

• Our gaze will shift from our crummy circumstances to our Mighty God.
• Our thoughts about ourselves, and the words we say to ourselves, will slowly be replaced with the thoughts that God thinks of us. And these are true, not the lies of the sinful world or what our diagnosis wants to tell us.

Both of these will ultimately help us reframe our situation, and retrain our brains in the way we think. And that is good for our mental health!

Peggy has been involved with Fresh Hope as a Group Facilitator for 5 years and as the Hope Coach trainer for 3. You can reach her at peggy@freshhope.us

By Pastor Dale Rose

While pastoring First Assembly of God in Montclair, California, my wife Martha and I struggled in raising a son who was making wrong choices that affected his life and ours.   There came a point where we attended a Southern California Network Conference where Dr. Richard Dobbins was the speaker.   We went to the conference in a broken condition.  The week previous we had asked our son to leave our home because of his conduct.  We felt that our decision to ask Steve to leave was within the boundaries we had established in our home.

On the first night, at the end of the service, Dr. Dobbins asked for those who were having trouble in their homes to stand.   We knew we had to stand but were astonished to be among a large number of ministers who were also standing. 

Thank God there came a point where our son turned around.  Once again, he was a part of the church and doing well and felt a call to ministry.  It had been over three years since he graduated from high school and going to college didn’t seem like a possibility……but God.

One Sunday during our annual missions convention we were dining with the convention speaker, Dr. Doug Peterson, from Costa Rica.   He was also a professor at Southern California College (now Vanguard University).  Dr. Peterson encouraged our Steve to pursue the application process and told him being twenty two years old would not be a hindrance.

Steve applied and was accepted to attend Southern California College.  He did well academically and completed his degree in Religion.  We took him to Hawaii to celebrate his graduation.  While there we visited a friend who was the Pastor of a Calvary Chapel.   Our friend, Scott Gillis, invited Steve to stay and become their Youth Pastor.

Months later he came home during the holidays and a discussion about student loans came up.   Steve had to work at a secular job in Hawaii as the remuneration was minimal.   That job ended when  the construction project was done,  he couldn’t find another job.

It was decided that he would return home and find ministry and employment on the mainland.  As he entered the work force it seemed that there were problems everywhere.   He felt the people around him didn’t like him.  He worked several jobs, and it became evident to us that there seemed to be some paranoia involved.  Soon the paranoia was evident at work  and everywhere.   He thought that a neighborhood friend wanted to kill him.   When we left the house, he ducked down in the back seat so no one would see or hurt him.

Steve thought that one of his former professors, Dr. Sam Southerd,  might help him with some answers.   Dr. Southerd had some contacts at Fuller Seminary in the Psychology Department, and they took Steve into the program to do a study.   The results were not good, the diagnosis was schizophrenia.

As we searched for answers to mental health questions, we attended a conference called Mental Health and The Church at Saddleback Church, where Rick Warren was pastor.  It was a great event with speakers from all over the nation.   As I perused all the books before the conference began, I found one that got my attention.   Fresh Hope for Mental Health by Brad Hoefs.

Brad’s story is amazing!  His book presents seven tenets that are building blocks for recovery.  After the conference I sat down with Wendell Vinson and Steve Vinson, the Lead and Executive Pastors of our church.   I told them that there was a faith based mental health program called Fresh Hope and that Martha, Steve and I would like to facilitate it.  They were immediately onboard!

We took three months to plan and educate ourselves on the mechanics of being facilitators and published a start date.  Steve was excited, he was going to have ministry again! Three weeks from our start date we got a call from Steve’s roommate saying he had just come home and found Steve dead.  Devastated, we thought that he committed suicide.   Dealing with ideations of suicide was one of the things Steve dealt with.  It took us three months to receive the results of the autopsy;  Steve had died from a heart attack.   He had no diagnosis of a heart condition although he did have high blood pressure sometimes.

It has been ten years since we lost Steve.  It has been ten years since we started Fresh Hope For Mental Health.   We are now Ambassadors at a National level and do our best to tell people about a free faith based mental health program.  Fresh Hope is now in fifteen countries and the book has been translated into three languages.  Facilitator training is not difficult and is done entirely online.  Your church can have Fresh Hope!  Can we help you?

Pastor Dale Rose, Minister of Congregational Care  Canyon Hills AG Bakersfield, California

By Chantele Olivo

To Whom It May Concern

Yes, this Letter is for YOU!

Guess what? Has anyone thanked you today for being you? I wanted to thank you today. Would you allow me to? I thought of you while I prayed for you today, I held you in my thoughts and released it to the air nothing out loud or boisterous but a sweet exhale. I thought in the back of my mind, I hope you’re doing all right, that beyond a shadow of doubt we hold you tight in our minds, but perhaps you’re struggling or are you okay for today, but I just wanted to thank you. You may ask yourself why? For being part of the team of Fresh Hope…yes, you! I thought that maybe you didn’t understand how gratitude works…how for some of us it is a lifestyle that changed us. The person writes and thinks to themselves about what or whom they are grateful for. In a short reply I am grateful to YOU! Just in case you come across anything in life to be grateful for think about this…Thankful you showed up, thankful you listened, and took charge of your wellness. Your taking care of yourself so thank you for that is what life is all about. I hope that you may know that you are valued like gold, appreciated, and esteemed for others to see, important like the gift you give to others, indispensable heirloom, precious and loved like the helpful person you are, prized treasured possession, and respectable beyond these four walls. We all come from different pies, but different pies bring different experiences to the dinner table so thanks for being part of not only Fresh Hope but grateful you are here…We are thankful you are part of this team. Please hold yourself to the same degree what you are to me should be worth noting that you are truly gifted to see how essential you truly are, so I invite you to be joyful for who you are today and S.T.A.N.D. You are sacrificial in nature, teachable, Awesome, Necessary, and Deserving. 

In Dearest and Highest Regards

Chantele Olivo

By Mike Jacquart

Single. Divorced. Widowed. Childless. If you can check one or more of these, this blog post is especially for you.

There are many great benefits in belonging to a Fresh Hope or other support group. It’s an opportunity to share your troubles, celebrate personal victories, and every step in between. Perhaps best of all, since participants either have a mental health diagnosis, or are the loved one of an individual with a mental health challenge, participants understand these challenges all too well.

While this is largely the case, gaps in understanding can still remain. Which brings us back to the first paragraph in this post. It’s been my experience at least, that the majority of group members are married with children. If this isn’t the case, what then? In my 30+ year career in publishing, I experienced working mainly with married people when I was single, and working largely with single coworkers when I was married. In both cases, it was not easy to relate, “to fit in.”

For the most part, I have felt I “fit in” in my group. And that is certainly a blessing! But even if you’re married, not having kids can be a barrier. Especially during holiday seasons, married participants with kids will discuss the challenges in kids coming home – cleaning the house, shopping, cooking, and especially, the worries about everyone getting along. These are definitely legitimate concerns!

The point is, if you are in any of the “subgroups” listed at the beginning of this blog post, you may have a difficult time relating to the stressful family issues of fellow group participants. As a caring Christian, I want to relate, I want to empathize. But this is not easy when you don’t share the same experiences, like you do when discussing mental health challenges.

The reverse is also true: Individuals with kids may dismiss your thoughts on the matter, saying you don’t know how lucky you are to not have these family problems to deal with.  Perhaps so, but such statements do little to validate one’s feelings.

After all, whatever the holiday, many of these gatherings center on children, grandchildren, plenty of food, etc. Have they given a thought to what it’s like having no one to visit because Mom and Dad are deceased. Or no children or grandkids to visit, or to visit your home.  It can leave you feeling empty and very left out, since it’s largely just another day.

As a result, while I certainly have fond memories of family gatherings with parents, siblings, etc., they do not always help in the here and now. 

I need to stress that I did not write this blog to gain sympathy. I have A LOT to be thankful for – a great wife, wonderful friends, siblings, a terrific little dog, etc. All I ask is to be given an opportunity to have my feelings validated on subject matter that can all too quickly be dismissed amidst other concerns in a group setting.

Maybe I’m being a tad harsh and group participants “get me” more than I might think. After all, I know everyone in the group is, first and foremost, a caring Christian regardless of individual differences. In any case, it is important to recognize different perspectives that we might otherwise overlook.

Mike Jacquart belongs to a Fresh Hope support group and the author of “Climbing out of Darkness: A Personal Journey into Mental Wellness.” He enjoys sharing his story of “pushing through” on blog posts, podcasts, and other presentations. For more information, contact him at madjac@tds.net.