Category Archives: Healing

Learning To Be Loved After Childhood Trauma

I happened to marry a guy who had a childhood completely free of abuse. When we were dating, I began sharing my story with him and I watched him look at me in shock. Beautifully, even though we had such different childhood experiences, we both wanted the same things out of life, agreed on howContinue reading “Learning To Be Loved After Childhood Trauma”

For The Christian Who STILL Wrestles With Mental Illness.

You would NEVER look at a first responder with a limp or a missing limb or a wound and think “you have no value, you shouldn’t be here.” Yet we are walking with invisible wounds, living inside them everyday, and we tell ourselves the most horrible things.

People Are Usually Fine With Boundaries…As Long As They’re Temporary And You Don’t Actually Mean It.

Let’s get right to it. Even in the most dysfunctional families…those families where the cops get called to every gathering…family members generally accept boundaries, so long as they’re temporary, and don’t last longer than what the group deems acceptable. Your brother might punch you in the face and you might not talk to him forContinue reading “People Are Usually Fine With Boundaries…As Long As They’re Temporary And You Don’t Actually Mean It.”

10 Things Healthy People Do When They Love A Toxic Person

I could probably write an entire chapter as an intro to the blog post, but I won’t. Everyone has difficult people in their lives. And if you haven’t yet, you certainly will. Unfortunately, toxic people are easy to find, although they don’t always come off as toxic at first.

You Are A Story: And You Have The Right To Tell It

There is that quote, “Show me your friends and I will show you your future.” It’s also true, show me your friends and I will show you the depth of healing you’ll achieve.

You Are Not Too Damaged. You Are Not Broken Beyond Repair: God Is Enough!

I hear it and read it all the time. But mostly I see it: people who have barricaded themselves inside walls built by trauma, lies, fear. It doesn’t mater who built these walls. What matters is that the walls are still standing. And sometimes I think we actually repair these walls around us. We reinforceContinue reading “You Are Not Too Damaged. You Are Not Broken Beyond Repair: God Is Enough!”

I Collect Dead, Dying Things. I Collect Brokenness.

I found this coin when I was 10 years old. I was camping about an hour east of Seattle, deep in the mountains, and as I walked barefoot through the camp sites I suddenly felt something underneath my feet that seemed out of place. I looked down to see a square coin, and couldn’t believeContinue reading “I Collect Dead, Dying Things. I Collect Brokenness.”

Child Abuse Is The Social Justice Issue We’ve All Been Overlooking

I listened to a podcast today that talked about how, in the Bible, there is no concept of separate justice issues. There is only JUSTICE and INJUSTICE. Preach!  When you start talking about injustice, child abuse doesn’t really jump to the forefront of your mind. Because it hides in plain sight, and like a deadly bacteriaContinue reading “Child Abuse Is The Social Justice Issue We’ve All Been Overlooking”

5 Questions You Need to Ask Yourself if You’ve Ever Loved a Toxic Person

Recovering from an abusive relationship is no small task. You have to relearn how to like yourself, how to love yourself, and how to trust again. Your pain is valid. Your suffering and struggles are valid. You are not exaggerating. It’s not “all in your head”. You struggle for a reason. And it is NORMAL toContinue reading “5 Questions You Need to Ask Yourself if You’ve Ever Loved a Toxic Person”