This is a weekly post that highlights resources from other counselors that I have found helpful. The counselors may be from the biblical counseling, Christian psychology, integration, or secular counseling traditions. By linking to a post, I am not giving it my full endorsement, I am merely indicating that I believe it made a unique contribution or raised an important subject for consideration.
Father to the Fatherless What to Believe When Dad Walks Away by Jonathan Edwards
A.W. Tozer says, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us” (The Knowledge of the Holy). What we think about our heavenly Father says a lot about who we are. But what if our thoughts about our Father are entangled with and stained by the abuse and abandonment of our earthly father? Anyone who has experienced the acute pain of dad walking out knows it can be all-consuming. I have, and I know. Dad driving away shattered the one thing I believed to be indestructible, superhuman even: my family. But family turned out to be more fluid than I once thought . . . and hoped.
- If you enjoyed this post, consider Jonathan’s book Left highlighted in the “What I’m Reading” section below.
How Many Pills Are Too Many? by
The point of prescription drugs is to help us get or feel well. Yet so many Americans take multiple medications that doctors are being encouraged to pause before prescribing and think about “” as well.
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For more on this subject consider my post “6 Steps to Wise Decision Making About Psychotropic Medications.”
How to be a Friend Magnet by Christine Hoover
So, for my darling friends who are worried about having too many BFFs to handle, this is what I would say: honor all and be deep friends with some. Be friendly and hospitable to all and give intimate attention to a few. Welcome all. Keep an eye out for all. Love all. You don’t have to be close friends with everyone, but you can certainly use your God-given influence to bless others and connect women with one another. Be a friend magnet and you’ll attract joy too.
- For those friendships you want to take to a deeper level one of these posts may be helpful “7 Marks of Enduring Accountability Relationships” or “5 Questions I Wished My Accountability Partner Would Ask Me.”
How Brainy Women Benefit the Church by Hannah Anderson
Although I didn’t realize it then, our collective understanding of intelligence—and my perception of my own intelligence—had been taking shape for several years. A recent study by Lin Bian, a psychologist at the University of Illinois, reveals that children as young as six are already forming views about the nature of intelligence, including associating it with masculinity. Standing in that hallway was the first time I remember questioning whether being a “smart” girl was a benefit or a social liability.
- For excellent resources on women’s ministry I have greatly appreciated the writings of Sharon Hodde Miller.
Growing Up: Six Basic Steps toward Maturity by David Gundersen
How can young people move toward maturity? How can adolescents grow into young adults? How can college students move through the college years with increasing integrity, character, maturity, skill, and productivity? Here are six basic steps to help the saplings of the next generation add rings as they reach for the light.
- For more on this subject consider my collection of posts on character.
What I’m Reading
Left: The Struggle to Make Sense of Life When a Parent Leaves by Jonathan Edwards. Nothing hurts like the abandonment of a parent. In Left, Jonathan Edwards writes a raw and riveting reflection on his life as an abandoned child. What should you do when you are left by a parent?
This book is brutally honest, but it provides hope for anyone struggling with the absence of a parent. For those who do not know this pain, Left provides a window into the lives of others. Abandonment always leaves scars, but Jesus heals. And He will never leave you.
Tweets of the Week
To the degree your eyes widen with gratitude, so will your hands open with generosity.
— David Fairchild (@David_Fairchild) April 26, 2017
A rich man
is nothing but a poor man
with money.
– WC Fields— Scott Sauls (@scottsauls) April 30, 2017
The gym is a microcosm of our society – lots of potential for community yet so much individualism, isolation, & insecurity
— Jason Kovacs (@jasonkovacs) April 26, 2017
Meaningful Meme
On the Lighter Side
Because, “A joyful heart is good medicine, but a crushed spirit dries up the bones,” Proverbs 17:22.