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.
In the Valley of Postpartum Depression by Lindsey Carlson
While PPD is common, it often goes undiagnosed. According to new research out of Canada, postpartum women actually experience anxiety more than they experience symptoms we’d typically associate with depression. This was certainly the case for me. Because not every mother’s symptoms are the same, it can be easy to overlook or dismiss warning signs. According to the American Journal of Clinical Medicine, “the majority of undiagnosed cases are probably due to the social stigma of being labeled an ‘unhappy mother,’ not to mention the public image of PPD.”
- If you are struggling with depression, regardless of its various causes, here is a resource that can help.
How to Help Church Members Who Take in a Rebellious Teen Relative by Linda Jacobs
Many times when a teen is out of control and the parent is not capable of caring for the child, a family member or other person is called in to help. If a state agency is called in and the agency workers determine a child must be removed from the home, they will usually try to find a relative to care for the child versus putting the child into foster care. When a relative can be found, kinship care, the term for when a relative provides care, is preferred by most state agencies… In this post I want to share some of his suggestions; some of the things I knew intuitively to do; and also some suggestions from a personal friend who was a teenage counselor.
- Here is resource to help you identify when you move from helping to enabling in a high-need situation.
For Veterans, Trauma Of War Can Persist In Struggles With Sexual Intimacy by Alisa Chang
Much has been said about the physical and psychological injuries of war, like traumatic brain injury or post-traumatic stress disorder. But what we talk about less is how these conditions affect the sexual relationships of service members after they return from combat.
- Here is a post that catalogues resources for various intimacy struggles and a resource on PTSD.
Mint Budget Tracker: Leveraging Tech to Glorify God in the Home by Jeremy Lundmark
If you’ve ever written a budget, or been through a budgeting class like Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace University or Crown Financial’s Money Map you already know how to write a budget. However, for most people it’s not writing a budget, but sticking to the budget, that is the hard part.
- For additional help on creating a budget you will actually use, consider the Creating a Gospel-Centered Marriage: Finances seminar.
The Pastor and Counseling: When to Refer by Jesse Johnson
In fact, it is because they stress the priority of the local church so thoroughly that they are able to write with conviction on the counseling pastor’s dilemma: referring out. When should a pastor tell someone in their congregation with a spiritual problem that they would be better served by seeing a professional counselor outside of the church? Pierre and Reju offer four indicators of when a pastor should refer.
- For more on pastors and counseling, consider this question from Summit’s FAQ series about the difference between meeting with pastoral and licensed counselor.
CCEF Now (PDF Magazine)
This edition contains articles on prison ministry, identifying oppression in marriage, and when a child says, “I don’t know.”
When I’m Reading
Parenting: 14 Gospel Principles That Can Radically Change Your Family by Paul Tripp. What is your calling as a parent?In the midst of folding laundry, coordinating carpool schedules, and breaking up fights, many parents get lost. Feeling pressure to do everything “right” and raise up “good” children, it’s easy to lose sight of our ultimate purpose as parents in the quest for practical tips and guaranteed formulas.
In this life-giving book, Paul Tripp offers parents much more than a to-do list. Instead, he presents us with a big-picture view of God’s plan for us as parents. Outlining fourteen foundational principles centered on the gospel, he shows that we need more than the latest parenting strategy or list of techniques. Rather, we need the rescuing grace of God—grace that has the power to shape how we view everything we do as parents.
Freed from the burden of trying to manufacture life-change in our children’s hearts, we can embrace a grand perspective of parenting overflowing with vision, purpose, and joy.
Tweet of the Week
I wonder how much learning and joy we've missed out on because we've been afraid to engage with those not like us (ethnicity, theology, etc)
— Trillia Newbell (@trillianewbell) January 6, 2017
If the injustice that affects you is the only injustice that upsets you, then it's not really injustice that you're upset about.
— Garrett Kell ن (@pastorjgkell) January 5, 2017
Beware of mistaking the gifts of the Spirit w/ the fruit of the Spirit. Competency w/o character is a catastrophe
— Jed Coppenger (@jedcoppenger) January 3, 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.
